Red Hawk Flies Into Tony Stevens Cup Victory
Whittington, IL - The Tony Stevens Cup is a time honored tradition in Southern Illinois and has once again been contested in 2025. Today’s play saw soggy and windy conditions, following the storms that blew through the area over the prior 24 hours. 10 teams from 7 clubs competed for the Tony Stevens Cup at Rend Lake Golf Complex. The teams in this year’s competition are Apple Creek Golf Club, Benton Country Club #1, Benton Country Club #2, Greenview Golf Club, Indian Hills Golf Course #1, Indian Hills Golf Course #2, McLeansboro Golf Club #1, McLeansboro Golf Club #2, Red Hawk Golf Course, and Rend Lake Golf Complex. Play began at 9:00am.
The teams consist of six golfers, who compete in three 9-hole rounds. Each round is a different format. Round 1 was a four-ball and was played on the South Course. Round 2 was a modified Chapman, played on the East Course. Round 3 was a foursome and was played on the West Course. The top 2 scores from a team’s 3 pairings in each round count towards the team total.
After Round 1, Benton CC #1 took the lead at three-under (-3) par. The side of Corey Smith & Andrew Mitchell provided a two-under par round to their team, while the side of Nate Sanders and Jesse Sanders provided a one-under par round. Jason Drew and Aaron Jones also shot one-under par for Benton. Indian Hills GC #1 sat in second at two-under (-2) par. Matt Pool and Tino Shafer contributed a one-under par round, as did Blaith Belangee and Seth Bullard. McLeansboro GC #1 and Red Hawk GC both sat at one-under (-1) par.
Players grabbed a quick bite to eat and headed back out on the golf course for Round 2. In the second round, Indian Hills GC #1 and Red Hawk GC had the lowest round scores at one-under par. This helped both teams move up the leaderboard. For Indian Hills, Matt Pool and Tino Shafer’s score combined with Jacob Woodrome and Kelly Hallam’s score pushed their club to the top of the leaderboard at three-under (-3) par. The sides of Barry Craig plus Kyle Ridgeway and Jordan Campanella plus Bryan Kelly had a combined second round score of one-under par for Red Hawk. With a total of two-under (-2) par, Red Hawk moved into a tie for second. They were tied with Benton CC #1, who had a second round of one-over par, dropping them back a stroke. All other teams sat with total scores over par following the second round.
The third and final round proved crucial to the results. Red Hawk GC stayed steady in the first two rounds, sitting at two-under par. The team’s side of Barry Craig and Kyle Ridgeway shot two-over, which was combined with the side of Kalin Bridges and Larry Sims’ score of four-over par, led the team to victory. At a total of four-over (+4) par, Red Hawk GC secured the top spot on the leaderboard and took home the win. Indian Hills GC #1 posted a round of eight-over to drop back into second place at five-over (+5) par. Apple Creek GC had the best final round score of two-over par, which brought them into a tie with Indian Hills at five-over (+5) par. Benton CC #1 shot a final round of seven-over to be added to the tie for second at five-over (+5) par.
Red Hawk Golf Course walks away victorious with the Tony Stevens Cup. Teammates Kalin Bridges, Larry Sims, Barry Craig, Kyle Ridgeway, Jordan Campanella, and Bryan Kelly claimed Red Hawk’s first win since 2004, closing a 21 year gap. Indian Hills Golf Course #1, Apple Creek Golf Club, and Benton CC #1 finished tied for second.