Bob Burton -- 2009 PNGA Master - 40 Amateur Champion

Competing in this Pacific Northwest Golf Association tournament for 40-year-olds and older at Chase, British Columbia's challenging Talking Rock Resort and Quaaout Lodge course, Burton and Vancouver, BC's Bob Whiton arrived at the 17th hole all square after never being more than one hole apart throughout their round.

Facing the short but inviting 278 yard par-4 17th, Whiton led off by hooking his drive into the left trees while Burton played it safe and laid up in perfect position with a hybrid club. Whiton was forced to punch out sideways. Burton then nestled his pitch shot to within six-feet from the flag. When Whiton failed to save par he conceded the birdie and the hole to Burton.

At the 18th, one of Talking Rock's toughest holes, both players hit their tee shots into the right fairway bunker with about 190 yards remaining to reach the green.

Playing first, Whiton put the pressure on Burton by hitting an outstanding 5-iron to the back of the green. Burton's approach then came up short and found the front greenside bunker and his third stroke left him with a testy eight-footer for par.

When Whiton missed his long birdie attempt, Burton carefully eyed his line then made no mistake, draining the eight-foot putt for the victory, his second since 2006, the same year he was named PNGA Senior Players of the Year.

To be eligible for the Pacific Northwest Men's Master-40 Amateur Championship, contestants must have reached their 40th birthday by the first day of the competition and also carry a handicap index of 16.4 or less. The championship consisted of 36 holes of stroke play qualifying to determine flights for the match play portion of the championship. The lowest 32 scorers from the qualifying rounds advanced to the Championship Flight, with each of the remaining flights being comprised of eight contestants. All matches were single-elimination and contested over 18 holes.

Final Results - Friday, May 22

Championship Flight -- (Final)
Bob Burton, Everett, Wash. (6) def. Rob Whiton, Vancouver, B.C. (17), 1 up

First Flight -- (Final)
Mike Mannion, Gibsons, B.C. (1) def. Gerald Stoddart, Calgary, AB (7), 4 and 2

Second Flight -- (Final)
Stephen Jenkins, Van, B.C. (3) def. Gary Heselton, Surrey, B.C. (4), 8 and 7

Third Flight -- (Final)
Tod Stewart, Vancouver, B.C. (2) def. Peter A Scott, Burnaby, B.C. (8), 1 up

Fourth Flight -- (Final)
Michael Welling, Hayden Lake, Idaho (2) def. Larry Bray, Panorama, B.C. (1), 5 and 3

Fifth Flight -- (Final)
Byron J Hall, Abbotsford, B.C. (3) def. Randy Narcisse, Chase, BC (4), 2 up

The PNGA Men's Master-40 is one of 15 regional championships conducted annually by the PNGA. For more information about the PNGA and the Master-40, visit www.thepnga.org.

The Pacific Northwest Golf Association (PNGA) was founded on February 4, 1899. It is a 501©3 charitable, international amateur golf association dedicated to preserving the true spirit of the game of golf and promoting activities beneficial to golfers in the Pacific Northwest region of North America. The PNGA is governed by a volunteer Board of Directors comprised of men and women, from private and public golf clubs, representing every geographic region of the Northwest. These Directors are elected by volunteer Club Representatives who are appointed by their clubs to be liaisons to the Association.

PNGA territory is broken down into five zones, which are: Zone 1 - Oregon; Zone 2 - Eastern Washington; Zone 3 - Western Washington and Alaska; Zone 4 British Columbia and Alberta; and Zone 5: Idaho and Montana. There are approximately 220,000 individuals at over 720 PNGA member golf clubs.

The original purpose of the PNGA was to conduct a regional amateur championship for men and women. For more than 110 years, the Association has been a pioneer in developing competitions and services and its mission has grown and evolved. Today, the PNGA remains committed to being a truly "regional" organization providing benefits and services to its members and member clubs throughout the Northwest.