The media luncheon for the 2024 Porter Cup was held Tuesday, July 9th at the Niagara Falls Country Club . Tournament Co-Director Marty Shimmel and Assistant Director Michael Boss addressed the media and answered questions along with Co-Director Janelle Degregorio.

For the first time in it’s 64 year history the Porter Cup will be a combined Men’s and Women’s event. Tournament officials announced that this year there will be both a Men’s and Women’s Division consisting of 54 Players in each Division with alternating tee times. Tournament co director Dena Armstrong said “We’re excited with this new change. This new format will give area golf enthusiasts the opportunity to see top women amateur golfers as well as the top men over a four day period.” The Porter Cup will be held July 12-15th at Niagara Falls Country Club and once again M&T Bank will be the major sponsor. For more information go to www.portercup.com.

Courtesy Amatuer Golf Continuing his prolific 2022 campaign, Kevin VandenBerg has added the Senior Porter Cup to his growing list of accomplishments on the Senior circuit. Following Wednesday’s postponement at Niagara Falls Country Club, the championship was reduced from 54 to 36 holes, meaning VandenBerg was just 18 holes way from a coveted title after carding 3-under 67 on Thursday. The Pulaski, N.Y. resident suffered an early dent in the opening holes of Friday’s final round, making a double-bogey 7 at the par-5 3rd. Additional bogeys at 7 and 9 brought him to 1-over for the tournament and into a four-way tie for the lead with just the back nine remaining. VandenBerg, after turning at 39, drained three birdies including a clinching 2 at the par-3 18th to claim a one-shot victory over Andy Bernatovicz. The win is VandenBerg’s second major title this year, with the first coming back in January at the Heron Creek Senior Invitational. Overall, it’s his eighth top-5, including an impressive 4th-place finish at the Jones Cup Senior — one of the strongest fields of the season. Defending champion Steve Maddalena was in Friday’s final group alongside VandenBerg and Michael Hughett. The trio were tied atop the leaderboard on the 10th tee box but Maddalena and Hughett would go on to post 2-over 72 to finish in a tie for fourth place. Bernatovicz, of Grand Island, N.Y., turned in the round of the day which pushed him into a solo second-place finish. His final-round 68 was the second lowest score of the tournament, and had the potential for more were it not for a pair of closing bogeys at 14 and 15. The Super Senior title went to Philip Stegemann, who earned a one-shot win over Michael McNulty with rounds of 71 and 74. He began Friday with a two-stroke cushion over McNulty and Bruce McEwen.[/et_pb_text][/et_pb_column] [/et_pb_row] [/et_pb_section]

Courtesy Brian Chojnacki/ WGRZ-TV It eventually came down to Carson Bacha of Auburn and Garrett Engle of Oklahoma, who competed in a sudden-death playoff. LEWISTON, N.Y. — Some of the best young golfers around the world gathered at Niagara Falls Country Club this week to battle in one of the best amateur golf tournaments in the country. The 63rd men’s Porter Cup wrapped up on Saturday evening, and we had ourselves a wild finish. Four golfers were tied for first on the final two holes with a 6-under-par score. It eventually came down to Carson Bacha of Auburn and Garrett Engle of Oklahoma, who competed in a playoff. In sudden death, Bacha teed off first. He had a great shot that hit the green, while Engle’s tee shot went out of play, giving Bacha a golden opportunity to close the tournament out. Bacha hit two putts to secure the victory and claim the men’s Porter Cup championship, his second win of the summer, which was even more special because he did so with his mother as his caddy. “It’s number two of the summer,” Bacha said of the win. “First one was with dad on the bag. This one was nice to get it done with mom on the bag. It builds confidence moving forward.” 2 On Your Side’s Brian Chojnacki asked Bacha, “How does it feel to win one of the biggest amateur tournaments in the country?” Bacha said, “It feels great. It was an awesome week out here. All the hosts, tournament committee, Marty (Shimmel, the tournament Media director), they are all so great. It’s special to win this event, and yeah, it makes me happy.” Bacha finished the tournament with a 6-under-par score before beating Engle in the sudden-death playoff.

