RUTLAND, Vt.- David Jankowski shot a round of even par 70 on Tuesday at Rutland Country Club to hold off the field and win the 2022 Vermont Chapter Stroke Play Championship.
Jankowski, the owner of Golf Garage VT, will now add his name to the Bob Lendzion Trophy for a third time having also won in 2014 and 2018. With his third victory, he joins an elite group of Vermont Chapter Professionals with three or more titles. The others to accomplish that feat are Mark Aebli, David Bennett, Bob Lendzion, and Ron Philo.
Jankowski went into the final round with a 2-shot lead and was faced with challenges from multiple players in the final 18 holes. After playing his first five holes to 4-over par, Jankowski saw himself fall to 2-over for the tournament. Weatherby who started the day at even par was able to capitalize on this opportunity making birdies on holes 2 and 3 and held a 3-shot lead on the 6th tee. However, Jankowski was not going to be denied and went off on a torrid stretch playing holes 6 through 14 in 6-under par to get to a tournament low 4-under par and regain a 4-shot advantage over Weatherby.
There was a one unforeseen challenger in the final round, the 2021 Champion and 6-time winner David Bennett shot an opening round 76 and sat 8-shots back seemingly out of contention. However, he was not going to hand over the Lendzion Trophy without a fight. A front nine 32 shaved 3 strokes off his overall score and got him back to only 3-over par. Birdies on 10, 11, and 14 saw Bennett return to even par and suddenly back in contention. His chances of an epic comeback slipped away with a bogey on 16 and double bogey on 17. He recovered with a birdie on 18 to record a 4-under 66 for the low round of the day.
Curt Goldsberry of The Quechee Club also put together a fantastic round on day 2 to secure a T-3 finish. Goldsberry played the front nine in even-par 35, on the back he recorded two birdies and one bogey to finish at 1-under 69 in round 2 and 2-over 142 for the tournament.
With both Bennett and Goldsberry in the clubhouse at 2-over, it was a two-man race as Jankowski and Weatherby stood on the par-4 18th tee. Jankowski, holding a 3-shot lead, flared his drive left flirting with out of bounds while Weatherby split the middle of the fairway. After a short search Jankowski was able to find his drive and hit a beautiful recovery shot back into the fairway. Weatherby faced a difficult second shot after his tee ball found a divot in the fairway and his approach finished short left of the green. With Weatherby’s birdie attempt also coming up short, Jankowski had two putts to win. He tapped in his second attempt to finish the tournament at 2-under par and secure a one-shot victory.
The Senior Chapter Championship was also a tight battle heading into the second round. Williston Golf Club’s Todd Trono shot an opening round 77 to hold a 2-shot lead over Cedar Knoll’s Mike Slayton. Trono played an extremely solid round on Tuesday shooting a 4-over 74 to win the Senior Championship by nine shots. Trono narrowly missed recording a top 5 finish in the overall Championship, finishing in 6th place one shot behind Roger King.
Thank you to Rutland Country Club’s Head Professional Jeff Flis and Superintendent Terry Davio. The Chapter would also like to thank our sponsors for the Stroke Play Championship, Avidia Bank, Farrell Distributing and Bent Water Brewing, Jim Mayo brands, and Tournament Solutions!