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Vucinich earns spot in 84 Lumber Classic

By Josh Krysak 4 min read

FARMINGTON – More than 20 years ago Roy Vucinich competed in his one and only PGA Tour event, the 1984 PGA Championship, and watched as Lee Trevino won the coveted major tournament. Now, 21 years later, Vucinich, closing in on 60 years of age, will get the chance to compete once again with the best golfers in the world this fall, after winning the sectional qualifier for the 84 Lumber Classic, the Falling Rock Classic, Tuesday.

With a $150,000 purse making the event one of the richest tournaments for regional play in the country, dozens of the best golfers in the tri-state region flocked to the event, with 36 holes played Monday and the final 18 on Tuesday.

After the grueling opening day, Vucinich, a native of Rillton, led local pro Kevin Shields by a single stroke, after firing rounds of 68 and 70.

Vucinich finished a little shaky with a final round of 75 Tuesday, but played well enough to earn the $30,000 first-place share of the purse and the sponsor’s exemption for the upcoming 84 Lumber Classic held at Mystic Rock at Nemacolin Woodlands Resort and Spa in September.

The journeyman golfer has enjoyed a run for the ages the past four weeks, winning two tournaments, and finishing second in another, a stretch he said rivals the best of his career.

“I have never really had such a good stretch in my career,” Vucinich said after his final round Tuesday.

Vucinich did make it interesting however.

After getting a birdie on the par-5 16th with an 85-yard approach with a sand wedge that nestled less than a foot from the cup, the 58-year-old pulled an 8-iron on the tricky par-3 17th and shanked a shot into a stiff breeze that fell into the water guarding the green to the left.

At the time he had a five-stroke lead on Shields.

“After I birdied 16, I really felt good about it,” Vucinich said. “I thought it looked easy and went for it. Then I shanked it.”

Vucinich took his penalty stoke and teed off again, this time hitting a firmer 8-iron that carried into the pot-bunker on the backside of the green. The wily veteran escaped the nightmare with a triple bogie, but was only three strokes ahead of Bob Sowards, who was already in the clubhouse and two ahead of Shields, who was paired with Vucinich headed to the final hole.

On the uphill par-4 18th, Vucinich left the door open for Shields yet again, pushing his drive into one of the fairway bunkers and then playing a wedge into the fairway setting up a 142-yard approach shot.

Shields could not capitalize however, struggling from the rough, and finishing with a disappointing bogie.

Vucinich blasted a pitching wedge to within 10 feet of the flagstick, positioned on the back of the two-tiered green, left his par attempt short and then tapped in for his bogie, winning the event by two strokes and finishing 3-under-par through the 54-hole tournament.

Shields and Sowards finished the tournament 1-under-par, earning solid paydays of $16,000.

“Through the years it is always nice to win by a bunch but you only need to win by one,” Vucinich said.

After more than 20 years of slogging through hundreds of miles of fairways, Vucinich said he is looking forward to pitting his skills against the best in the business this fall.

“It will be nice to get to play with the big guns,” Vucinich said, noting that he wasn’t aware of the sponsor’s exemption until after the tournament Tuesday.

The Allegheny Country Club pro has earned more the $700,000 during his tenure as a pro golfer, and has appeared frequently on the Senior PGA Tour.

Sowards, of the Golf Centre in Dublin, Ohio, and Shields, of the Mt. Lebanon Golf Course and a former Nemacolin pro, finished tied for second followed by Steven Wheatcroft, Darrell Kestner and Robert Moss who rounded out the top of the field, all finishing at even par for the event and taking home purses of more than $8,000 each.

“This was the preliminary for the main show,” 84 Lumber Co. founder and resort owner Joe Hardy said of the Falling Rock Classic. “We are rising in stature among the tournaments pretty fast, so I am very pleased.”

Mystic Rock will host the 84 Lumber Classic September 15-18.

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