The Senior Men’s Open at Kitchen Creek had a change in champions overnight as Dennis “Poncho” Krantz was disqualified, leaving Rob Badiuk as the winner.
Krantz picked up a ball on a short putt, which, by the rules, would disqualify him from the tournament. What was notable was who brought this mistake to the attention of tournament organizers.
“I disqualified myself,” Krantz said this morning. “It was about a six-inch putt and I [was] just brain dead, I guess.”
Krantz had won yesterday’s tournament during a playoff, when Badiuk bogeyed the second hole of the playoff while Krantz made par just as the weather began to turn nasty.
His non-putt had happened earlier in the tournament, and Krantz said he realized his error that night thinking about the tournament, “replaying in my mind and I discovered I didn’t hole out on one hole.”
He said part of the reason may have been that he was enjoying the tournament so much.
“When you’re playing casual rounds with your buddies, you know you’re good [without taking short putts],” he said.
He explained he couldn’t bear to keep his championship prize—a power saw—realizing he had cheated, and so phoned Badiuk and tourney organizer Ken Bekesi this morning.
“The disqualification was in line, and he insisted on it,” Bekesi said.
Coming in second in the revised standings was Tom Bennett, with Bill Hughes third.
The annual Kitchen Creek Senior Men’s Open drew a field of 84 golfers, aged 50 and up, from around the region and across the river.
Fort Frances Times
Local News from Across the Rainy River District
