Britt Pavelonis wins Pro/Am; finishes 13th at Illinois State Open
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These days, Britt Pavelonis is taking the good with the bad.
After picking up the Pro/Am title with a 66 at the Irvin Cobb Championships in Paducah, Ky., the Harrisburg native fired a 67-74-73 in the Illinois State Open at Hawthorne Woods for a 13th place finish.
"It's just one of those things," Pavelonis said late last week. "I had three days of great golf and only hit one bad shot. My putter came back to bite me a couple of times, a lot of putts peaked in the hole, but nothing went in."
Pavelonis added that the course took in more than eight inches of rain a few days prior to the tournament and Hawthorne Woods, which played more than 7,100 yards was every bit of long."
"That's one of the best tournaments we get to play in all year," he said. "They run it like a PGA event, people come out, cheer you on, it was just an awesome tournament."
Pavelonis' good friend Keith Woolard was on his bag at the Illinois State Open and during the Pro/Am in Paducah, Pavelonis was paired with friends, Robbie Nicholes, Kenny Jenkins and Gary Ryan.
For Pavelonis, being able to play with close friends is almost as important for him as actually having to tee up the ball.
"I have a great time with all those guys. We're close and I'm on the road a lot playing, so it's nice to just relax sometimes."
At the Irvin Cobb, Pavelonis finished ninth with rounds of 68-70.
"It was an average few days for me," he said. "I didn't play great. I didn't play bad, it was just hot."
Pavelonis will return to the Peach State Tour, starting the second week of August and will make a trip to the Nebraska Open in September.