Rescheduled Erskine Open hosted in Greenwood
The 51st annual Erskine Open Golf Tournament was hosted Thursday, Oct. 31, at the Greenwood Country Club. Proceeds from the Erskine Open support the Flying Fleet Hall of Fame, which honors Erskine athletes and coaches. Tournament participants included several members of the Hall of Fame as well as one of this year’s inductees.
Placing first, with a team score of 53, were junior Rafael Barrios, Tom Bastow, Aiken Golightly, and junior Junior Llamoza.
Taking second place, with a team score of 58, were senior Ben Coggins, Ricky Harding, Carter Hyde, and Parker Santee.
Named third place winners following a tiebreaker, also with a team score of 58, were John Burnette, Rick Farmer, Bob Santee, and Brian Wood.
Winner of the Longest Drive contest was John Burnette.
This year’s event was originally planned for Sept. 28 at The Links at Stoney Point but was rescheduled in the wake of Hurricane Helene. Erskine Open founder Whitey Adams ’64 registered for the original tournament but was unable to play on the new date. Flying Fleet Hall of Fame members Skip Goley ’71, Bob Thompson ’71, and Brandon Wright ’10 were also unable to attend on the new date.
Vice President for Athletics Ralph Patterson was delighted to welcome Flying Fleet Hall of Fame members Chris Bethea ’79, Fred Coan ’71, Bill Lesesne ’61, Steve Southwell ’80, and Chip Sherer ’89, as well as 2024 inductee Ralph Polson ’80. He notes that Charles McKinney ’60 and Bill Lesesne ’61 were “the most experienced” golfers in the tournament.
“We had a beautiful day at the Greenwood Country Club,” Patterson said. “We enjoyed having alumni and friends, young and not-so-young, as participants in this open invitational Tournament.”
He expressed appreciation to this year’s tournament participants and congratulated the top three teams and door prize winners. Volunteers who helped the tournament run smoothly included Thomas Holland ’00, Peggy Harrill ’76, Ralph Lundy, and Lynn Patterson. Staff members at the tournament included hole watcher Ginger Pitts and photographer Lora Greenway.
Erskine Open sponsors were McCoy Ford, World Insurance Associates LLC, Joey’s Tree Service LLC, The Commercial Bank, State Sen. Mike Gambrell, and The Scoop Crew.
Shown at top are, from left, first-place team members Rafael Barrios, Tom Bastow, Aiken Golightly, and Junior Llamoza. See more photos!
Inaugurated in 1974, when it was organized by Robert “Whitey” Adams ’64 and held at the Cooper’s Creek Golf Club in Leesburg, South Carolina, the Erskine Open is a cherished Erskine tradition.
