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EXETER – The epic comeback produced by John Mulhern Jr. and Zach Mulhern on the final nine holes of the 73rd annual John A. Allan Memorial Member-Guest ultimately only served to set up an emotional victory for John Mikiewicz and Tom Biscotti.

Biscotti’s birdie putt on 18 at Fox Hill Country Club late Sunday broke a tie and lifted the team to its third Allan Memorial title.

On a weekend in which he lost his father, Tom, Biscotti asked for a little extra help as he stepped up to face the “tricky” putt with the tournament on the line.

“I just said a prayer,” Biscotti said. “Just breathe a little bit. I said a prayer to my Dad, who I just recently lost and he came through for me. He really did.

“It was a tough weekend, obviously, and I was just trying to do it for him. I was just trying to get it together and make that putt for him.”

The Mulherns had led at the end of each of the first two days of the club’s annual three-day, better-ball, member-guest.

Mikiewicz-Biscotti then put together an inspired round of 6-under-par, 63 to start Sunday’s action and trim the championship flight from 18 to 10 contending teams that played the final nine holes.

The best round of the tournament opened a six-stroke gap, but the Mulherns roared back late, stringing together birdies in a 4-under, 32 on the back nine.

The Mulherns caught Mikiewicz-Biscotti with the last of their birdies at 17, setting up the 63rd hole to decide the title or the need for a playoff.

John Mulhern made a birdie putt on 16 and stuck a shot close on 17, forcing Mikiewicz to make a tough two-putt par just to hold on to a piece of the lead going to 18.

“Even on 18 when we were tied after being six shots up, I said to Tom, ‘we still birdie to win this tournament,’ and we did,” Mikiewicz said.

Things got exciting early for Mikiewicz-Biscotti with three straight tap-in birdies on shots to within a foot by Biscotti at 5, then Mikiewicz at 6 before Mikiewicz narrowly missed a hole-in-one at 7. They ran the birdie streak to four holes with another at 8 on the way to turning a four-way tie for second place into the six-stroke lead with nine holes to play.

“Having a big lead is very difficult,” Mikiewicz said.

The Mulherns made it even moreso with a series of momentum-building shots that had Fox Hill buzzing as the tournament neared its conclusion.

Thomas Gill-Len Coleman finished off a net 64-65-66—195 for a four-stroke victory in the Senior Division.

Larry Morgan-Matt Lehman won a shootout of the 14 match play flight champions. The second flight winners defeated 14th flight winners Steve Selenski-Len Selenski in the finals of the shootout.

73RD ANNUAL JOHN ALLAN MEMORIAL

(Fox Hill Country Club)

CHAMPIONSHIP FLIGHT

John Mikiewicz-Tom Biscotti 69-66-63-37—235

John Mulhern Jr.-Zach Mulhern 65-69-70-32—236

Richard Laneski-Eric Plisko 67-68-70-33—238

Jim Hoover-Tyler McGarry 66-69-72-34—241

William Burke-Christian Davis 69-67-70-35—241

Jamie Anzalone-Mariano Medico 72-70-69-32—243

Robert Gill-Corey Palma 67-71-69-38—245

Donald Crossin-Ryan Crossin 69-71-67-39—246

William Gill-Joseph Weiscarger 72-67-70-38—247

David Kluger-Eric Williams 70-69-73-40—252

John Mikiewicz reacts a a putt that just missed dropping into the cup on the fourteenth green in the Allen Tournament Championship round at Fox Hill Country Club in Exeter Sunday —————-Fred Adams|for Times Leader 6-30-19
https://www.timesleader.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/06/web1_golf1_faa.jpg.optimal.jpgJohn Mikiewicz reacts a a putt that just missed dropping into the cup on the fourteenth green in the Allen Tournament Championship round at Fox Hill Country Club in Exeter Sunday —————-Fred Adams|for Times Leader 6-30-19

John Mikiewicz comes out of the sand trap on the eighteenth green in the Allen Tournament Championship round at Fox Hill Country Club in Exeter Sunday —————-Fred Adams|for Times Leader 6-30-19
https://www.timesleader.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/06/web1_golf2_faa.jpg.optimal.jpgJohn Mikiewicz comes out of the sand trap on the eighteenth green in the Allen Tournament Championship round at Fox Hill Country Club in Exeter Sunday —————-Fred Adams|for Times Leader 6-30-19

Tom Biscotti reacts to sinking the winning putt at the John A. Allan Memorial golf tournament at Fox Hill Country Club in Exeter on Sunday.
https://www.timesleader.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/06/web1_golf3_faa.jpg.optimal.jpgTom Biscotti reacts to sinking the winning putt at the John A. Allan Memorial golf tournament at Fox Hill Country Club in Exeter on Sunday.

John Mikiewicz and Tom Biscotti react after winning the John A. Allan Memorial golf tournament at Fox Hill Country Club in Exeter on Sunday.
https://www.timesleader.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/06/web1_golf4_faa.jpg.optimal.jpgJohn Mikiewicz and Tom Biscotti react after winning the John A. Allan Memorial golf tournament at Fox Hill Country Club in Exeter on Sunday.

John Mulhern reacts to missing a putt at the John A. Allan Memorial golf tournament at Fox Hill Country Club in Exeter on Sunday.
https://www.timesleader.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/06/web1_golf5_faa.jpg.optimal.jpgJohn Mulhern reacts to missing a putt at the John A. Allan Memorial golf tournament at Fox Hill Country Club in Exeter on Sunday.
Mikiewicz, Biscotti win tourney

By Tom Robinson

For Times Leader