2003 Match Results • View 2003 Slideshow

Hunt History

2003 - Breedlove vs. Larson

The Battle of the Titans turned into the Battle for the Tylenol for Team Larson. With Captain Darell Breedlove leading the way, Team Breedlove dominated Team Larson 15.5 to 9.5 in the 2003 Desert Hunt at the Landmark Golf Club in Indio, California. Played in near perfect conditions, the 2003 tournament was held May 1418. Breedlove, who finished 3-1-0 overall, served as an exemplary captain while sparkling on the course for the second year in a row. "Breed was a great captain," said teammate Mark Slovensky. "He was well prepared, focused, calm and in tune with his team. He went away from some traditional pairings which the players embraced and it worked out beautifully." Breedlove helped his team get off to a quick start as he and partner, David Mullen, scored an easy 4 & 3 victory over Joe Dunphy and Steve Woodhead in the tournament's opening two-ball match held on the South Course. Two more victories for Team Breedlove followed beginning with Ron Connors and rookie Jamie Pearl's 3 & 1 defeat of Captain Spencer Larson and Rob Bigelow, also a first-time player. The dynamic pairing of Bill Levey and Tom Moudry then closed out Ces Butner and Rob Robinson on the short par three 17th hole to win 3 & 2. This was Moudry's first ever victory in a team format while Levey earned his 11th victory in a team format, third most in Desert Hunt history. "Tom is always solid so we were hoping Billy might be off a bit, but as usual he didn't miss a beat," Robinson reported after the match. "Ces played outstanding golf and we thought we had a chance after he hit a clutch drive on 16, but I hit a poor shot and let them back in the hole. With Billy playing so well and Tom hitting it straight, we decided early on to get the Buds flowing and just enjoy the day." Team Larson did close the gap in the final two matches of the day, with Eric Rudney and Derek Smith squeaking by, 1 Up, over Paul Coupin and Mark Slovensky, and the doctor and a half duo of Bruce Del Fante and Reg Griggs putting a hurt on Jim Ireland and Matt Macy, 4 & 2. A pairing that is very comfortable together, Del Fante, one of the Hunt's all-time best performers, and Griggs were unstoppable. "They kicked our rears," said Macy. "Reg was outstanding and Bruce was his ever-methodical self. We played well, but they played better." This would be the low point of the tournament for Ireland and Macy as they both rebounded to have excellent events. Both had winning records overall, with Macy finishing an impressive 3-1-0 and Ireland, 2-1-1. Adding to their pleasure, each won their Singles match for the first time. The second round of Four Ball matches on Landmark North proved to be even more productive for Team Breedlove as they took 3.5 points to Team Larson's 1.5. Levey and Slovensky applied the biggest crushing to Robinson and Smith, 5 & 3. Slovensky, in particular, was spectacular throughout the day. "Mark was crushing the ball off the tee today, and right down the middle," declared Smith with a heavy sigh. "Both of them played great, but Mark was all over the hole, throwing darts, making long putts, it was pretty awesome to watch." Team Larson's only victory of the day was a 2 & 1 win by Rudney and Del Fante over Connors and Moudry, both of whom appeared to be in a magical cloud of some sort most of the day. This win moved Rudney's all-time record in team matches to an incredible 16-1-1. Only Wilt Chamberlain's career record with the ladies can compare with this awesome performance. The third round, again featuring the Four Ball format, had a whole bunch of stuff going on. There were two wipeouts, two halves and one close match between Rudney and Woodhead versus Breedlove and Pearl. The 2 Up win by Rudney and Woodhead was Team Larson's only point of the day and would prove to be Woodhead's first point since returning after a one-year absence. "Steve played fantastic and he won a lot of holes for us today," said Rudney. "These courses are really tough, especially if you've never played them before. It was nice to see him gain confidence as the match progressed. We'll need him tomorrow during the Singles matches." The most lopsided match of the day, in somewhat of a surprise, featured the 2002 Captains, Connors and Mullen, paired against Del Fante and Larson. Most observers favored the Larson duo going into this match, but Connors and Mullen would have none of it as they cruised to an easy win, 6 & 4. Independent reports, verified by this reporter, indicate the winning pair's "coach" made an early appearance in this one. Entering the Singles matches on Saturday down 9.5 to 5.5, Team Larson's only chance was to jump out fast and build some momentum. Placing many of his better players in the early matches, Larson's plan quickly fizzled as Team Breedlove, responding with a similar front-loaded strategy, won the first three points of the day, effectively closing out the tournament. Following his 1 Up defeat of Larson in the traditional Captain's match leading off the final round, Breedlove watched with satisfaction as Levey won easily, 4 & 3, over Dunphy, who had his most disappointing tournament ever; Ireland narrowly defeated Rudney in a great match, 2 & 1; Moudry overwhelmed Griggs, 5 & 4; Coupin survived an 18-hole showdown with Woodhead, 1 Up; and Macy held on to better Butner, 2 & 1. From Team Larson, only Del Fante (4 & 3 over Connors), Bigelow (3 & 1 over Mullen), Robinson (4 & 3 over Pearl) and Smith (2 Up over Slovensky) managed to win on the final day of competition. As reflected in the final result, many of the players on Team Breedlove enjoyed solid, if not spectacular, tournaments. Breedlove, Coupin, Ireland, Levey, Macy, Moudry and Mullen all ended up with winning records. Connors and Slovensky also played outstanding golf finishing with two victories each and Pearl, in an impressive debut, contributed 1.5 points to the effort. On Team Larson, Bigelow, Del Fante, Rudney and Smith stood out, while Griggs, Robinson and Woodhead also enjoyed good tournaments. Although held without a point, both Larson and Butner played well for the most part in some very close matches.

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