Final Four Locked In at 93rd Four-Ball Championship
WAYNE, N.J. - Despite intermittent rain showers throughout the day, play pressed on as the Round of 16 and Quarterfinals of the 93rd Four-Ball Championship unfolded at North Jersey Country Club.
The Round of 16 featured tightly contested matches across the board, with two going to extra holes. One of those nail-biters saw Zachary Pallis and Bradley Lankler emerge victorious to secure a spot in the quarterfinals. Trailing by three with just three holes remaining, Pallis of Watchung Valley Golf Club and Lankler of Hamilton Farm Golf Club mounted a dramatic comeback to defeat Bayonne Golf Club’s Jayan Fazal-Karim and Jonathan Chang in thrilling fashion.
“It basically came down to not having any other choice. You can either make birdie or you leave the facility and go to work tomorrow,” Pallis and Lankler joked. “It was really fun – you kind of surprise yourself there.”
In their afternoon Quarterfinal, momentum was on their side as they defeated the father/son duo of Derrick and Patrick Scenna.
“We just made putts,” the duo said of their quarterfinal match. “We got lucky. We didn't make putts in the first round and then in the second round, we did. We hit it better, put it in better spots that gave us putts to make and they fell, which they certainly didn't this morning.”
The semifinals feature four lower-seeded teams, as the bracket saw several upsets along the way. Co-medalists Mike Puorro and Austin Devereux were ousted in the Round of 16, while Travis Dix and Ethan Lee fell in the quarterfinals.
Making their first appearance in the semifinals after falling in the Round of 16 in 2024, brothers Jeremy and Ethan Wall survived a quarterfinal match against a solid Deal Golf & Country Club duo in Anthony Campanile and Brian Hart. In what went 19 holes and featured 18 birdies between all four players, the Wall brothers closed it out with a par on the 19th hole.
“I don't get as frustrated when we do have bad holes or shots because it is what it is,” Jeremy said. "We're very easy to forgive, which maybe isn't super common for brothers, because that could go the other way, but we get along well and it just feels easy. If I'm out of a hole, he's in it and then vice versa - so I think it just works.”
2023 New Jersey Amateur Champion Jack Wall and their youngest brother caddied for them throughout the day.
“We have a pretty good caddie too," Ethan added.
“It’s funny because he wants nothing to do with helping us,” Jeremy joked. He’s just out there to carry the golf bags. Doesn’t want to read putts, just carry the bag, but he loves it and he’s excited to have us win so it’s good that we have good vibes out there.”
Semifinal play will begin at 7:30 a.m.
Round of 16 Results
Lee/Dix def. Arbes/King, 19 holes
Zulli/Cass def. Matti/Matti, 3&1
Wall/Wall def. Weise/Rose, 2&1
Hart/Campanile def. O’Connell/Collins, 3&2
Scenna/Scenna def. Puorro/Devereux, 1-up
Pallis/Lankler def. Fazal-Karim/Chang, 20 holes
Shortall/Barney def. Browndorf/Skirkanich, 2-up
Bolster/Vowells def. Cliff/Cornell, 2-up
Quarterfinal Results
Zulli/Cass def. Lee/Dix, 3&2
Bolster/Vowells def. Shortall/Barney, 4&2
Wall/Wall def. Campanile/Hart, 19 holes
Pallis/Lankler def. Scenna/Scenna, 4&2
Semifinal Matchups
Zulli/Cass versus Wall/Wall - 7:30 a.m.
Bolster/Vowells versus Pallis/Lankler - 7:45 a.m.
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