John Woodman likes to say it never rains on the Staten Island Sports Hall of Fame Golf Outing & Reunion.
Some days are just brighter than others.
The 9th annual outing was played under perfect conditions, with a cool breeze under sunny skies, and LaTourette Golf Course in prime condition just a week after the New York City Amateur was contested over the same track.
The quality of the golf was as nearly as brilliant as the weather, with former tour pros Bill Britton and Jim Albus in the field, and a slew of current and former Staten Island Amateur champs, contenders and regulars in the mix.
In addition to Albus, Britton and longtime Silver Lake pro Ed Sorge, more than 20 Hall of Famers made it for golf, dinner, or both, helping to swell the dinner crowd of 140 athletes, coaches, and friends in the big room at the Staaten, and putting the spirit of reunion back in the reunion.
John Venturella and his young team of reigning Staten Island Amateur champion Brent Frederickson, Amateur runner-up Michael Young and Darren Fernandez took the team trophy, out-dueling the foursome of Dan Pizzuto, Ken Quinn, Rich Quinn and five-time Amateur champion Rodney Stilwell.
Frederickson shared closest-to-the-pin honors with Tony Navarino and Mike Reardon.
Hall of Famer Ray Rudolph and Suzanne Woodman had the longest drives of the day, and Borough Historian Tom Matteo was straightest.
The formal highlight of the evening was the presentation of the Bobby Thomson Ambassador Award to Penn and Philadelphia Big 5 Hall of Fame basketball star John Engles, and Curtis High School two-sport star Dan McDermott.
Jim Kelley and Mike Reardon were the 2019 recipients of the Steve Zuntag Good Guy Awards.
Then they all fell back in with teammates, playing partners, old enemies and forever friends, on one of those rare nights when so many of the best of the best in the old neighborhood find themselves under one roof.