By Jonah Bronstein scoreboard@gnnewspaper.com LEWISTON — The finishing holes at Niagara Falls Country Club have traditionally stressed the cardiac function of amateur golfers in championship pursuit. That held true again Friday in a dramatic conclusion to the ninth Women’s Porter Cup. On her fifth lap of the undulating, 165-yard 18th hole, Katie Cranston wondered what the monitor on her wrist was reading about the physical and mental strain incurred by a late-round rally and an extended sudden-death playoff. “Oh my gosh,” Cranston said. “My heart was racing … I was shaking so bad.” Cranston steadied her nerves and outlasted Ontarian neighbor Brooke Rivers on the fourth playoff hole to claim Porter Cup crystal from her first amateur tournament victory. “I’m so happy,” Cranston said after walking off the green to hugs from teammates on Canada’s National Junior Squad wearing matching pink polo shirts. “I’ve won junior events, but amateurs is something different. It’s a whole new level.” Cranston, an 18-year-old from Oakville, Ontario who will play college golf for Auburn University, emerged from five strokes back with five holes remaining in medal play to match Rivers at 5-under par 211 through 54 holes and force a playoff. “I honestly thought it was over,” said Cranston, who pulled within a stroke of Rivers after opening the back nine with a pair of birdies, only to give four back with a bogey on No. 11 and double-bogey on 12. “I just thought, secure your second place and be happy with that.” Officials ceased speculating on who might win and started questioning whether Rivers, a 17-year-old from Brampton, Ontario who competes for Canada’s National Amateur Squad and has committed to Wake Forest, would break the tournament record (11-under) held by Brooke Henderson (2014) and Ana Paula Valdes (2018). Having entered the final round with a one stroke lead at 5-under par, Rivers went 10-under after making birdie on her opening three holes and five of the first 12 on Friday. That was before Rivers’ approach shot on the 360-yard 14th hole ricocheted off a greenside hill and rolled a foot beyond the out-of-bounds stakes. Rivers, who carded just three bogeys through the first 49 holes and none yet in the final round, took a triple on the par-4, trimming her lead to two strokes. Rivers maintained that advantage as she and Cranston both made double-bogey on the 16th hole and birdied the 17th. Shooting from the elevated tee box on the 18th, Cranston landed within 10 feet of the pin before sinking her birdie putt, while Rivers plopped in the sand trap beneath the green on her way to another bogey. “We both had a couple hiccups,” Cranston said. “It was honestly just a big mess. But we kind of equaled each other out.” The tension increased through repeated battles on No. 18. They went shot for shot three times through, following one another into bunkers off the tee and downhill putts skirting past the cup for par-bogey-bogey. Both took an extra club for the fourth playoff tee shot into a stiffening wind. Cranston blasted out of the sand to the middle of the green and two-putt from 15 feet for bogey. Rivers putted once from the fairway in front of the green and three more times from closer range to give Cranston the victory. “Reading the greens were quite difficult, and putting was definitely my weak point,” Rivers said. “The entire week, I played well, was swinging it well, was hitting it how I wanted to. My short game was where I needed it to be. Putting was what let me down.” Cranston admitted her focus waned as fatigue accumulated on the playoff holes. “By the end, I wasn’t as into the shot as I could’ve been,” she said. Cranston’s cheerful demeanor, however, held up as the pressure mounted. “I was happy either way,” Cranston said. “Obviously, I’d be a little bummed if I didn’t win. But I was happy with myself if I would’ve pretty much T-1. I was kind of loose, and if she made a good putt, she deserved to win.” Rivers concluded Cranston “was solid, kept her game together, stuck to what she was supposed to do, and kept hitting good shots.” No matter how fast her heartbeat.

By Mike Meiler mike.meiler@gnnewspaper.com Nearly everyone at Niagara Falls Country Club was rooting for Ben Reichert on Saturday. Mother Nature and the golf gods included. The East Aurora native became the first Western New Yorker since 1965 to capture the Porter Cup, leading the 62nd edition of the tournament wire-to-wire and finishing at 11-under with a 2-under 68 in Saturday’s final round. Playing in his sixth Porter Cup, Reichert created his own fortune most of the week. He carded only three bogeys over the entire 72 holes, going 29 straight without in one stretch after shooting a 6-under 64 to jump ahead Thursday. He needed a bit of luck to close the deal. Up one stroke on Elmira, Ontario’s Garrett Rank — the NHL referee and tournament favorite — heading onto the par-4 17th, Reichert crushed his tee shot right, a future souvenir in one of the many backyards lining NFCC. But the shot hit a tree and bounced back into the center of the fairway, and Reichert launched an iron onto the short side of the green for one of a handful of key pars. Rank, playing one group ahead, bogeyed 18, meaning Reichert needed at worst a 4 on the par-3 closing hole to win. But he walloped another tee shot over the green, seemingly headed for Mountain View Drive. Instead, the ball hopped and hit a spectator’s seat, stopping in play. Reichert finessed a chip just in front of the hole and closed with par. Rank, in his 10th Porter Cup, finished second and 9-under. New York City’s Ethan Ng and Amesbury, Massachusetts’ Chris Francoeur, tied for third at 8-under. Ng was one stroke back until the 17th hole. While setting up his approach shot, he practice swing caught part of a tree, causing his ball to move and taking a two-stroke penalty. Reichert’s chief competition most of the day, Norway’s Herman Senke, had a chance to tie with a 1-foot eagle putt on the par-5 11th, but it lipped out. He remained one stroke back of Reichert until the par-4 14th, when his tee shot sailed left, caught a tree and bounced out of bounds. He re-teed, and his approach from the right rough sailed over the green and into an unplayable area on the back of a hill After another drop penalty, a chip and a two-putt, Senke carded an 8 on the hole and fell back to 6-under.

