Bloomfield, Connecticut (October 1, 2025) – The theme of the 2025 CSGA season has been extra holes. That theme continued at the Tettelbach Division portion of the 20th Tournament of Champions hosted by Tumble Brook Country Club.
After 18 holes on a brilliantly sunny but chilly and breezy day, both Mark Eells (Manchester CC) and Jacob Lindsay (Shuttle Meadow CC) were locked in a tie thanks to 1-under 71s. So on to extra holes they went.
The first extra hole was tied, sending play to a second playoff hole. It was here that Eells, the 2022 Connecticut Public Links winner, had an opportunity to close the door. Lindsay was scrambling and seemed destined for a dropped shot, but he buried a 20-footer to save par and keep his hopes alive.
Still, Eells had a chance to put an end to the proceedings. With 12 feet down the hill left for birdie, Eells sent the putt on the way and then held his breath as the putt curled into the left edge, then circled the entire hole before falling in.
“It feels amazing to win. I haven’t played all that well this season, but I’ve continued to work hard on my game, so this just feels really good,” Mark Eells said. “I’d never played Tumble Brook CC before, so I was flying blind out there, but I got off to a really good start and was 3-under after making eagle on number eight. After that, I just hung in there.”
Eells began his round with five straight pars before he birdied the par-5 sixth. Two holes later, Eells recorded his eagle to jump to 3-under. Three bogeys over the course of the next five holes brought Eells all the way back to level-par before he righted the ship playing the final five holes in 1-under with his birdie coming on the par-4 17th.
Rounding out the top five were Steve Wagner (CC of Farmington) in third place at level-par, while Anthony Guerrera (Watertown GC) and Cody Paladino (Hartford GC) shared fourth at 1-over.
In other news, Bradley Sawka (Ellington Ridge CC) secured 2025 Dick Tettelbach Player of the Year honors by finishing in a tie for seventh (+3) and one stroke better than Adam Friedman (Great River GC), who finished 4-over in a tie for 10th. Friedman would finish in second place just 49.49 pooints behind.
Sawka, a junior at UConn teed it up at Tumble Brook CC one day after earning co-medalist honors at the UConn Invitational.
The Siderowf Division portion of the 20th Tournament of Champions will be played on October 28 at Bull’s Bridge Golf Club.
About the Connecticut State Golf Association
The Tournament of Champions is one of 20 championships conducted by the Connecticut State Golf Association. The CSGA functions as an extension of the USGA and provides stewardship for amateur golf in Connecticut. Founded in 1899, it is the country’s oldest state golf association and conducts over 60 Championships, Qualifiers, and One Day Tournaments throughout the year.
