MICHAEL KIRAL / L’Observateur / August 30, 1999

LAPLACE – Don Savoie Sr. of LaPlace sank a 10-foot putt on the final holeto give him and his partner, Jim Pecoraro of Zachary, a one-shot victory in the 65-69 age division of the Louisiana Golf Association Senior 4-Ball Championship this weekend at The Bluffs on Thompson Creek in St.

Francisville.

Savoie and Pecoraro combined to shoot an eight-over par 152 to defeat last year’s champions from Baton Rouge. The two followed up an openingday 78 Saturday with a 74 in the final round Sunday.

Savoie and Pecoraro caught up with their competitors from Baton Rouge by the turn Sunday after trailing by two strokes going into the final day. Withthe match tied going into the par-3 17th, the two went down by one as Savoie three putted for a bogey and his competitor sank a 40-foot putt for par.

“When I missed that second put for par, I thought we had lost the tournament,” Savoie said.

But Savoie came back on the par-5 18th, draining the 10-footer for birdie while his competitor three-putted from 50 feet away for a bogey.

“It was a good way to end it,” Savoie said of making the putt. “It was avery exciting match. We were fortunate to win it.” Savoie said Pecoraro carried him the first day while he came back to have a good putting day Sunday. The match was the first time the two hadteamed up. Savoie had been playing in the event since its inception,finishing in the top five five times but this was his first victory.

“I was very happy and so was my partner. We were elated to say the least.There is only one winner and we’re happy to be the ones this year. It was athrill at my age to win a state championship. It was the topping on thecake.”Savoie began playing golf after his days of playing baseball in the Sugar Cane League were over, joining Riverlands Country Club in 1968.

That year, Savoie would coach the Reserve High School baseball team to the state championship and followed that up with another state championship the following year. Savoie then became principal at LaPlaceElementary until retiring in 1977.

Savoie became a worker in the oil fields where he got to play golf with his clients. His boss was an avid golfer and took him along to play on some ofthe top courses in the country, including Pebble Beach, Spy Glass, Southern Hills and PGA West in Palm Springs, Calif.

Savoie, a nine-handicapper, has shot a low of 66 at both Riverlands and Belle Terre country clubs. He said he practices three to four days a weekand has been playing competitive tournaments for the past 30 years.

“I love to play, love to practice,” Savoie said.

Savoie is playing in the Senior Club Championship at Belle Terre this weekend. He has won the championship nine times and has lost only twicein the competitions in which he has started. Savoie said he may also playin the Louisiana Golf Association 4-Ball Championship Oct. 2-3 at MoneyHill in Abita Springs.

“It takes a lot of practice,” Savoie said of his philosophy on the game.

“That’s what it takes if you want to be a decent golfer. It’s a real hardgame to be good at.”Other winners at the LGA Senior 4-Ball Championships were Todd Lusk and Ronnie Melancon of Baton Rouge in the 50-59 age division, Bill Clayton of Morgan City and Bill Williams of Lafayette in the 60-64 group and Frank Foster of Mandeville and Warren Perkins of Gretna in the 70 and over division.

Return To Sports Stories

Copyright © 1998, Wick Communications, Inc.

Internet services provided by NeoSoft.

Best viewed with 3.0 or higher