2002 Match Results  

Hunt History

2002 - Connors vs. Mullen

Following in the footsteps of his fellow Bostonian, Red Auerbach, Captain Ron Connors, shown right, lit upa victory cigar after his team's dominant performance in the 2002 Desert Hunt Invitational. Team Connors won handily 17 to 8 and was not threatened after sweeping the second round Four Ball matches 5 to 0, a Desert Hunt first. The nine-point victory was the largest in Hunt history. In fact, not since the 1999 tournament, when Team Rudney defeated Team Macy, 10 to 5, has there been such a lopsided victory. "The fact is Team Connors came to play and Team Mullen, with a few exceptions, did not," said Rob Robinson, who ended the tournament without earning a single point. "I can't think of a single player on their side that didn't perform at or above their ability, while we had four or five, including myself, who stunk it up," added Robinson. The number of players that went through the tournament undefeated, including Captain Ron Connors, Bruce Del Fante and Bill Levey, best exemplifies Team Connors' dominance. Conversely, Team Mullen had several players who did not earn a single point. Other top performers of the week include Paul Coupin, Joe Dunphy, Spencer Larson, Clayton Oswald, Eric Rudney and Mark Slovensky from Team Connors, and Darell Breedlove, Jim Ireland, Tom Moudry and Derek Smith from Team Mullen. Despite its lopsided nature, the tournament did feature a seriesof great matches, including a first round Four Ball match halved on the last hole between Ron Connors and Clay Oswald versus David Mullen and Greg Werner; a second round Four Ball match that pitted Mark Slovensky and Spencer Larson against Jim Ireland and Darell Breedlove in a seesaw battle that included 9 natural birdies with Slovensky and Larson edging out a 2 & 1 victory; an incredible third round 2 & 1 comeback victory by Darell Breedlove and Derek Smith over Chris Hoff and Mark Slovensky after losing the first four holes; another extraordinary comeback match with PaulCoupin needing to win the last four holes to defeat Jim Ireland in Singles, 1 Up; and, finally, a Singles match marathon between two of the tournament's top players, Tom Moudry and Eric Rudney, that resulted in a 3 & 1 victory by Moudry after a miraculous second shot on the 16th hole. As in past years, the Founders' announced another classic Captain's matchup with former Skyline High football greats Darell Breedlove and Spencer Larson being selected for the honor in 2003 in what is already being billed as "The Battle of the Titans."

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