Rohanna, Adamson advance through pre-qualifier
Robert Rohanna felt he needed to score on the par-5s to break his string of even-par rounds.
The Waynesburg Central graduate finished the par-5s at Lake Jovita Golf and Country Club in Dade City, Fla., in 1-under 71, the one stroke that made the difference at the PGA Q-School pre-qualifer.
After shooting 72 in the first two rounds, Rohanna was right on the cutline entering the third and final round. The top 40 golfers (and ties) advanced through to the first round of qualifying.
Rohanna tied for 34th, the ties taking the cut down to exactly 40 golfers. The lone golfer who finished even par over the three rounds was alone in 41st and missed the cut.
The final round was a rollercoaster for Rohanna. He opened with bogey, but followed with birdie (on a par-5). After a pair of pars, Rohanna went bogey-birdie-bogey-birdie, finishing the front nine with another birdie on a par-5.
The back nine opened with three consecutive pars. Rohanna bogeyed the par-5 No. 13 after his second shot landed just 50 yards away from the green.
“My third shot rolled back to the front of the green and then I three-putted,” explained Rohanna.
Rohanna parred out to finish with 71.
“I had that bogey-birdie thing going. I hit the driver great and hit a lot of good irons,” said Rohanna. “It was the same story on the greens. I hit 15 greens.
“I missed three greens on the front (No. 1, 5, 7) and bogeyed all three.”
He was the first off No. 1 in the morning, and finished around 1:30 p.m. He didn’t have to worry about a playoff, just whether his score would make the cut.
Jefferson-Morgan graduate Mike Adamson didn’t have to fret quite as much, shooting a 1-under 71 for a three-round total of 3-under 213. He finished tied for 28th.
Adamson had a steadier round with two birdies and seven pars on the front and two birdies, a bogey and a double bogey (on No. 13) on the back.
Both golfers now await word where they will play the first round of qualifying.
“You place in order where you want to play,” explained Rohanna. “I listed PGA Village at Port St. Lucie (Fla.). I played it last year. I know it a little bit. I should be able to take advantage of the par-5s.”
Rohanna, who finished at 1-under 215 for three rounds, also feels the course owes him a little bit after failing to advance last year.
“I played absolutely awful. I want to go out and play and take it down.”