Class act Sisk outlasts Dully

By Gary Trask

The pairing of Frank Dully and Geoff Sisk was a common sight during the Mass. Open at Kernwood CC in June.

The head pro/general manager found the early April weather depressing. And that’s not the only thing that Ed Tompkins felt blue about days before the 18-hole semi-private club opened for business this season.

It’s a stroll that Frank Dully has made hundreds, or possibly even thousands, of times.

But on this day, during the final round of last month’s Massachusetts Open, Dully’s walk up the 18th fairway at Kernwood Country Club was much different. Make that different and enormously gratifying.

The host pro had just gone toe-to-toe with one of the best golfers the state has ever produced in Geoff Sisk. The battle was all but over as Sisk approached the final green well in control with a commanding four-stroke lead. This is a moment usually reserved for the leader to walk up to the green and soak up the applause from the adoring gallery.

But Sisk knew better. He was well aware that even though his counterpart fell short in pulling off what would have been a dramatic ending to the 98th playing of this revered event, the stage was still Frank Dully’s.

In as classy a move as you’ll ever see on a golf course, Sisk stopped short before reaching the green and waved Dully through. At first, Dully hesitated, almost embarrassed by the notion that he should be the first one to step up on the elevated green. But after relenting to Sisk’s gesture, the 15th-year head pro flashed a wide smile as the gallery of close to 200 people gave him a rousing ovation.

Sure, when the two players finally putted out and Sisk accepted congratulations for winning his record-tying sixth Mass. Open, the crowd gave him an enthusiastic response, but considering the setting and the circumstances, this was still Frank Dully’s day.

“I have the utmost respect for Frank as both a player and a person and what he’s done at this golf course,” Sisk said moments after accepting the Clarence G. Cochrane Memorial Trophy as well as the hefty $15,000 check that goes along with it. “I just felt he deserved to be recognized.”

Indeed he did. But so did Sisk, the 42-year-old from Marshfield who is now tied with Alex Ross – the famed brother of Donald Ross, who not so coincidentally was the mastermind behind the Kernwood course – as the only golfers in state history to capture six Open titles. Sisk, who was fresh off an appearance at the U.S. Open the week before at Oakmont Country Club where he missed the cut, won the 2007 edition in impressive fashion, posting three straight sub-70 scores and finishing 10-under par (68-64-68—200). He admitted after the final round that it was his best overall showing in a Mass. Open from tee to green, an effort that was necessary in order to hold off Dully, who finished 69-64-71 for a total of six-under.

“Yeah, Frank had about 100 people out there rooting for him and I had four,” Sisk said with a laugh. “I had my wife, my mother and my father and Jimmy Dee, the old professional from Marshfield. And, of course, my caddie, but he didn’t have a choice but to root for me.

“But I knew it was going to be difficult out there,” he continued. “Yes, it was like an away game. The people here were very cordial and very nice to me, but there’s no doubt that the roars for Frank’s birdies were a lot louder than mine. But I expected that. I knew I had to be at my best because Frank’s a great player and he has the knowledge of the course.”

Scott Ehrlich (Blue Bell, Pa.) and Rob Corcoran (Melbourne, Fla.) were the 18-hole leaders after each posting a 66 on a course that made up for its lack of length with a penalizing rough that punished any ball not finding the fairway. But Sisk and Dully, who played in the same pairing in all three days, were looming after Round 1, shooting 68 and 69, respectively.

Day 2 featured a riveting spectacle of golf as Sisk and Dully each shot a 64 to tie the course record set by current Champions Tour stud Dana Quigley in a 1994 qualifier for the PGA Club Professional Championship. This was a classic case of “whatever you can do, I can do better” as the two players went back-and-forth all day long, matching each other shot for shot. Think Larry Bird vs. Dominique Wilkins in the ’87 NBA Playoffs.

“That was pretty amazing to be a part of,” said Dully, 40, who jetted off for the 40th PGA Professional National Championship just hours after completing his final round. “As you saw, Geoff and I have somewhat similar games. We’ve known each other for a while and [in the second round] we just kind of got in a rhythm. We both shot 64s and that’s not easy to do. You can’t do something like that unless you’re both in a rhythm and that’s what happened.”

The result gave Sisk a one-shot advantage over Dully heading into the final round. Sisk wasted no time doubling that lead when he birdied the first hole before carding another birdie on the par-4 third hole for a three-shot advantage. He led by four strokes at the turn and then got a break on No. 10 when his drive hit a tree and bounced back into play, leading to a par.

“If that ball goes out of bounds or into the rough, who knows what could have happened,” Sisk said.

Dully, who used Kernwood CC member Rick Cohen as his caddy, did make a final push, picking up two strokes on 14 and 15 with a par and birdie, while Sisk finally made his first bogey of the day on 14, downsizing his lead to three shots with three to play. But Sisk all but cemented the title with a deadly approach shot with his 3-iron on the par-4 16th that landed within seven feet from 180 yards out, leading to a par that was matched by Dully.

When Dully made an uncharacteristic bogey on the par-3 17th, all that was left was the walk up 18, which was made more than memorable by Sisk’s noble gesture.

“That was a nice moment,” admitted Dully, who cashed a second-place check worth $8,250. “I can’t say enough about the support I received from the people here at Kernwood. They did just an unbelievable job. This was run like a PGA Tour event. It was as great a three days as I’ve ever spent on a golf course, that’s for sure.”

MASS OPEN NOTEBOOK: Bradford CC’s Bill Drohen finished at 2-over and in 11th place overall, which tied him for the honor as top amateur with Brian Higgins of Franklin CC. While he was happy with the way he played, Drohen thought he could have finished even higher if not for coming down with the flu days before the first round. “It was just a case of bad timing,” he said. “I really had a lack of energy out there, but overall I was pleased with how I did.”…The condition of the course was a hot topic during all three days. Outgoing Kernwood CC Superintendent Dean Robertson had the place in tip-top shape, but his membership wasn’t exactly fond of the unforgiving rough that was allowed to grow in. “They haven’t really enjoyed it,” Robertson said with a grin. “It’s been pretty high all season. There are some purists out there who want us to keep it that way, but we’re going to start trimming it down immediately.” Robertson added that he would have liked to have had the greens a bit more slick but the MGA asked that he keep them running between 10 and 10.5 on the Stimpmeter…Dully’s wife, Jennifer, marveled at the “balance” her husband showed all week. “He did an amazing job,” she said proudly. “I never expected him to play so well with all that was going on. He’s a great husband, a great father and he does a great job running this course. This was a very emotional week for both of us, but he was able to put all of that aside. It was a great experience.”