The Northern PGA Chapter Professionals had visions of another dramatic comeback in this year’s 34th Annual Underwood Cup hosted by Deerwood Country Club in Jacksonville on Feb. 3 and 4, just as they had done a year ago.
However, their amateur counterparts were having nothing to do with a repeat of what transpired last year when the amateurs had a big lead only to watch their then 8 ½-3 ½ advantage slowly slip away during the singles matches on the final day as the pros completed a historic rally to claim the top prize by one point.
In the end this time around, the amateurs defeated the professionals by a score of 14-10, which gave the amateurs their 19th victory in the more than three-decade history of the Underwood Cup, which has a unique format, like the Ryder Cup, pitting the top Northern Chapter PGA professionals against a team of elite First Coast amateur golfers.
The amateurs got off to a quick start during the two-day tournament and grabbed a commanding 9-3 lead with stellar performances in morning foursome and afternoon four-ball competitions on the first day.
For the second year in a row, the professionals applied some early heat when Stephanie Connelly-Eiswerth, Hayes Farley and Michael Mattiace won three of the first four matches, convincingly – 5&4, 4&3 and 5&4, respectively.
"We had hope at that point," said pro captain Mike Broderick, the head professional at Deerwood Country Club. "It was getting real. Stephanie set the tone for us, Mike (Mattiace) and Hayes (Farley) won big matches. We were close in a lot of other matches. We thought it was possible."
Connelly-Eiswerth was particularly impressive and motivational in her lead match versus the reigning Florida men’s amateur champion, Jimmy Ellis of Atlantic Beach Country Club.
The 2024 PGA of America Women’s Professional of the Year reeled off a string of birdies to get to eight-under and the match was called at the 14th green.
The twosome would play out the round with Connelly-Eiswerth adding two pars and two birdies on the last four holes for an unofficial round of 62 (10-under).
"At one point I was standing [where he could see three holes] and all I saw were the pros making birdies," said amateur captain Mike Del Rocco. "They started out fast. We had guys playing well but they were playing better."
Dean Grunewald, director of golf at The Plantation in Ponte Vedra Beach, has been named captain of the professional team in 2026 followed by Broderick in 2027. The amateur team has yet to select its next captains.
