DANVILLE, KY (August 18, 2020) – The final round of the Kentucky Senior Amateur was developing into a compelling finish with five players within two strokes of the lead heading to the back nine, but unfortunately mother nature intervened and shortened the top division’s length of competition. The Open Division of the 2020 Kentucky Senior Amateur is officially a 27-hole competition after a weather delay, which began at approximately 5:00 p.m. EDT, featured heavy rain and lightning which eliminated any possibility of the last six groups on the golf course from completing all 18 holes at Danville Country Club on Tuesday. All players in both the Masters and Legends Divisions completed their final rounds, and each will remain 36-hole competitions.

The overall champion of the 2020 Kentucky Senior Amateur as a result is Mark Knecht of Paducah. After recording 69 (-3) on Monday, Knecht played the front nine of Danville in 34 (-2) on Tuesday which proved to be enough for a one-stroke victory. Knecht’s total score was 103 (-5), edging out Tom Campbell and Buddy Bryant who each finished tied for second at 104 (-4) while Derek Riley and Scott Ray tie for fourth place at 105 (-3).

“It’s a big honor to win this tournament,” Knecht said. “This is a historically a big tournament in the state and to put my name on the list of champions… I’m very honored. I just played consistent golf and kept big numbers off the card which always helps in big tournaments like these.”

Five other trophies were also awarded on Tuesday for the various gross and net divisions contested this week in Danville. For the Open Net Division, which also goes down as a 27-hole competition, David Rudder is the winner after completing the championship with a score of 101 (-7). It goes down as a four-shot margin of victory over Rusty Dyer, Norman Snow and Tony Wise.

Greg Engle was exceptional on Tuesday, shooting 67 (-5) to go on to win the Masters Gross Division title by five strokes over Steve Rogers after Engle concluded the tournament with a total score of 142 (-2).

Another Greg is victorious in the Masters ranks with Greg Grider of Russell Springs coming away with a three-stroke victory on the Net side. He concluded the competition with a total score of 140 (-4).

Chuck Hinners is the winner in the Legends Gross Division as he recorded a two-day tally of 149 (+5) to beat Rick Cain by two strokes.

Rounding out the list of victors, Bruce Walters is the champion of the Legends Net Division thanks in large part to a 69 (-3) on Tuesday that helped him top Elmo Greer by three strokes.

NOTES AND STATS

• Two gross eagles were recorded in the competition, with Kenny Kinman notching one on the par-five 1^st today while Kevin Auton holed out on the par-four 4^th on Tuesday as well.
• For the competition, the opening hole was the easiest on the golf course for the two days. All divisions factored an average score-to-par of -0.06.
• The hole immediately after, the par-three 2^nd, was the hardest on the golf course. It played +0.79 with only four birdies were made on it throughout the competition.

Click here for the final results

Click here for the photo gallery

The Kentucky Golf Association would like to thank each competitor who played this week and Danville Country Club for hosting this edition of the Kentucky Senior Amateur. Another crown jewel in Kentucky senior golf takes place in two weeks, as the 21^st Kentucky Senior Open will be contested at Frankfort Country Club on August 31-September 1. Players can view more information and register by clicking here.