Wayne Wright Wins 2021 Texas Super Senior Am

FORT WORTH – Wayne Wright of Aledo shot a final round 2-over-par 73 to win the 2021 Texas Super Senior Amateur on Wednesday at Ridglea Country Club’s North Course.

Wright stayed consistent all week and held onto his second-round lead. His final round 73 put him at 3-over 216 for the week, good for a six-shot victory.

“Just winning is great,” Wright said. “I mean, I love to win.”

This marks the second time Wright has won Texas Super Senior Amateur. He previously won it in 2017 at Pine Dunes Resort in Frankston. Wright also previously won the 2019 North Senior Am at Ridglea CC’s Championship Course.

“You know, it just seems like when the competition starts, things kind of fall into place,” he said. “I really played well this week.”

Wright carded three birdies en route to victory.

“I am really pleased with the way I played,” Wright said. “I started putting a little bit better today.”

A combination of weather and Ridglea CC’s North Course proved to be challenging to the field this week as only four rounds came in under-par.

John Grace and Mike Booker both finished with under-par final rounds to share second place at 9-over 222. Ed Brooks carded a final round 73 to finish in fourth. Rounding out the top five were Chuck Gardner and Steve Moran tied at 11-over week.

Mike Rice of Houston won the Legends division by carding the low round of the week for his respective division, a 3-over 74. His 16-over 229 total edged out runner-up Denny Alexander’s 17-over 230.

Ford Cartwright and Jamey Freisleben were crowned Super Senior Am net winners after tying at a 221-total net. Butch Vaut captured the Legends division net win after finishing with a 218-total net.

The Ridglea CC North Course demanded precision from every player throughout the tournament with its rolling fairways and smaller greens that were breaking subtly. Overseeding created a beautiful lush green course as Ridglea CC was in great shape for all three rounds. The Super Senior division, for amateur men ages 65 and older, played from a total yardage of 6,229. The Legends division (75 and older) played from 5,827 yards.

Four of the past five Super Senior Amateur champions were in the field, including Odessa’s Mickey Jones, who won the event in 2018. The 2020 Super Senior Amateur was canceled because of COVID-19.

The 112th Texas Amateur is next up on the championship schedule for the TGA. The top amateurs in the state will be tested at beautiful Midland Country Club in Midland on June 17-20. For more on the 2021 Super Senior Amateur, click here.

James Peebles Leads Super Senior Amateur after Round 1

FORT WORTH – James Peebles shot the only under-par score in Monday’s first round of the 2021 Texas Super Senior Amateur on Ridglea Country Club’s North Course. The Fort Worth native’s 1-under-par 70 held up for a two-shot lead headed into the second round of the 54-hole championship.

Peebles, a 67-year-old semi-retired attorney, rolled in four birdies in the first round, including two on his final three holes.

“These greens are pretty severe,” said Peebles, the current president of nearby Shady Oaks Country Club. “If you can get underneath the hole, you can take a run at it. I’m a pretty good putter. When the putts go in, you build some confidence, and you can play pretty well.”

A reliable swing helps, too. Peebles had that part covered thanks to some recent assistance.

“I’ve really struggled with my golf swing over the last six months or so,” Peebles said. “With the help of some guys at Shady Oaks, I’ve gotten squared away, and I’m hitting the ball more solidly.”

Peebles leads Tom Takes from Weatherford and Wayne Wright from Aledo by two shots headed into Tuesday’s second round. Takes and Wright posted rounds of 1-over 72. Takes was steady all day; he recorded one birdie, two bogeys and 15 pars. Wright sunk two birdies to help offset three bogeys.

Six players are tied for fourth place at 2-over 73, including 2019 Texas Super Senior champion Ed Brooks from Fort Worth and three-time Texas Senior Player of the Year Mike Booker from Houston.

Butch Vaut from Royce City leads the Legends division after he shot 4-over 75 in the first round. Vaut bogeyed his second and third holes, but then reeled off birdies on three of his next six holes. Vaut finished his round with five consecutive pars and holds a one-shot Legends division lead over Denny Alexander of Fort Worth.

Lush green from overseeding, Ridglea is in superb shape for the year’s first men’s statewide championship. Designed by Texas Golf Hall of Fame architect John Bredemus in 1928, Ridglea’s North Course features narrow, tree-lined fairways that stretch across southwest Fort Worth’s rolling topography.

A longtime host of TGA championships, Ridglea most recently was the site of the 2020 Women’s Senior Stroke Play Championship won by Lubbock’s Marian Barker. This is the club’s first time hosting the Texas Super Senior Amateur.

The par-71 course keeps the attention of even the best players with uneven lies, tricky doglegs that require shot-shaping and smallish putting surfaces with subtly sloping breaks. Much like the rest of the course, the greens were in perfect shape during the first round. The Super Senior division, for amateur men ages 65 and older, played from a total yardage of 6,229. The Legends division (75 and older) played Ridglea from 5,827 yards.

Four of the past five Super Senior Amateur champions are competing for this year’s title, including Fort Worth’s Ed Brooks, who won the event in 2019. The 2020 Super Senior Amateur was canceled because of COVID-19.

Round 2 of the 2021 Texas Super Senior Amateur begins Tuesday at 8:30 a.m. For more information, including complete scores and second-round pairings, click here.