Corbett’s 61 breaks Elkhorn record

He qualified in a regional tournament for the U.S. Senior Open and played with the big boys July 23-24 at Riviera Country Club in Los Angeles.

Corbett has won tournaments and played excellent golf all summer on the Rocky Mountain Section PGA circuit. He has earned a berth in the National Senior PGA Club Professional Championships.

And, if he could have made a putt on the finishing holes at Elkhorn Golf Course, Corbett would have won the 1998 Cobra Rocky Mountain section championship there Sept. 2.

Well, Corbett made plenty of putts at Elkhorn Golf Course Sept. 23 during the first round of the 36-hole Rocky Mountain Section PGA Pro-Am.

He shot the round of his life.

Hitting from the blue championship tees on the par-72, 7,101-yard Elkhorn Golf Course, Corbett carded a course record 61. That’s 11-under-par.

Corbett, who held the previous course record of 65, said, "I hit the ball extremely well, and hit it in close, and made most of my putts."

He made 11 birdies, 7 pars and no bogeys on the challenging Robert Trent Jones Jr. course.

Corbett shot 32 on the par-36, 3,751 yard front nine—featuring birdies on four of the first five holes. And he shot an unbelievable 29 with seven birdies on the par-36, 3,350-yard back nine—including four straight birdies on #10, #11, #12 and #13, and three finishing birdies on #16, #17 and #18.

He birdied six of the 10 par 4s, and three of the four par 5s.

Corbett, playing with enormous confidence, might have shot 60. On the par-5, 544-yard #18 hole, he drilled a 270-yard drive and reached for his 3-wood. One of his playing partners, Wally Huffman, said they feared this was the time Corbett might hit a stray shot.

No way. He stuck the fairway wood about 15 feet from the pin and had a great chance for his first eagle. Corbett misread his eagle putt and it rolled five feet away. But he made no mistake on the birdie putt and finished his amazing 61.

Even Corbett’s 4-over-par 76 shot Thursday after an evening of suitable celebration couldn’t prevent his foursome including Huffman, Tim Appleton and Joe Yarborough from capturing the team title of the $17,860 Snake River chapter Pro-Am.

In the Chicago-system format, Corbett’s team finished at +23 to win $1,695.72, split into $423.93 shares. It was the second straight Elkhorn Pro-Am team title for Corbett’s foursome, which shared top honors in 1997. Next closest foursome was captained by John Schoonover of Boise, +13.

Corbett won Pro Sweeps at +13 for $743.31 over Schoonover, +5, and earned $341.70 more for winning Senior Sweeps over Elkhorn teaching pro Tommy Sanderson.

His success spread to his teammates. On Thursday, Corbett’s amateur partner Appleton recorded his sixth career hole-in-one, using a 9-iron on the 154-yard par-3 #6 hole.

Top results in amateur sweeps:

First flight—Bart Lewis +6 for $361.41 and Scott Howard +5 for $343.98. Second flight—Shield Stutts +9. Charlie Wister tied for third at zero. Third flight—Mansel Rogers +8, Appleton +3, Shaun Mahoney +1 and Huffman zero. Fourth flight—Glenn Foster +7. Fifth flight—Ed Bowmer +13.

Other local golfers playing in the Pro-Am included pros Karen Campbell-Shorts, Dave Hardison, John Weekes and Mark Swift; amateurs Brian Saksa, Walter Littenberg, Tim Jeneson, Al Hinds, Allen Patzer, Joe Bergl, Larry Bauman, Louie Mallane, Norm Shorts and Gary Goodenough.