With his short game and putting firing on all cylinders, Niagara-on-the-Lake golfer Stephen Warboys finished tied for fourth in the Ontario Senior Men’s Golf Championship last week.

Warboys, 72, was competing in the 70 and over division in the tournament played at Lora Bay Golf Club on the shores of Georgian Bay in Thornbury.

He and fellow NOTL Golf Club member Jim McMacken were among more than 100 players who qualified for the three-day, 54-hole tournament, which included divisions for 55+, 65+ and 70+.

In the 70+ division, the NOTLers were among 25 golfers who competed over the 5,937-yard par 72 layout, which is similar in length to their home club.

But only the top nine players made the cut after the first two days of play and McMacken (86-83) fell short.

Warboys (79-77-81=237) had much better luck and finished tied with Jim Gaiger of Etobicoke’s Markland Wood, 10 shots behind division winner Tim Lee of Beverly Golf and Country Club near Hamilton.

After solid rounds of 79 and 77 Tuesday and Wednesday, Warboys was tied for sixth going into found last Thursday’s final round.

“The Lora Bay course, which was in beautiful condition, was set up with tough pin positions every day and the final round started with a stiff Georgian Bay breeze blowing, making it an even more difficult test than the first two days,” he told The Lake Report.

He was able to hang tough and despite a triple bogey on his 10th hole he closed with an 81 and moved up two spots on the leaderboard to end tied for fourth.

Earlier, for Monday’s practice round, he and McMacken were paired with Ashley Chinner of Coppinwood Golf in Uxbridge. He was the eventual winner of the open division (55+).

Chinner, a former pro on the Korn Ferry tour (and winner of the Canadian PGA Championship tourney in 1996), is now reinstated as an amateur.

He was a pleasure to play with, Warboys said, and his superb ball striking and diligent preparation was interesting to observe up close, suggesting he was going to perform well against the field.

He did and finished at 8-under, five shots better than Mike Kray of RattleSnake Point in Milton. Niagara’s Dave Bunker (Cherry Hill) was fourth at -1.

“It was very neat to play in a tournament that was so well-run,” Warboys said, noting there was a live online scoreboard, regular pace of play checks, plus rules officials and spotters were everywhere.

The spectators and volunteers scattered around the course all added to the atmosphere and pressure of playing in the event, he added.

“Although my long game and mid-iron ball striking left a lot to be desired, my short game was very sharp and I putted beautifully all week,” said Warboys, a retired tennis pro.

“Every time I played a bad hole, I reset and got back to business,” he said.

“I was extremely proud of the way I competed and represented the club,” he added, calling it “a fabulous, if somewhat nerve-wracking experience.”