CALLICOON — A perfect weekend of weather punctuated a fantastic weekend of golf at the Villa Roma Championship Golf Course in Callicoon as 64 two-man teams descended on the course to compete across eight flights.

The 43rd annual Sullivan County Democrat Two-Man Better Ball Golf Tournament brought out many of the heavy hitters this year, including the defending champion duo of Decker and Scuderi.

The three-day event saw many new names atop the field on Friday as the 18-hole qualifier seeded all 64 teams.

Four former championship teams made the Championship Flight, including three teams with Semenetz in their name.

Eight-time winners Sean Semenetz and Joe Winski shot a five-under 67 to earn a No. 2 seed behind Tyler White and Michael Kaufman, who used six birdies to card a 66 and a No. 1 seed.

Last year’s champions, Michael Decker and Michael Scuderi had a No. 3 seed on the strength of their 67 round.

Former champions Jared Kubenik and Gregg Semenetz Jr. carded a 68, good for a No. 4 seed and Gregg Semenetz Sr. and Billy Phillips made the Championship Flight for the 24th consecutive year with a  69.

First-round matches on Sunday morning saw three upsets as the No. 16 seed, Will Vlaun and Scott Schneider, knocked off the No. 1 seed, White and Kaufman.

The No. 13 seed, Fallsburg’s Nate Steingart and Wayne Pirnos used their years of experience in the Democrat Golf Tourney to edge No. 4 seeded Kubenik and Semenetz Jr.

And the No. 10 seed, Jason Fedorka and John Koening, edged No. 7 seeded Jordan Meyer and John Meyer.

“There were some incredible matches this year, from beginning to end,” Tournament Sponsor and Sullivan County Democrat Publisher Fred Stabbert III said. “On Sunday morning it was like having two championship matches at the same time as the semifinals were both incredible.”

In the first semifinal match, Dykstra and Mathis continued their strong showing by taking down Steingart and Pirnos. 

And on the bottom half of the bracket it was Decker-Scuderi vs. Semenetz-Winski, which turned into a fantastic match.

Down three holes at the turn, Semenetz and Winski grinded their way back to just one-down with one hole to go.

But a dramatic 5-foot putt by Scuderi sealed the win and sent them to the championship match for the third straight year.

Championship Match

After losing the first hole, Decker and Scuderi tied the second and third holes before winning the fourth and fifth to take a one-hole lead.

The foursome tied on hole six, but Decker and Scuderi continued to rain down birdies as they built a three-hole lead by the turn.

Decker and Scuderi kept their foot on the gas to kick off the back nine, adding an additional two holes to their lead to go up five with six to play.

With an opportunity to win on almost every hole from 12-18, the defending champs began to struggle and the challengers took advantage.

Dykstra and Mathis won 12 and 13, cutting the lead to three holes with five to play. The teams tied on the par-4 14 and par-5 15, and with the match now dormie, Dykstra and Mathis won 16, 17 and 18 to force a playoff.

“They played great on the back nine and really made it interesting,” Scuderi said.

On the first playoff hole –  the par-4, 370-yard first hole – Scuderi sent a drive down the right side of the fairway, nearly to the green. His second shot, a 60-yard chip onto the green gave him a great look at a birdie from some 10 feet as the other team both needed three shots to make it on the green.

Scuderi left his birdie putt just short, grabbing a par and at least securing another hole if necessary.

But both Dykstra and Mathis missed their par putts, giving Decker and Scuderi the win for the second consecutive year.

“It was a great match against great players,” Michael Decker said of his opponents. “We got to play against some super nice guys in the championship.”

After losing the championship to Semenetz and Winski in 2022, Decker and Scuderi did not have to face them in 2023 as Blake Kilcoin and Mike Cardo took out the defending champs in the semifinals.

In 2024, Decker and Scuderi had to face off against Sean and Joe in the semifinal, a round that took all 18 holes but saw Decker and Scuderi avenge their 2022 loss.

Now, in their third consecutive final, the duo of Decker and Scuderi now have back-to-back championship victories and continue to add to their legacy.

“It’s a grind, but we pulled it out,” Scuderi said. “Coming down to the last hole in two matches today, it doesn’t get much better than that.”