West Chester, Pa. (August 7, 2023) — PGA Member Trevor Bensel of Sandy Run Country Club in Oreland, Pa., turned in an impressive final round 6-under-par 65 to win the 47th Pro-Am for Wishes at Penn Oaks Golf Club, bettering Clubhouse 54’s Michael Little, PGA, and Bidermann G.C.’s Zac Oakley, PGA, by four strokes. Today’s victory marks his first Section win of the year.

The Pro-Am for Wishes first started in 1976 at Whitford Country Club, and has been held annually at Penn Oaks Golf Club since 2008 (the 2020 edition was cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic) to benefit Make-A-Wish Philadelphia, Delaware & Susquehanna Valley. Since the event moved to Penn Oaks, it has raised over $700,000 for the Make-A-Wish foundation.

Bensel started his day one stroke behind the first round leader Zac Oakley but his six birdies and bogey-free round propelled him to victory, finishing with scores of 69-65–134, 8-under-par.

“I made a few good putts yesterday, and that carried over to today,” Bensel said following his round. “I tried to keep it in the fairway today too; you need to keep it straight off the tee [at Penn Oaks].”

He went on to thank the Penn Oaks Golf Club membership and staff, the Make-A-Wish Foundation, Jimmy O’Connor, Sandy Run Golf Club, Titleist, FootJoy, Holderness & Bourne, and the Philadelphia PGA Section.

Little made a run for the lead, getting to 5-under-par for his round, ultimately finishing with a 3-under-par 68. In the opening round, Little led his team of amateurs, Gene Marinelli and Pat Rugg, to victory in the pro-am portion of the event. To read more about the pro-am, click here. Oakley, who played in the same pairing as Bensel, had an up-and-down round, making five birdies and four bogies.

PGA Associate Anthony Sebastianelli, Rolling Green G.C., finished in fourth place at 1-under-par, followed by a four-way tie for fifth place at 1-over: Andrew Cornish, Cedarbrook C.C.; Braden Shattuck, Rolling Green G.C.; Mark Sheftic, Sunnybrook G.C.; and Andrew Turner, Berkshire C.C.

Royal Oak G.C.’s Terry Hatch, PGA, tied for first place in the Senior Division with Wilmington C.C.’s Bob Lennon, PGA, at 2-over-par, bettering fellow PGA Members Rich Steinmetz, Spring Ford C.C., and Dave McNabb, Applebrook G.C., by one stroke. Terry Hertzog, Bent Creek C.C., and Dave Quinn, Laurel Creek C.C., tied for fifth place at 5-over-par.

With rounds of 73-77–150, 8-over-par, Jimmy O’Connor successfully defended his low amateur honors, topping fellow amateur Patt Rugg by six strokes. Zach Paris and Kevin O’Hara finished in third and fourth place, respectively. The four amateurs qualified to compete in the final round at Penn Oaks via their sub-80 rounds on Sunday.

To view the full 47th Pro-Am for Wishes leaderboard, click here.

The 47th Pro-Am for Wishes title partner is Tamora Building Systems, and is supported by the Piazza Auto Group, Woodward Properties, Smart From the Start, and the Horn Family. The Philadelphia PGA Section and its PGA Professionals thank our host, Penn Oaks Golf Club, its members, management, host PGA Professionals, and staff, as well as our partners, as the event would not have been possible without their support.

About the Philadelphia PGA Section
The Philadelphia PGA Section, covering eastern Pennsylvania, southern New Jersey and Delaware, is one of 41 geographical managing entities of the PGA of America. This Section manages nearly 900 PGA Members and Associates who are employed at over 590 golf facilities in our region.

Contact: Matt Frey, PGA, Communications Director, mfrey@pgahq.com