PC NOTEBOOK: Wu comes through in final round. By Bill McGrath scoreboard@gnnewspaper.com Jul 21, 2018 LEWISTON — For those wanting to win the Porter Cup championship, reserve a room in the Armstrong household the next time around. The hosts are working some kind of magic these days. Dena Armstrong, one of the tournament’s directors, hit the daily double this year with both the men’s and women’s champions staying there. When Thomas Walsh won the 60th tournament on Saturday, it marked the second men’s winner in four years for the Armstrongs, Dena and husband Jack. Walsh follows Denny McCarthy, the 2015 champion. Both played at the University of Virginia. “Denny had a special place in my heart. He was with me for five years before he won,” Dena said. This was Walsh’s second Porter Cup. He played in the 2016 tournament, finishing tied for 11th, but missed last year because of an injury. “I love working with UVA guys,” Dena said. “We’ve had a number of them. And Thomas will be back next year. It’s a Walker Cup year so that will be great.” Walsh said he felt right at all week. “They make us feel extremely comfortable and take us in for the week,” Walsh said after Saturday’s final round. “They’re our mom for the week and it’s incredible, and we couldn’t do it without them for sure.” Wu saves best for last Brandon Wu, the 2017 champion, played more like he did a year ago when he posted a 2-under 68 on Saturday. He tied for 49th at 290 after a rocky 77 in the first round and a 72 and 73 after that. “I struggled on the greens all week and I put it in some bad spots,” he said. He was center stage at the awards ceremony, helping Walsh into his green champion’s blazer. “I’m looking forward to it, I think it’s a cool tradition,” he said shortly before the tournament ended. “I remember last year when Harrison (Endycott, the 2016 winner) put the jacket on for me.” Despite the numbers on his scorecard, he said he enjoyed his week. “This tournament is incredible. I think it’s so cool how the whole community gets into it. The host families, the sponsors, the whole crowd coming out to watch. It’s almost like a professional tournament.” Wu got a taste of a pro event when he played in the LECOM Health Challenge in July and finished tied for 41st. It is part of the Web.com Tour. His Porter Cup victory earned him an invitation. “It was an awesome experience,” Wu said. “It was my first professional experience. It was nice to get out and see what the pros are dealing with and how you stack up against them.” He will be a senior at Stanford and thinks he will still be an amateur at this time next summer, so he plans to play here again. Awesome Aussies Australian players have won three Porter Cup titles, the most recent Harrison Endicott two years ago. On Saturday, four of them were among the last five threesomes and all of them finished in the top 15. Blake Windred of Cardiff South tied for second with Ben Schlottman and Tyler Strafaci at 8-under 272, three strokes behind Walsh. Windred surged to 9-under with a birdie at 15, then dropped into a tie for runner-up with a bogey at 18. His 65 was one of four for low score in the final round. “It was really good today,” he said. “I felt confident that I could go at the flags. That last bogey cost me a little bit, but I was happy with the way I finished.” In brief Walsh’s victory gives him a berth in the LECOM Health Challenge next summer. It is played on the Upper Course of Peek’n Peak Resort in Clymer. … The Porter Cup will move back to its traditional fourth week of July in 2019. The dates are July 24-27. … Scott Harvey and Kevin O’Connell tied for the best score among the mid-amateurs at 5-under 275. Harvey, playing in his 10th Porter Cup, has finished in the top 10 four times. … Director Michael Vitch said the top 25 finishers in this year’s tourney earned automatic invitations to next’s year’s event. The cutoff is 282. #60thPorterCup #NiagaraFallsCountryClub

