Firestone's South Course is formidable foe as Ohio Open finishes up

Firestone Country Club's famed South Course proved to be a grueling test for the final round of the 104th Ohio Open on Wednesday. Of the 71 of the best golfers in the state of Ohio that made the final cut only 10 players shot under par. Players played the Fazio Course and North Course in the first two rounds to make the cut, and each entered the day at 1-under-par 141 or better before play commenced for the final round. Westfield Center's Ben Smith started the day in a tie for 16th-place, but slipped to a tie for 39th after turning in a 7-over 77 on the South Course. He finished with a 1-over 213 for the tournament. Medina resident and 2025 Hoban graduate Ray Dress started the day tied for 35th, but a 78 landed him in a tie for 56th. The soon-to-be Ferris State golfer was one of 34 amateurs to make the cut. He finished with a total of 216. Cincinnati's Will Grimmer beat Blacklick's Vaughn Harber by two strokes to win the championship. Both players entered the day one stroke behind a four-way tie for first place. Grimmer, an Ohio State alumnus, turned in a 4-under 66 on Wednesday with five birdies and one bogey. He bookended his round with birdies on the first and last holes. Harber was sizzling on the back with four of his five birdies, but was unable to make up for a three-bogey stretch on holes six, seven and eight. Dress had his only birdie of the day on the par-5 second. He also had 12 pars. Dress took a four-stroke penalty on the eighth hole after his playing partner, Logan Sutto, hit Dress' ball after his tee shot. When they couldn't find Dress' ball, he went back to the tee to hit a provisional, which was a two-stroke penalty, since his ball wasn't lost. He then was assessed another two-stroke penalty for dropping his ball in the wrong spot after the mistake was realized. That turned a potential par into a quadruple bogey. It also took him from a potential tie for 35th with a total score of even par to 4 over. Sutto playing partner was assessed a two-stroke penalty for hitting the wrong ball. Despite the misfortune, Dress was upbeat about how his week went overall. "I played really well," he said. "It was unbelievable competing with the best of the best in Ohio. Especially in a tournament like this on a course as beautiful as this one." The highlight of Smith's round came with a birdie on the par-4, No. 17 hole. He added 12 pars, but also had three double bogeys. Contact John Urchek at jurchek@medina-gazette.com.