Chuckey, Tenn.----The Wingate University men's golf team competed in the Bob Dibble Match Play Classic Saturday and Sunday at the Graysburg Hills Golf Club (Fodder Stack-Chimney Top course, par 72/6,982 yards). Tusculum University hosted the exhibition event, honoring long-time head golf coach Bob Dibble. Proceeds from the tournament will benefit the Niswonger Children's Hospital in Johnson City.
 
Ten Bulldog student-athletes participated in the Bob Dibble Match Play Classic, divided into an "A" team and a "B" team. WU head men's golf coach John Hackney and WU faculty athletic representative Dr. Barry Cuffe accompanied the team (tournament notes, quotes and other information follows).
 
Saturday highlights
 
Walters State CC 2 1/2, Wingate B team 2 1/2 (WSCC wins tie-breaker)
 
-Senior Christian Pickerel and sophomore Anthony Parziale both won 2&1.
-Pickerel had four birdies.
-Senior James Whitaker earned the half-point for the Bulldogs.
 
Wingate A team 3, Lincoln Memorial B team 2
 
-Senior Tim Bombosch and juniors Nicolas Brown and Yannick Koehnen led the 'Dogs.
-Bombosch and Brown won 3&2, while Koehnen won 2 up.
-Brown had three birdies and an eagle.
 
Sunday highlights
 
Wingate B team 5, Tusculum B team 0 (36 holes, continued from Saturday evening)
 
-Pickerel and Parziale picked up their second victories Sunday morning.
-Whitaker and fellow seniors Darius Choveaux-Gros and Wesley Simmons also claimed victories.
-Pickerel shot a 33 on his first nine holes.
-Choveaux-Gros made a 50-foot putt to win the match.
 
Wingate A team 2 1/2, King (Tenn.) 2 1/2 (Wingate A wins tie-breaker)
 
-Brown and Koehnen won their second match each Sunday morning.
-Brown had his second eagle of the weekend.
-Junior Gonzalo Fernandez-Meras halved his match.
-In his first weekend as a Bulldog, Fernandez-Meras made a big putt to tie the match.
 
Lincoln Memorial A team 4, Wingate A team 1
 
-Senior Charles Joubert won his match 4&3 Sunday afternoon.
-Joubert shot five-under-par during the LMU match.
-Koehnen finished his Sunday (King, LMU) with two eagles.
-Lincoln Memorial was the 2019 NCAA Division II national runner-up.
 
Third-place bracket final: WSCC 15, LMU B team 12, Wingate B team 11
 
-Walters State won the third-place bracket final, played in a skins game format to save time.
 
What They Are Saying
 
Wingate head men's golf coach John Hackney: "This was a great experience for our team at a wonderful facility. I saw some brilliant golf off-and-on for two days from both our units. In several rounds, I think each of our guys went under par at least once."
 
"We appreciate the opportunity to play in this event. We were thrilled to help honor Bob Dibble and raise money for the Niswonger Children's Hospital. Now, we can't wait to play at Columbus State in a few weeks to kick off our official schedule."
 
Previous Wingate head men's golf coach Dr. Jerry Surratt (2004-11) on Bob Dibble: "I met Bob Dibble at my first tournament as coach of the Wingate Bulldog men's and women's golf teams in 2004. Bob did not look like a golf coach, shuffling along the cart path. He did not dress like a golfer, wearing a funny hat with a full surround brim, but I was a rookie coach and welcomed a friend."
 
"I discovered that Bob was the best authority among our collegiate coaches on the rules of golf, that he was a fierce competitor as a coach of his teams, but that he was also willing to help a newbie such as I learn what a coach could do to help his team and what he could not do on their behalf."
 
"Over shared years as coaches (Surratt also coached the Wingate women from 2004-14), we became fast friends and consistent competitors. Tusculum and Wingate teams always seemed neck-and-neck at every competition. He gave me valuable advice on request over the phone and over a cup of coffee. He gave even better advice when he coached his teams to a win over us."
 
"I learned and our teams learned, ultimately winning our share of tournaments and conference championships. Bob Dibble was the best example of a South Atlantic Conference and NCAA Division II coach that I have known apart from several examples from among the Wingate University coaching staff. He deserves any recognition that Tusculum University or any other organization can award him. Most notably, he has won the respect of his competitors and peers. We salute his accomplishments and his friendship." 
 
Next on the horizon
 
Wingate opens the 2019-20 season Sept. 23-24, competing in the Cougar Invitational, presented by AFLAC at the Country Club of Columbus, Ga. Peach Belt Conference member Columbus State University hosts the annual event. The Bulldogs played in the 2017 version of the same event (Sept. 25-26, 2017), which was the first tournament for head coach John Hackney at Wingate.
 
WINGATE UNIVERSITY
 
A comprehensive, independent and growing university, Wingate serves more than 3,600 students in North Carolina. Founded in 1896, the University offers 37 undergraduate majors as well as graduate and professional programs. Wingate is home to the Cannon College of Arts and Sciences, the Levine College of Health Sciences, the Byrum School of Business, the Thayer School of Education and the School of Sport Sciences. Wingate blends in-class exploration with out-of-class application to deliver an uncommon and life-changing educational experience.
 
In addition to a robust intramural athletics program, Wingate student athletes compete in 22 NCAA Division II sports. The University has won the South Atlantic Conference Echols Athletic Excellence Award for the past 13 years. Wingate is first in the 2000s among NCAA Division II and North Carolina's colleges and universities with 113 CoSIDA Academic All-America® selections. Wingate is tops among all SAC schools with 122 lifetime Academic All-America® honorees. For more information on WU athletics, go to www.wingatebulldogs.com. Current news and videos can be found at www.wingate.edu.