BY WYNSTON WILCOX wynston.wilcox@gnnewspaper.com LEWISTON — After teeing off the par-3 fourth hole with his 6-iron during the opening round of the 60th Porter Cup on Wednesday at Niagara Falls Country Club, Ben Reichert couldn’t find exactly where his ball landed. When he approached the pin and saw where his ball hit, about six or seven feet short, he figured it was in that vicinity. What didn’t come to mind right away was that it went in. It wasn’t until he couldn’t find his ball that he realized what might be happening. Reichert aced the 196-yard fourth, getting his first career hole-in-one on a course that has given him the least amount of luck. “The Porter Cup has always been special to me,” Reichert said. “It’s a unique environment, so to get my first one out here, it’s special.” He didn’t dwell too much on the moment, though. He said once he got to five, he put it in hindsight to finish out the round. And it worked, as Reichert finished the first round tied for first with a 5-under 65. Reichert, an East Amherst native in his fourth Porter Cup, is very familiar with the course. He also hasn’t had particularly strong showings. Generally, he finishes middle of the pack, last year coming in tied for 42nd. But this year, he’s out to a hot start, tied atop the leaderboard with North Carolina’s Ben Schlottman. “I just played pretty steadily all day, nothing really jumped out other than the hole-in-one,” Reichert said. “I’m in a pretty good spot heading into the rest of the week. … I didn’t really change much. This course fits my eye, it alway has, even though I haven’t played it great historically.” It was a a long birdie putt on 18 that gave him the temporary lead before Schlottman finished with a birdie as well to tie. Schlottman, a recent graduate of Auburn, is playing in his second Porter Cup and pleased to be the co-leader after day one. “My game just felt really solid the past few weeks so I came in with a lot of confidence,” said Schlottman, who won this year’s North & South Amateur Championship. “I made some putts in the front nine and got everything rolling and kept it going in the back (nine).” His mindset was not necessarily focused on being a leader after Wednesday but instead playing mistake free. He accomplished both, hitting five birdies and no bogeys in round one. Another local looking to make an impact in the Porter Cup is former Grand Island graduate Kevin Borowicz. Borowicz, who is playing in his first Porter Cup, is 1-over 71 going into Thursday’s second round. Though it’s his first time playing in the cup, it’s not his first exposure to it. “I’ve tried to qualify every year and circumstances were a little different this year and I was happy enough to get an invite,” he said. “The first year I caddied (in 2011), the guy almost won.” And that experience has given him the confidence and motivation to want to make a run of his own. Since graduating from GI in 2014, he’s played primarily amateur tournaments. He attends the University of Central Florida but is not on the golf team. Being one of the local guys playing in the tournament, he hopes his Porter Cup debut will be memorable. “It’s a lot of fun,” Borowicz said. “This week has usually just been me hitting balls at River Oaks (Golf Course). But to be able to come out here and play is a lot of fun. I’m really happy about that.” Follow sports reporter Wynston Wilcox on Twitter @wynstonw_ for updates on the Porter Cup. ••• 2018 Porter Cup Place Name To par Total T1 Ben Schlottman -5 65 T1 Ben Reichert -5 65 T3 Blake Windred -3 67 T3 Cole Hughes -3 67 T5 Daniel Wetterich -2 68 T5 Will Thomson -2 68 T5 Michael Mattiace -2 68 T5 Charlie Dann -2 68 T10 Austin Hitt -1 69 T10 Thomas Walsh -1 69 T10 Marcos Montenegro -1 69 T10 Michael Christifulli -1 69 T10 Daulet Tuleubayev -1 69 T10 Billy Haynes -1 69 T10 Ashwin Arasu -1 69 #60thPorterCup #BenReichert #BenSchlottman #NiagaraFallsCountryClub

The Porter Cup Executive Committee is pleased to announce the inaugural “Porter Cup Putting Challenge,” presented by Golf Galaxy. The challenge will take place during the final round on Saturday, July 21 from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. This public event will take place on the NFCC auxiliary hole, next to the public parking lot, and is completely free to spectators attending the 60th Porter Cup tournament. Putters will be available in all sizes for public use. Contestants are NOT permitted to bring their own putter to the challenge. Each participant will have the opportunity to net the lowest aggregate score during the three (3) cup putting contest (limited to one attempt per person). Players with the lowest score will be entered into a drawing for one of two 2018 Odyssey putters. $20 gift certificates redeemable at Golf Galaxy/Dick’s Sporting Goods will be awarded to the next eight closest scores. Grand prize winners (Odyssey putter) will be notified during the week of July 23-27, and can pick up the putter directly from Golf Galaxy Amherst (1581 Niagara Falls Blvd, Amherst, New York). #60thPorterCup #AmateurGolf #GolfGalaxy #NiagaraFallsCountryClub

Click the image to view First Round Tee Times. #60thPorterCup #NiagaraFallsCountryClub