Ladera pro Harvey qualifies for U.S. Senior Open

Steve Virgen, Albuquerque Journal, N.M.
·2 min read

May 28—When Bill Harvey qualified for the 2018 U.S. Senior Open, he humbly believed it would probably be his final time playing in the event. However, that never stopped him from trying again.

Harvey, the Ladera Golf Course head pro, shot 3-under-par 69 at Las Campanas in Santa Fe on Thursday to qualify for the 42nd U.S. Senior Open Championship on June 23-26 at Saucon Valley Country Club (Old Course) in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania. It's the third time he has qualified for the U.S. Senior Open. He also qualified in 2014 at Oak Tree National in Edmond, Oklahoma, and 2018 at The Broadmoor in Colorado.

"I'm 61 years old," Harvey said Friday morning. "I wasn't sure if I was ever going to have the chance to do it again. I played great on the back side. I just got rolling. Birdies on 13, 14, 15 and 17 and held it together for 18. Posted the score (69) and had to wait around for four hours. That was too long. You don't want to wish anyone ill will, but you're just sitting there hoping that no one hits 68."

Out of a field of 85, only one other player shot 69 — Robert Funk of Canyon Lake, California — to also qualify for the U.S. Senior Open. Brad Lardon of Santa Fe and Michael Zaremba of Pueblo, Colorado, shot 2-under 70 and are alternates.

Harvey got into some trouble on the front nine with a double bogey on No. 5, but he recovered with birdies on two of the next three holes and finished strong with a stellar back nine.

"A lot of the 50-year-olds, they are studs — they can play," Harvey said. "I don't hit it as far as I did 11 years ago. I really played well on Thursday. But I'm excited. I'm very happy. I really wanted to get back at least one more time. This gave me the feeling that I can keep competing and trying. You just want to win. In the back of my mind was: How many more chances am I gonna get?"

Well, at least one more.