By David Weinberg
Scottie Scheffler, Rory McIroy and the rest of the world’s top golfers are competing at the 106th PGA Championship at Valhalla Country Club in Louisville, Kentucky this weekend.
Over 80 years ago, a similar scene was unfolding at Seaview Golf Club in Galloway Township.
Sam Snead, Ben Hogan and Byron Nelson were among the standouts who competed in the tournament at Seaview in late May of 1942.
The tournament followed a match-play format in those years. Snead won the first of his seven major championships with a 2-and-1 win over Jim Turnesa, then began his military service in the U.S. Navy the day after his win.
Seaview will be back in the golf news in about three weeks when it plays host to the 30th ShopRite LPGA Classic on its Bay Course June 7-9.
Defending champion Ashleigh Buhai will be playing as part of a talented field that features former World No. 1 players Jin Young Ko, Stacy Lewis, Ariya Juntanugarn and Yani Tseng, as well as past Classic champs Angela Sanford (2003), Brittany Lincicome (2011), Lewis (2012, ’14), Anna Nordqvist (2015, ’16) and Brooke Henderson (2022).
Over the years, the tournament has emerged as the biggest local professional sports event in the area.
AC’s Figueroa still undefeated
Atlantic City boxer Justin Figueroa kept his winning streak intact with a victory last Saturday at Tropicana Atlantic City.
Figueroa (9-0, 7 KOs) rallied to register a TKO at the end of the fourth round over Venezuela’s Antoni Armas (13-8, 8 KOs) in a scheduled six-round bout.
Figueroa was knocked down for the first time in his career in the second round, but quickly recovered and dominated the next couple rounds. Officials stopped the bout after the fourth round due to Armas suffering a shoulder injury.
“I wasn’t hurt, but I showed grit and I was able to get right back up and keep fighting,” Figueroa said. “My first time getting knocked down and I’m glad it happened. I want that to be a lesson for everybody. No matter what goes on in your life, no matter what mistakes happen. Ups and downs are supposed to happen. Nothing is perfect. So keep on believing in yourself and keep fighting.”
An unofficial crowd of 807 filled the Tropicana Showroom to see the first fight in that arena in seven years. The card was promoted by Boxing Insider Promotions and its founder Larry Goldberg, a Margate native and 1997 Atlantic City High School graduate.
Most of the fans were there to see Figueroa, a Holy Spirit High School graduate and former member of the Atlantic City Beach Patrol.
“Shout out to my opponent, who took the fight on a week’s notice,” Figueroa said. “The kid was a vet who had more knockouts than I’ve had fights, but we took a gamble, we took a chance. We needed the fight, because we wanted to put on a show for the people of Atlantic City.”
Next up on the local boxing scene is a card at Bally’s Atlantic City on June 8 that’s being promoted by Millville’s Rising Star Promotions and Main Events.
Millville middleweight Thomas LaManna (37-5-1, 16 KOs) will be taking on Juan Carlos Abreu (26-7-1, 24 KOs), of the Dominican Republic in a 12-round bout. LaManna, who is ranked fourth by the World Boxing Association, will be trying to win the WBA’s gold title and possibly earn a rematch with WBA champion Erislandy Lara.
LaManna has earned seven straight victories since suffering a first-round knockout loss to Lara on May 1, 2021. His 37 career wins currently rank third among boxers from Atlantic, Cape May and Cumberland Counties behind the late Richie Kates from Bridgeton (44) and former WBA heavyweight champion Bruce Seldon from Atlantic City (40).
A week later, former two-time world champion Danny Garcia will be serving as promoter for a card at Jim Whelan Boardwalk Hall’s Adrian Phillips Ballroom. Popular Philadelphia heavyweight Sonny Conto (12-0, 9 KOs) will be in action against Quintin Sumpter (7-2, 4 KOs) of Pittsfield, Massachusetts.
Phillies on a roll
Don’t look now, but the Phillies are the best team in the major leagues at the moment.
Of course, there’s still plenty of baseball to be played. Championships aren’t won before Memorial Day. But so far, so terrific. The Phils entered the week with a league-best 28 wins and most importantly have shown the kind of pitching depth that keeps teams in contention for an entire season.
Left-hander Ranger Suarez has been the biggest surprise. He leads the majors with seven wins and ranks second with a 1.50 ERA.
They entered this week with a league-best 28 wins and have shown the makings of a World Series contender.
Of course, there’s still plenty of baseball to be played.
David is a nationally recognized sports columnist who has covered Philadelphia and local sports for over 40 years. After 35 years with The Press, he has served as a columnist for 973ESPN.com and created his own Facebook page, Dave Weinberg Extra Points.
Send comments to weinbergd419@comcast.net.
