Wick, Potter Capture Chattanooga TPC Titles

As far as Tucker Wick was concerned, Sunday’s championship match with life-long friend and East Hamilton High School teammate Griffin Law wasn’t about winning the 31^st Chattanooga TPC trophy.

Nor was the focus on fine-tuning his game in preparation for the duo’s trip later this week to Sevierville to compete in the TSSAA Class AA state golf tournament

Instead, it was about claiming bragging rights for the day against a familiar foe, and doing so in dominating fashion in the first Chattanooga TPC final featuring not one, but two high school contestants.

Those with a fragile self-confidence might wilt under similar circumstances. But the match was merely the next chapter in a battle that has been ongoing for years.

Starting with an eagle at the par-5 2^nd hole, Wick found momentum that never wavered, recording six more birdies on his way to a 5 and 3 outcome to win the Regular Division.

“I like to use the momentum when I’m playing well,” said Wick, who was runner-up up in last year’s state tournament for the Hurricanes. “If I get one hole, I let it build and build until I make a mistake.”

Law, a University of Tennessee at Chattanooga commit, has seen this locked-in look in Wick’s eyes before, both as a teammate and an opponent.

“There were several putts today that I just knew he was going to make,” Law said. “Because once he makes one, he then makes another and makes another. He’s hard to beat when that happens and he gets rolling.”

The nature of their friendly rivalry didn’t prompt Wick to let up on the gas after owning a 3-up lead at the turn. Instead, it was time to increase the octane.

“Especially with him, I'm not going to feel sorry for him,” said Wick, who has committed to play collegiately at Lee University. “Because we play so much, I've gotten beaten that badly before. So, I want to do it to him as much as I can. I want to win, and I want to win by a lot.”

That mindset is perfectly fine and not personal with Law. It gives him more fuel for their next encounter.

“I’m upset that I lost, obviously,” Law said. “I’m going to be on his tail next week. He knows that I’m coming after him when we get to state.”

With East Hamilton hoping to bring home some championship hardware later this week, Wick sees the bigger picture in Sunday’s grudge match.

“It's good to say I got him on this one,” Wick said. “But at the end of the day, I think we both want to win as a team and we want to fight it out individually. It’s what we’ve been doing for years.”

In his semifinal showdown with fellow Council Fire member Brendon Wilson, Wick birdied the final hole to advance to the finals after a 1-up victory. Wilson owned an early 2-up lead before Wick finally pulled even after a par on No. 10.

Consecutive birdies at 14 and 15 provided Wick with his first lead of the round, but Wilson evened the match with a winning par on 16 before dropping the last hole.

Earlier, Law found himself in a 2-down hole early after Steven Locke birdied 3 and 4 in their semifinal duel. But Law was able to square the match at the turn after a birdie at 9, and the match remained all-square thru 13 holes.

Back-to-back birdies on 14 and 15 gave Law a 2-up advantage, eventually ending the match on No. 17 with a par for a 3 and 1 decision.

Potter Wins Senior Division

Jay Potter considers the Chattanooga TPC one of his favorite tournaments, always making room on his busy golf calendar for this season-ending event. Winning the Senior Division title on Sunday by a 4 and 2 count over Jim Lett was the culmination of a superb season, and it brought about a moment of sentimental reflection.

Potter was extended an invitation to participate back in 1994 by way of his father from tournament director Mike Jenkins, but turned down the offer.

“I almost got a little emotional just now,” Potter said. “In 1994 I was at Camp Lejeune, and Mike called my dad to invite me. My dad called me up there, and he said, ‘Mike says you're eligible for some TPC thing down here in Chattanooga.’

“I said, ‘What is that?’ He told me it was at Council Fire, but I didn’t know anything about Council Fire so I passed on it. I wish I had played, because I have come to appreciate this tournament so much over the years.”

Potter’s win in his first year as a senior golfer comes on the heels of earning his initial Tennessee Golf Association title as co-champion of the Tennessee Senior Match Play championship two weeks ago. He also claimed the senior trophy at the Brainerd Invitational.

“They're all great to win, because you never know when your next one's going to be,” Potter said. “If you can stay in good enough shape when you turn 55, it's just like being the new kid on the block. I say that, but I'm having to undergo knee replacement later this fall.”

Having twice finished as runner-up in the Regular Division, Potter found himself down early in his championship final match with Lett. Facing a 12-foot par putt on No. 5 that would drop him to 3-down if he missed, Potter was able to salvage a tie by converting his attempt.

“Missing there could have changed everything,” Potter said. “After I made that putt, I won the next hole with a birdie and then won the next hole with a par to square the match.”

Lett drained a lengthy bomb for birdie on No. 8 to reclaim the lead, but Potter seized the momentum over the opening four holes on the back side.

Consecutive birdies at 10 and 11 gave Potter his first lead, then the Tullahoma resident who attended Chattanooga Christian won with pars on 12 and 13 to go 3-up.

Potter then closed out the match with a par on 16.

Paul Payne can be emailed at paulpayne6249@gmail.com