Seven NYS Pros in Senior PGA Field at Oak Hill

May 21, 2019

PITTSFORD, N.Y. (Update: May 27, 2019) - Mark Brown of Oyster Bay shared the Low Club Professional honors at the 80th KitchenAid Senior PGA Championship at Oak Hill Country Club on Sunday.

The head professional at Tam O’Shanter Golf Club, claimed the honor after shooting 1-over 71 in the final round. He shared the title with Bob Sowards of Ohio, who posted a 74. Both golfers finished the week tied for 21st at 9-over 289.

The tournament was won by Ken Tanigawa, who edged the field by a stroke at 3-under 277.

Related: Final Leaderboard

Of the seven New York golfers competing, Brown was the only one to advance through the first two rounds of stroke play. 

Mark Tucker, head pro at Cazenovia Country Club, strung together a 77 and 73 to finish at 150, one stroke under the cut line.

Joey Sindelar finished at 153, Jeff Sluman finished at 154, Frank Bensel Jr. finished at 154, Dudley Hart finished at 158, and Charlie Bolling finished at 163.

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PITTSFORD, N.Y. (May 21, 2019) Seven Professional Golfers from New York State will compete in the Senior PGA Championship at Oak Hill Country Club this week, May 21-26 in Pittsford, N.Y. 

The group includes Rochester native Jeff SlumanJoey Sindelar of Horseheads, Dudley Hart of Buffalo, Mark Tucker of Cazenovia, Mark Brown of Oyster Bay, Frank Bensel Jr. of Purchase, and Charlie Bolling of Glen Cove. 

Related: Tee Times / Championship Home

The Senior PGA is the oldest of the five major championships for senior men, ages 50 and older, conducted over 72 holes of stroke play. The par-70 layout will be set up at 6,896 yards for this week’s championship.

Oak Hill’s East Course hosted the event one other time in 2008, which was won by Jay Haas.

The iconic Donald Ross design has also hosted two U.S. Amateurs, three U.S. Opens, a U.S. Senior Open in 1984, the 1995 Ryder Cup, and PGA Championships in 1980, 2003, 2013, with another return scheduled for May of 2023. 

Sluman, who now resides in Delray Florida, turned pro in 1980 and has tallied up six PGA Tour victories and six PGA Tour Champions victories over the decades. His highlights include a 1988 PGA Championship win, and a T-4 at The Masters Tournament as well as a U.S. Open runner-up finish in 1992. He kick-started his golf career as an amateur in 1978 at Moon Brook Country Club where he won the 56th New York State Men’s Amateur Championship. In last year’s Senior PGA, he finished tied for 19th.

Sindelar won the NYS Men’s Amateur Championship a few years after Sluman at Vestal Hill Country Club in 1980 (he also captured the 1971 NYS Boys’ Sub-Junior at Seven Oaks). The Southern Tier player turned pro the following year and has accumulated 39 Top-10 finishes, including seven PGA Tour wins. His best finish in a major was T-6 during the ’92 U.S. Open at Pebble Beach. During last year’s Senior PGA Championship, he finished tied for 23rd.

Hart joined the PGA Tour in 1991 and captured two tour wins including the 1996 Bell Canadian Open and 2000 Honda Classic. His best finish in a major was T-6 during the PGA Championship in 1993. The 50-year-old recently became eligible for the PGA Tour Champions and will debut his senior career at Oak Hill this week.

Tucker, head pro at Cazenovia Country Club, is competing in his second straight Senior PGA Championship. Tucker played in last year’s event at Harbor Shores in Benton Harbor, Michigan, but failed to make the cut. He recently finished T25 at the PGA Professional Championship at 

Brown, head pro at Tam O'Shanter Golf Club, was the runner-up at the 2000 PGA Professional Championship, losing a five-hole playoff to Tim Thelen at Oak Tree Golf Club in Edmond, Oklahoma. The Boston native now residing in metro area has competed in 17 PGA Professional Championships and five PGA Championships.

Bensel, Jr., the assistant pro at Century Country Club, has competed in multiple elite amateur and professional events, including the 2009 U.S. Open at Oakmont, Pa. His best performance came during the 2012 PGA Professional Championship, where he finished T-7. He’s also the second player to win three PGA Assistant Championship titles after claiming his third in 2013.

Bolling, newly added pro at Bethpage State Park Golf Club, has participated in four U.S. Opens and won the 1983 South African Open.

Listed below are the tee times for the opening two rounds on Thursday and Friday:

  THURSDAY   FRIDAY  
Player TEE TIME TEE TIME
Tucker, Mark 1 7:00 AM 10 12:10 PM
Brown, Mark 10 7:05 AM 1 12:15 PM
Sindelar, Joey
10
7:15 AM
1
12:25 PM
Hart, Dudley 10 8:35 AM 1 1:45 PM
Bensel Jr., Frank 10 8:55 AM 1 2:05 PM
Sluman, Jeff 10 12:50 PM 1 7:40 AM
Bolling, Charlie 10 1:40 PM 1 8:30 AM

 

 

Sara Stanley,
NYSGA Communications Intern