2024 Champion of Champions winner Joe Cermak
CERMAK CRUISES TO 4-STROKE VICTORY IN 2024 CHAMPION OF CHAMPIONS INVITATIONAL
PARK RIDGE, Illinois On a flawless day with clear blue skies and temperatures in the mid-70s, Joe Cermak crafted a nearly flawless three-under par 67 on a challenging Park Ridge Country Club setup to emerge victorious in the 2024 Richard E. Peterson Champion of Champions Golf Tournament.
Cermak separated himself from the field with 3 birdies on the back nine to finish 4 strokes ahead of Ben Strobel (Lake Shore Country Club), Chadd Slutzky (The Grove Country Club), and Michael Chudacoff (Northmoor Country Club’s winner of the 2022 Champion of Champions Tournament).
Cermak started his round with a bogie 5 on the first hole but came back with a birdie 3 on the 7th hole to return to even par. Then he caught a break on the 465-yard 8th hole when his drive, which was headed out-of-bounds, hit a tree and fell straight down, leaving an open shot. An iron just short of the green, a chip to 4 feet, and a putt salvaged a par! He finished the front 9 at even par and clearly in contention.
He made birdie 4 on the 10th hole and then stiffed an 8-iron to 4 feet on the 169-yard par 3 12th hole, leading to another birdie that left him atop the field at 2-under par. The clincher came when he birdied the difficult 455-yard 15th hole, putting him at 3-under par and in a dominating position. No one else in the field played the back nine holes as well as Cermak’s 3-under par 31.
The final 4 holes at Park Ridge Country Club are among the toughest in the Chicago District and once again they took no prisoners. Strobel, Slutzky, Chudacoff and Ted Pecora (Bob O’Link’s two-time Champion of Champions winner) all were in contention on the back side, but none could “par in” across the finishing holes, dashing any chance they had of catching Cermak.
Joe Cermak grew up at Ridgemoor Country Club and played his high school golf at St. Pat’s and college golf at Iowa State. Earlier this year, he won the CDGA Mid-Amateur championship which qualified him for the 2024 Champion of Champions event.
Locally, Joe plays at Mount Prospect Golf Course, Pine Meadow Golf Club, and McHenry Country Club. Joe’s father, Pat Cermak, represented Ridgemoor in the 1998 and 2003 Champion of Champions tournaments, also held at Park Ridge Country Club. He advised his son, “If you qualify to play, be sure to accept.”
In his comments following the round, the winner was very complimentary of his experience saying, “Park Ridge Country Club members and the staff treat us like TOUR stars. We are welcomed the minute we arrive – they want us here, they want us to play their golf course, and they take pride in the tournament. I would recommend to anyone that if they qualify, they should play in the event. It is a great day.”
The Champion of Champions is a one-day, eighteen-hole, stroke play invitational tournament held annually in the early fall. The tournament was first played in 1933 under the auspices of the Chicago District Golf Association (CDGA) and was held annually at various area clubs until 1984. Park Ridge Country Club reinstituted the tournament in 1998 and has been its annual host for the 27 years since.
Invitations are extended to private and public golf and country club champions in the Chicago District, winners of various CDGA competitions, and the 10 past winners of the Champion of Champions tournament.
In 2017, the tournament was officially renamed as the Richard E. Peterson Champion of Champions, honoring Park Ridge Country Club member Rich Peterson, who was one of the driving forces in reviving the event and bringing it to its now permanent Park Ridge Country Club home. The CDGA has remained a key supporter and so, too, has the Western Golf Association, who donated the traveling trophy for display at the winner’s home club.
For additional information:
Please visit the links above for various tournament information resources; Or do not hesitate to contact CofC Info [ChampionofChampionsInfo@gmail.com].