CLARKSTON – Oakhurst Golf & Country Club, an Arthur Hills-designed course built in 1998 that has hosted Golf Association of Michigan tournaments of all varieties and formats, will welcome the field of golfers competing in the 6th GAM Net Chapman Championship presented by Play Away Membership Tuesday.
A field of 88 golfers making up 44 two-person teams are registered to play the unique one-day net stroke play competition.
The Chapman format calls for each player on the two-person teams to play from the teeing ground and then play the teammate or partner’s ball for the second shot. After the second shot the partners select the ball with which they wish to score and play that ball alternately to complete the hole.
The Oakhurst course, which can play as long as 7,054 yards, weaves through oak, pine, and maple trees and over and around protected wetlands. Hills incorporated significant risk-reward factors, but also provided some bailout areas for conservative play. The course demands accurate and well-placed tee shots, especially on the shorter par 4 holes.
Among the many tournaments Oakhurst has hosted are the 2010 Michigan Amateur Championship and the 2019 GAM Senior Match Play Championship
George Bowman is the host professional and has been at Oakhurst since it opened in 1998. Adam Hosler has been the superintendent since 2014.
Last year at The Orchards Golf Club in Washington Township Neil Nelson of Northville and Jeffrey Talcott of Brownstone Township, roommates at the University of Michigan in the late 1980s, teamed up to win. The combined on a net 8-under 64, which was one shot clear of three teams shooting 65.
Nelson and Talcott are defending their title at Oakhurst. Also in the field are the former winning duos of Roger Chapman and Stewart Sloan, who won in 2016, and Joseph LaForges and Steve Nimer, who won in 2015.
Pairings: https://bit.ly/3hqqI0g
