GRAEAGLE, CA (Oct. 3, 2026)–The teams of Ryan Cadaret-Sam Bruketta (Men’s Net), Dennis Rash-William Duenas (Senior Men’s Net), Jennifer Banks-Wendy Boyce (Women’s Net) and Patty Evans-Connie Wharton (Senior Women’s Net) won championships in the 2026 Team Series. The one-day match play finale in Nevada Golf Northern Region tournament was held Oct. 3, 2026, at Graeagle Meadows GC.–by Bill Bowman
Men’s Net
Ryan Cadaret and Sam Bruketta took the lead for good after the seventh hole en route to a 3-and-2 victory over Eric Bickel-Paul Valentin.
Cadaret and Bruketta were tied only once in the match, after the sixth hole, before pulling away for the win.
“We held it together,” Bruketta said. “My partner started dropping some big putts and he just crushed it today. And he just crushed the ball all day today.”
It was the team’s first year of playing together in team play.
“Ryan encouraged me to come out and play and I’m glad I did,” Bruketta said.
Bruketta said the team came out with the goal of attacking the course.
“It was all about being aggressive,” he said. “We wanted to play our game and make sure we stayed between the navigation beacons.”
Men’s Senior Net
Dennis Rash and William Duenas won three straight holes–the 11th, 12th and 13th–and went on to defeat John Gleave and Dana Whaley in 21 holes.
Rash and Duenas saw Gleave and Whaley rally with three straight hole wins of their own–the 15th, 16th and 17th holes–to force the extra holes.
It was the first team title for Duenas but Rash has won three straight, the other two with a different partner.
“I just love match play…it’s a blast,” Rash said.
Rash said both teams’ hot streaks were impressive.
“We won those three in a row and were up three with four to play,” he said. “But then we kind of went to sleep on 15, 16 and 17 and they got right back in it. We managed to halve the 18th hole and get into the playoff.”
It wasn’t a spot Rash expected to be in but he was impressed with his team’s grit.
“They definitely had the momentum,” he said. “When we finished 18, we really didn’t want to keep playing but we didn’t have a choice. We should have won a few holes earlier but we managed to hang in and win.”
Overall, Rash said this match was the perfect scenario for the match play format.
“This was the fun, and challenging, part about match play,” he said. “You can have big momentum shifts at any time. One team may surge ahead and the other team can reel them back in. That’s why it’s such a great format.”
Women’s Net
Jennifer Banks and Wendy Boyce held off hard-charging Emily Byrne and Laura Smith to win the Women’s Net, 1-up.
Banks and Boyce were 4-up after the 10th hole but had to hold on for the victory as Byrne and Smith won three of the final eight holes to close the gap.
“We can’t believe we won,” Banks said. “They are such a great team. We won on the last hole when we tied the hole. This is so exciting.”
Banks added the team played complementary golf.
“We picked each other up,” she said. “When one of us hit an errant shot, the other one hit a good shot. It just worked out well for us.”
Banks said the team knew Byrne and Smith would stage a rally.
“They are amazing golfers and really showed it when they rallied,” she said. “We had a chance to close it out on 17 but both missed putts.”
In the end, Banks heaped praise on Boyce’s play.
“I do have to say, my partner played so well,” she said. “I played OK and she played out of her mind. She carried us for most of it and I helped at the end.”
Banks said the team just kept one thought in mind: “We just told ourselves that if we win, we win. And if we don’t, we don’t.”
Women’s Senior Net
Patty Evans and Connie Wharton won the Women’s Senior Net after a disqualification of Pennie Frank and Elaine Simpson.
One of the players in the disqualified twosome didn’t meet the minimum age requirement of 50.
“They played really well,” Evans said. “We fought hard and it’s just a shame it ended that way. We were behind the whole match and came back a little but we would have lost 3-and-2. It’s an unfortunate way to finish. You never want to win that way.”
