Goshen players are not on par

The toughest track on the Regions Cup schedule took its toll on the field in the Saturday's first round of the Goshen Golf Classic.

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No one came within shouting distance of matching par in the regular division at a sweltering Goshen Plantation Golf Club, which is playing to 6,986 yards and a par of 70 this year.

Augusta's Mike Phelps came the closest, shooting 3-over 73 in the final group of the day. Before that, it appeared 74 by Lance Jones, Will Rogers and Hal Cohen would be the leading score.

"I thought I'd walk in here and see at least a 70," Phelps said, referring to the scoreboard in the Goshen clubhouse. "I didn't think a 74 would be leading."

"I thought we'd have a couple of scores in the 60s," said Goshen head pro Spike Kelley. "The course is in excellent condition. The greens were double-cut and rolled; they're as smooth as we can make them."

Regions Cup points leader Tommy Carpenter didn't even finish his round, but not because of the difficulty of the course.

Carpenter, who has a 74-point lead in the Regions Cup standings through five of the nine events, withdrew after hitting his tee shot on No. 15, citing back pain.

"He said he hurt something in his back and didn't want to hurt himself later on, so he'd go ahead and withdraw," said Randy Sapp, one of Carpenter's playing partners, who shot 78.

Sapp said Carpenter shot 2-over 38 on the front nine, and was also over par on the back nine when he withdrew.

"If his back was starting to hurt, I don't have any problem with that," John McCormick said of Carpenter's WD.

McCormick, the 2003 runner-up in this tournament who shot 79 on Saturday, said of Carpenter: "He wants to be the player of the year and for him to do that, you have to be healthy. I've had a back injury, and I'll tell you what, it's brutal and painful. For him to continue to play with his back hurt, it could jeopardize him playing for the next two months."

The combination of extreme length, narrow fairways, thick rough and the conversion of two par-5s into par-4s for the tournament sent scores soaring in the regular division. The heat didn't help players' patience, either.

Goshen normally plays to a par of 72, but because longer gold tees are being constructed on two par-5s (Nos. 6 and 15) they are being played as par-4s this year only. The regular division played those two holes from the white tees, which measure 460 yards for No. 6 and 472 yards for No. 15.

"It felt like a 68," Phelps said of his round. "They've taken two par-5s that you're normally thinking of making birdie on, and now they're tough par 4s."

"They've taken away two par-5s and there aren't that many birdie holes out there," said John Gibbs III, who shot 80. "It's a little discouraging to go out there and shoot 80 like I did. I shot 73 in the Georgia Amateur qualifier here, and it played harder today than it did then. It's not unfair, it's just a hard challenge."

Senior points leader Mike Jackson did manage to tame the shorter Goshen monster. Playing from the 6,615-yard blue tees, Jackson shot 71, which was 1-under since the seniors played Nos. 6 and 15 as par-5s.

Jackson, who is seeking a record third-straight senior title, leads Mike Kelley and Charlie Busbee by one shot.

"This would be a good place to do it," said Jackson, who has won nine club championships at Goshen, including the 2003 title. "I've played it all my life. I love the golf course."

Reach David Westin at (706) 724-0851 or david.westin@augustachronicle.com.