After heading into the final-day singles matches 1.5 points back of the Washington State Golf Association, Greg Koster of Courtenay and the rest of the British Columbia Golf team stormed back Friday to capture the eighth annual Pacific Northwest Golf Association Cup matches at Crane Creek Country Club in Boise, Idaho.
The 12-player team consisting of four women and eight men trailed a day-one, momentum-charged WSGA team by a match and a half to start the day. All four teams were close in total points, promising an entertaining finish for those in attendance at the May 1-3 event.
Capturing what turned out to be the competition-tying point and a half were Koster and Penticton's Cory Hilditch. Hilditch won a nail-biter 2-and-1 over Oregon Golf Association's Daniel Cheremnov while Koster halved his match with Idaho's Todd Points.
As a result of fine individual match play, British Columbia and Washington finished tied with a total of 14 points, with Oregon narrowly missing out on what could have been a three-way playoff by a single point. Idaho finished with seven points.
The playoffs consisted of five members from both British Columbia and Washington with each age and gender category represented.
This is the second PNGA Cup for British Columbia in the event's eight-year history, with their last win also coming at Crane Creek in 2009. This marks the first time in three years that the Cup was not captured by Oregon.
To tweet a congratulations to Team British Columbia Golf, tweet to @bc_golfer using #PNGACup.
This Ryder Cup-style championship features some of the most notable amateur golfers in the region with 12-member teams representing the regional golf associations that make up the Pacific Northwest Golf Association, which includes British Columbia, Idaho, Oregon and Washington State. Teams play four-ball, foursome and singles matches to select a champion.
– PNGA Cup