Kip Henley, left, and brother Brent Henley defended their title in the Moccasin Bend City Four-Ball senior division
photo by Paul Payne
As they held the championship trophy after winning their second straight senior division title in the Moccasin Bend City Four-Ball on Sunday, Kip and Brent Henley were reviewing the names of all the past winners.
The various yearly plaques read like a who’s-who of golfers instrumental in Chattanooga’s rich history, and it was a subtle reminder of how quickly the years have rolled past. The Henley brothers spotted their names on the trophy as previous champions paired with different playing partners, and they were proud to know that another name plate will soon be added commemorating their latest victory.
But there was also a sense of sadness that a different Henley – their oldest brother Lindy – wasn’t able to add his name to the iconic list.
In Sunday’s final round, Kip and Brent were paired with Lindy and his playing partner Jeff Cox, having entered the day in a three-way tie for the lead at 9-under-par.
As much as Kip and Brent wanted to repeat last year’s win, they wouldn’t have minded if their big brother they affectionately refer to as “Doc” was able to capture the biggest win of his career.
There is a special bond among the Henley clan, with sisters bookending the trio of brothers each separated by three years. Competitive? Yes. But the bloodlines are thick with loyalty, too.
After finding themselves trailing Lindy and Cox at the turn, Kip and Brent caught fire on their final nine. They birdied five of six holes starting at No. 11, then capped their round of 8-under 64 thanks to a masterful up-and-down for birdie by Brent at 18 to win by two shots with a final total of 17-under 144.
“It’s fun to win, but it’s less fun beating him,” Brent said with a nod toward Lindy. “We said in a text last night that if God said we’d finish second right now, I’d take it if it meant they could finish first.
“Our family's really strong and we're blessed beyond belief. But Doc’s never been in this position to have this opportunity. I would’ve rather seen him get his because this was the biggest tournament he’s ever played in.”
The competitive fire was on full display between the siblings, but there was a bigger narrative at play.
“Doc was trying to beat us with all his heart, and we were doing the same thing,” Kip said. “We were determined that a Henley would be on top of the leaderboard.
Their latest victory was close to being a three-peat for Brent and Kip, having lost in a playoff two years ago. Even though they weren’t able to see Lindy and Cox add their name to the trophy, there was a sense of satisfaction in finishing well.
“I told Brent on 11 tee that we needed to birdie every hole coming in,” Kip said. “I said, ‘This is where we turn it on every year, and it’s time to turn it on again.’ Somehow, we did just that.”
Lindy and Cox shot 66 over their final round to finish at 15-under-par 129 in a runner-up tie with Joe Markham Jr. and Gary Davis, who closed with a sterling 10-under 62 in their final round.
Billy Weathers and Pat Hipp joined Bret Douglas and Jeff Sherrill in a tie for 4th at 12-under-par 166, one shot better than the totals of 11-under-par 133 compiled by Richard Keene and Mike Jenkins as well as the tandem of Jay Potter and Michael Lovvorn.
Other senior division flight winners were Bobby Layne and Mike Hixson in the 1st Flight with an 8-under 136, while Doug Darr and Don Gregory combined to win the 2nd Flight with a 6-under 138.
In the regular division competition, Cory Gaylord and Rusty Johnson shot a final round 66 to win by four shots with a total of 20-under-par 124.
The Council Fire Club duo shot an eye-popping 58 in Saturday’s opening round, and were able to maintain their four-stroke cushion most of the afternoon played in a steady mist.
“We play everything together,” Johnson said. “We’ve won some member-member tournaments and had a whole bunch of seconds, including twice here. So, this was nice to finally win one of these.”
Sunday’s round had an inauspicious start with a bogey on the opening hole, but they were able to recover to capture their first CDGA title.
“We played really well yesterday, and played good enough today to win,” Gaylord said. It takes a big number to win this tournament. There's a lot of good players, and they're going to go deep. I’m glad we were able to do what it took to win.”
There was a three-way tie for the runner-up position at 16-under-par 128. Joshua Baker and Richard Spangler shot 63 on Sunday for their 2nd-place finish, joining Andrew Weathers and Chris Wells along with Brandon Cissom and Colby Truelove.
Other regular division flight winners were Taylor Lewis and Todd Gerrez winning the 1st Flight after shooting 58 on Sunday to finish at 19-under 125, while Anthony Stoker and Travis Allmond combined for a 5-under 139 to claim the 2nd Flight.
Paul Payne can be emailed at paulpayne6249@gmail.com
Rusty Johnson, left, and Cory Gaylord combined to win the regular division of the Moccasin Bend City Four-Ball
photo by Paul Payne