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Jun 28, 2018

Byrnes and Kuhn to square off in final match at PNGA Master-40

Jeff Byrnes (Buckley, Wash.) and Darren Kuhn (Pocatello, Idaho) will face each other in tomorrow’s final match at the 43rd Pacific Northwest Master-40 Amateur Championship, being held this week at The Retreat & Links at Silvies Valley Ranch in Seneca, Ore.

Jeff Byrnes and Darren Kuhn (L to R)

The 18-hole final match will be contested on the resort’s Hankins Course, and the competitors will tee off at 7:30 a.m.

Byrnes, 43, was the co-medalist and the No. 1 seed entering into the championship’s match play. “I’ve always enjoyed tournament golf,” he said, after closing out Kenny Walker (Boise, Idaho) 2&1 in this afternoon’s semifinal match. “I haven’t played a lot lately, and not much match play at all, but this (championship) gives me a chance to compete against others my own age.”

Byrnes attended St. Martin’s University in Lacey, Wash., and got his Master’s degree at the University of Washington. He is a school principal in the White River School District, outside of Tacoma, Wash.

Kenny Walker (left) congratulates Jeff Byrnes on the 17th green of the Craddock Course, after Byrnes closed out the semifinal match against Walker, 2&1.

Kuhn, 51, is a salesman for Oroweat. He is the No. 22 seed in the bracket, but has competed in several Master-40 championships. He was the medalist in the 2013 championship, and in 2012 he made it all the way to the final match before finishing runner-up. He intends to play in the PNGA Mid-Amateur, to be held Sept. 5-7 at Crane Creek Country Club in Boise in his home state of Idaho.

To reach the final match this year, Kuhn defeated Steve Rude (Vancouver, Wash.) 6&4 in this afternoon’s other semifinal match. Rude had been the other co-medalist still remaining in the field.

The championship, which is conducted by the Pacific Northwest Golf Association (PNGA), consists of the top amateur male golfers in the Pacific Northwest over the age of 40.

Click here for complete scoring for all competitors.

Click here for complete information about the championship.

The two courses – Hankins and Craddock – at The Retreat & Links at Silvies Valley Ranch were designed by Dan Hixson, a native of Portland, Ore. who has designed other top Northwest courses. The uniqueness of the Hankins and Craddock courses is that they are reversible – among the 36 holes, there are just 27 greens and 16 fairways.

Silvies Valley Ranch is a 140,000-acre working cattle ranch. Dr. Scott Campbell, a native of nearby Burns, Ore. who made his mark as a veterinarian and CEO and former owner of Banfield Pet Hospital, purchased the property in 2007, and has performed extensive renovations to it, with the Retreat & Links now being the most public. Along with the two full-length golf courses, there is 9-hole par-3 course called Chief Egan, and a 7-hole extreme golf experience called McVeigh’s Gauntlet, which will open in July 2018 and come complete with goat caddies.

To join the conversation on social media, use the hashtag #PNGAMensM40 and follow PNGA Championships on Twitter @PNGALIVE.