Seiffert qualifies for Travelers again
ELLINGTON — Ever the master of the understatement, Chase Seiffert proclaimed that he was happy to be back at Ellington Ridge Country Club.
Was he ever.
Last year Seiffert shared medalist honors with a 67 in the annual Travelers Championshp 4-spot qualifier, which happened to be held at Ellington Ridge. Seiffert was back at the course on Monday, and thanks to finishing with a course-record 63, he has qualified for Connecticut annual PGA Tour stop for the second year in a row.
“I haven’t shot worse than 5-under here in my four rounds,” said Seiffert, who had an eagle on the 13th hole, eight birdies and one bogey. “You have to drive it well and it is one of my strengths and I seem to putt really slopey greens well and this place has some slopey greens. It just looks good to my eye and I seem to play well.”
Seiffert overcame his lone bogey on No. 8 to birdie to ninth hole to make the turn at 3 under par 33. He had
birdies on 10, 11, 14 and 16 while he made a 30-foot putt for the eagle on the par-5 13th hole to finish three shots ahead of the field.
“I made some really good putts today and played really smart,” Seiffert said.
Last year Seiffert was in contention at the Travelers after shooting 68 and 66 in the first two rounds. He finished tied for 43rd after finishing with rounds of 72 and 71.
“I learned a lot,” Seiffert said. “I played some of the holes poorly off the tee, didn’t pick the targets or good clubs. I think going forward I can have smarter course management. I am a year smarter and since then I have a little more experience, I’d like to think my game is a little better and I am eager to get another crack at TPC River Highlands for sure.”
When he is there, he will run into his former team-
mate at Florida State, Brooks Koepka, who is coming off a second straight U.S. Open title.
“What talent he has, he is just fearless,” Seiffert said. “If you play with him every day, you could almost see it coming. He had the game for sure. He has just put it all together since he turned professional. He cleaned up his game where he needed to, his short game has gotten better, his putting really got better.”
While Seiffert left Ellington Ridge grinning from ear to ear, it was a much different story for Stamford’s Peter Ballo, who was the early leader on Monday with a 66. It looked like that would be enough to earn one of the four qualifying spots but Rick Lamb, playing in the final group, became the fourth player to finish with a 66 forcing a playoff between Lamb, Ballo, James Driscoll and Andrew Svoboda with only three of them qualifying.
Ballo had the longest drive among the quartet and
left himself a short birdie putt on the first playoff hole. Ballo pushed the putt right of the hole and when he chipped too far past the hole on the second extra hole, he was eliminated. Driscoll, Svoboda and Lamb will join Seffert in the Travelers field.
It was still a memorable day for the second assistant pro at Silvermine Golf Club in Norwalk as he birdied all four par-5 holes.
“I made some good putts, made some good shots and got it to 3 under through the turn,” Ballo said. “I came out hot on the backside which is the front nine, birdied first three. A few loose mistakes throughout the day, but I was able to get enough (shots) close and make some putts to kin of counteract a couple of bogeys I had.”
Ballo, four years removed from being the Northeast Conference’s Player of the Year while starring at Sacred Heart University, has found life teaching others how to play the sport he has learned to love as part of a golf fami-
ly. The Ballo family tree features an older brother who recently made a spirited run at qualifying for the U.S. Open, a father who played in 10 PGA events including four majors and a mom who played golf at the University of North Carolina.
“I grew up in golfing family,” Ballo said. “I saw it and had an older brother I was able to see what he went through when he went out to play.
“I really enjoy what I do. I like helping people and it also keeps me very sharp because I have to use my time very wisely around our club events and everything that we do for the members, it has helped me in the long run with how I manage my time.”
West Suffield’s Jason Thresher, Cromwell’s Zach Zaback and former Greenwich High star Danny Guise each finished with scores of 70.