Defending champion Pat Erb on top of his game in Senior City Am

CEDAR RAPIDS — Pat Erb did not expect his score to hold up.

The amateur golfer was in one of the first 10 groups to tee off Friday in the opening round of the Cedar Rapids Men’s Senior Amateur golf tournament. Despite the golfers that followed, no one bettered Erb’s 3-under par score of 69 at Twin Pines Golf Course.

“I hit my driver really well today,” Erb said. “I had a lot of short approach shots. I didn’t hit a lot of greens, but my driver and I chipped great. I chipped everything close, so that really kept me in play. I struggled with my irons today, but tee shots and chipping were really good. Putting was halfway decent also.”

Erb, 55, is a member at Fawn Creek Country Club in Anamosa and plays golf “three or four times a week.” After struggling with his putter over the past two months, Erb has found improvement with his short game in the last couple of weeks.

“All in all, I am probably hitting the ball better than I have ever hit in my life,” Erb said. “Which at 55, is nice to say. I wish I could have done this in my 30s and 40s. It’s crazy. I’m playing the best golf of my life right now, which is strange to say at 55.”

After years of competing in the Cedar Rapids Men’s City Am and now in his fifth year at the Senior Am, Erb broke through last year with his first win in either tournament. His newfound role of defending champion brings new challenges.

“Never could break through in the young guy’s game,” Erb said. “But to finally get that Senior City Am, it was awesome last year. … It does put a little bit of a target on my back.”

Erb clearly absorbed that pressure well. He overcame two bogeys by carding five birdies, including one on the par-3 No. 8 hole. Erb’s first round score of 72 was matched by Jeff Berndt and 2017 Senior Am champion Tim Ingwersen, who coincidentally played together in the same foursome.

“I know them both really well,” Erb said. “Great players. I played with Jeff last year in both the second round and the third round. We were in the final group. I played with Tim for probably 10 or 15 years. … Great guys. Going to be tough competition the next two days, for sure.”

The second round will be staged Saturday at Gardner Golf Course in Marion, while the winner will be crowned after Sunday’s final round at Ellis Park Golf Course.

“Gardner and Ellis are a better test of golf for the top guys,” Erb said. “So I appreciate that you have to bring out your best. Twin Pines, you can kind of hit it anywhere almost and still score OK. But Gardner and Ellis, you really have to play well to score well there. I like that.”

In other area amateur golf tournaments, five-time Cedar Rapids Men's City Amateur champion Chris James leads by one stroke after Round 1, while Coby Thompson of North Liberty led the Iowa City Golf Association City Am at press time.