ROANOKE TIMES
Copyright (c) 1996, Roanoke Times
DATE: Friday, July 5, 1996 TAG: 9607050090
SECTION: SPORTS PAGE: B-5 EDITION: METRO
DATELINE: HOT SPRINGS
SOURCE: RANDY KING STAFF WRITER
THE ROANOKE GOLFER loses to John Rollins of Richmond in the semifinals of the State Amateur.
The plug has been pulled on Charlie Keffer's Disney-like production at the 83rd Virginia State Amateur.
Keffer's two-day magic-carpet ride over the Cascades Course came tumbling down Friday afternoon, when he lost 4 and 3 to John Rollins of Richmond in the semifinals.
While Keffer proved his burgeoning game can be stamped anything but Mickey Mouse, the 26-year-old Roanoke golf sales manager at CMT couldn't escape Rollins' Houdini act.
Saving par from seemingly everywhere but the parking lot, Rollins used six up-and-downs, including five in the first nine holes, to overcome some erratic ball-striking and eventually dispatch Keffer home.
"Hey, the ride was nice while it lasted,'' said Keffer, whose surprising foray into the semifinals had been the story of the tournament.
"I'm disappointed, yes, that I lost, but overall I'm not. Finally, I think I really showed how I can play. I think I've had a better game in years past; I just didn't show it a lot.''
Until running into Rollins, the tobacco-chewing Keffer had his competition trapped in a spittoon. As in his pair of Wednesday upsets of No.1 qualifier Jimmy Flippen and two-time champion Sam Wallace, Keffer never trailed in dusting 1986 VMI graduate Robert Nussey 2 and 1 in Thursday morning's quarterfinal.
Forget Mickey Mouse. At that point, Keffer looked like Mighty Mouse. "It looks like destiny might be on that guy's side,'' said Nussey, while packing his clubs in the car trunk for the ride back to Richmond.
Keffer's match against Nussey turned when the Roanoker was the recipient of a fortuitous break at the par-4 13th hole. Only 2-up after Nussey had drained a 60-foot birdie at the monster 476-yard, par-4 12th, Keffer jerked his tee shot at 13 into the left trees. The ball rattled around the limbs a time or two before conveniently depositing itself back in play, some 120 yards off the tee.
"It's better to be lucky than good, right Charlie,'' Nussey remarked at Keffer's fortune.
Keffer, courtesy of a 15-foot putt, proceeded to par the hole, while Nussey took bogey. Instead of being 1-down, Nussey was 3-down.
"That was a big turning point,'' Keffer agreed. "Besides, Robert didn't know I called "bank [on the tee shot].''
After taking that match to the house, Keffer took a 90-minute break. Next was the favored Rollins, a 21-year-old rising Virginia Commonwealth University senior and 1995-96 Colonial Athletic Conference player of the year.
Rollins, who had booted Chesapeake's Billy Judah 4 and 2 in the morning, realized he had no free pass to the final. He had caught wind of Keffer's 48-hole marathon on Wednesday, when the Roanoker had to play 12 holes - seven in a playoff - simply to make match play, then 36 more against Flippen and Wallace.
"If you get this far,'' said Rollins, "obviously you can play pretty good.''
From tee to green, Keffer outplayed Rollins. But despite hitting seven greens in regulation to only two for Rollins, Keffer was 1-down at the turn.
In a deft short-game display, Rollins chipped and putted his way to pars. He cashed in Keffer's three-putt at No.5 and his own up-and-down at No.6 to go 2-up.
After Keffer made his first birdie of the day, draining a 10-footer at the par-3 eighth to go 1-down, the tone for the rest of the day was set at 450-yard, par-4 ninth hole.
With Keffer staring at a 10-footer for birdie, Rollins fired a low howitzer approach through the right-side trees, chipped on and made a curling 8-footer for par. Keffer, thinking the hole was his, missed his birdie effort and remained 1-down.
Pumped by his save, Rollins threw his approach at No.10 to within 5 feet. Keffer, after leaving his third shot in a greenside bunker, exploded long, missed his putt and conceded Rollins' birdie to fall 2-down.
Keffer hit it tight again at the par-3 11th, but his 7-footer for birdie burned the edge of the cup.
After the two players halved No.12 with bogeys, Rollins went 3-up when Keffer committed a deadly sin of putting his second shot right of the 13th green and made bogey.
Seemingly out of gas, Keffer bogeyed No.14 from the sand to fall 4-down with four holes to play. Rollins finished the deal at 15, draining a 35-foot downhill shot for birdie.
"Everything finally caught up to me, I think,'' Keffer said. "Give John credit. He didn't hit a lot of greens, but he did what I did my first three matches - get it up and down.
"All day long he did it. ... and, that gets a little frustrating after a while.''
Rollins agreed. He's been on the demoralizing other end before.
"That stuff will wear on you,'' said Rollins, who will face Norfolk's Troy Ferris in today's 36-hole final. Ferris eliminated 1994 champion Scott Inman of Springfield 5 and 4 and Alexandria's Austin Eaton 4 and 2 on Thursday.
"I'm not usually that good with the short game. I'm telling you, that was a real scramble out there.''
For Keffer, a Disney fanatic whose head covers and towels are adorned by Mickey Mouse, it was about gaining some golf respect.
It was no fantasy that he was the first Roanoker to make the State Am semifinals since Dicky Linkous was runner-up in 1988 to Fieldale's Keith Decker.
"I think I held up pretty well,'' Keffer said. "Wednesday was the greatest day I've ever had in golf ... I beat the No.4 player in the nation [Flippen], a two-time champion [Wallace].
"Sure, I thought about winning this thing. I think everybody does in the back of their minds. I didn't do it, but, yeah, I'm satisfied with what I got done up here. Next time I come back, all this will be old hat.''
LENGTH: Long : 108 linesby CNB