The final match at Purgatory Golf Course remained all square through the turn, but Randy Nichols of Brookville took charge on the back nine to claim his third Match Play Championship victory. He defeated Robert Gleixner of Greenwood 3 and 2.

Nichols’ consistency in hitting fairways and greens remained steady through all four days. On the back nine of the final day, his putting also came through to add to the solid golf. He took the lead at hole 10 after sticking his approach to five feet for an easy birdie putt.

On 15, Gleixner drove his ball into the fairway bunker, hit out into the deep rough and then back into a greenside bunker before eventually conceding the hole to allow Nichols to go 2 up. At the 16^th and final hole, Nichols again stuck his approach shot to five feet while Gleixner pulled his drive into the left rough and hit his second into a bunker. He eventually conceded the hole and ended the match.

Despite his win, at the age of 55 Nichols is unsure about whether he will return next year to defend his title. He credits the increasingly higher level of competition from the younger players as the reason for his indecision. He proved this week though that both his game and his endurance through six rounds on the course still stand up to the youngest and the best.

Randy Nichols of Brookville defeated Chase Wright of Muncie 1 up in the semi-finals to advance to the final round of the IGA Match Play Championship at Purgatory Golf Course. He will face Robert Gleixner of Greenwood who defeated Kyle Johnson of Fishers 1 up in their semi-final match.

It took Nichols 20 holes to defeat Brandon Pike of Bloomington, and Aaron Monson of Franklin lasted 19 holes before falling to Gleixner in the quarter finals.

Tenth-seeded Nichols is in search of his third IGA Match Play title (to add to wins from 1989 and 1995), while Gleixner is after his first IGA win ever. The final match begins Friday, August 1, at 7:00 a.m.

Match Play Bracket and Results

Brandon Pike of Bloomington got out in front of the field with a 4-under-par 68 at the IGA Match Play Championship qualifier. His subpar round earned him the No. 2 seed for the match play portion of the event at Purgatory Golf Club in Noblesville. The No. 1 seed automatically goes to defending champion Peter O’Neill of Carmel who shot 72.

All players who carded a 75 or lower qualified for the 32-player match play bracket. A playoff commenced immediately following play for the four players who shot 76 to compete for the final seed. Joey Piatek of Burns Harbor won after 3 holes.

Skip Runnels of Richmond just came off of his first Senior Match Play Championship win and fired a 3-under-par 69 to put himself in contention for his first Match Play title since his back-to-back wins in 1992-93. Ross Cosat of Carthage and Aaron Monson of Franklin also shot 69.

Matches begin at 7:30 a.m. Wednesday.

View Complete Results

Match Play Bracket and Results

After a qualifying round score of 2-under-par 69 Monday, Ted Smith of Wilkinson took the top seed at the Indiana Golf Association Senior Match Play and defeated every opponent he met seeded below him to make it to the finals. It was third-seeded Skip Runnels of Richmond who was finally able to break Smith’s winning streak in the final match at Bear Slide Golf Course in Cicero Wednesday. The 16 players who shot a 4-over-par 75 or under qualified for match play.

To advance to the finals, Runnels defeated Steve Baker of Noblesville 2 and 1 in the Round of 16 and Ron Carter of Monticello 3 and 2 in the Round of 8. In the Semi-finals, he beat Sam Till of Fort Wayne 4 and 3. “This course had a lot of risk-reward, and it fit my game pretty nicely,” said Runnels, who attributed his success both to the site and to his opponents not playing at their highest level. “I caught them when they weren’t making any birdies. I got out into the lead early and sustained it,” he said.

Runnels became eligible for IGA senior events in May, and captured his first Senior Match Play Championship. Any Indiana amateur over the age of 55 was eligible to compete.

View Complete Results