Vince De Pinto captures Glendale City Golf Championship
GLENDALE — With just four holes left, things appeared a bit murky for Vince De Pinto.
Fortunately for De Pinto, a Glendale native and St. Francis High graduate, he still had enough time to regroup and get back in the hunt in his quest to win the third annual Glendale City Golf Championship.
De Pinto finished on the right note, as he recorded a birdie and three straight pars to capture the tournament’s championship flight by one stroke over Ryan Miranda and Brandon Shin on Monday at scenic Oakmont Country Club.
De Pinto, a former All-Area honoree, shot a two-over-par 74 to finish with a two-round total of 133 en route to winning the event for the first time. He joins Jon Levitt and Chris Russo as tournament champions. Levitt and Russo won the event in 2012 and 2013, respectively.
“I got into some trouble after I had bogeys on the 13th and 14th holes,” said De Pinto, who graduated from St. Francis in 2013 and will attend Lindenwood University in Missouri in the fall. “I’m a member [at Oakmont], so I know how tough those holes can be.
“I just had to refocus because I knew the 15th and 16th holes would be huge for me to get back into it. I then figured I had a chance on the last two holes and made a three-foot putt for par on the 18th. It’s my first time in the event and it’s awesome to be able to go out there and win it.”
Miranda, a 2009 St. Francis High graduate and a former member of the Glendale Community College men’s golf team, and Shin finished at 134. De Pinto began the tournament July 23 with a one-under-par 59 in the qualifying round at Scholl Canyon Golf Course.
He entered Monday’s round in a five-way tie for third before making a charge to the top.
“I think my ball striking carried me a lot [Monday],” De Pinto said. “It got me in good position on the fairways and near the roughs.
“I was able to get up and down on a couple of holes. I did well on the par-three holes.”
Shin appeared to be in control on the 18th hole. However, he encountered a bad break when he accidentally hit another player’s ball in his group and was subsequently given a two-stroke penalty.
“I played a solid round and hit the ball well all day,” said Shin, who opened the tournament with a 60. “I didn’t realize I hit the wrong ball and it cost me.”
Miranda, who also had a 60 in the qualifying round, said he struggled a bit on the back nine before seeing his bid to win the title come up short.
“The greens were pretty firm on most of the holes,” Miranda said. “I had a little rough stretch on the back nine with some shots that cost me.
“It’s good to see Vince win it. He deserved it.”
Bob Merette won the Deukmejian flight for the first time, carding a net score of four-over-par 76 to best Keith Shill and Jerry Butt by five strokes. Butt had won the flight the previous two years.
Merette entered the final round with a four-stroke lead and finished with a two-round total of 132.
Clifton Tucker captured the Verdugo flight. Tucker finished at 69 to win by eight strokes over Samuel Cortez. Tucker opened with a 59.
In the Brand flight, Carlos Herrera defeated Richard Trejo by four strokes. Herrera shot a 76 to finish his two-round score at 132.
Cailey Gino captured the women’s division flight July 23 at Scholl after shooting a one-over-par 61.
All proceeds benefited the Glendale Parks and Open Space Foundation, a non-profit organization. The event, which featured Burbank residents, was sponsored by Trusted Choice.
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Follow Charles Rich on Twitter: @TCNCharlesRich .
