First day of SOGC golf match play sees longtime competitors return

MEDFORD, Ore. – Thursday marked the first day of match play at the 95th annual Southern Oregon Golf Championships (SOGC) at the Rogue Valley Country Club in Medford.

Hundreds are going head-to-head in the match play brackets after their qualifying rounds earlier this week. Many golfers and families make this event an annual tradition, like Ken Lindbloom Jr. who was a caddy at the SOGC back in 1981. He’s played in the event for 36 years now and while he currently lives in Colorado, he still makes his way to Medford to play. He said,

“It’s the people. People I went to high school and college with, [who] I served in the national guard with while out here. The tournament’s just a great tournament but just seeing everybody back here, everybody’s getting older, we’re all getting wrinklier, we’re all in older divisions but just the people, the atmosphere, the organizers; it’s awesome.”

Bracket winners and runner ups can win trophies, as well as bragging rights. The Southern Oregon Golf Championships will run through Monday.

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Maximus Osburn is weekend anchor and producer, and weekday reporter, for NBC5 News. He studied at California State University-Northridge, graduating with a degree in Broadcasting. Maximus is an avid martial arts enthusiast and combat sports fan. He even traveled to Thailand to train with martial arts experts. Maximus loves movies, nature, and doing things outside his comfort zone, like swimming in sub-freezing lakes in the winter.
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