LA QUINTA, Calif -- It might be time to rename the Golf Channel Am Tour Senior Palmer Flight the “Conover Flight.’ Clifford Conover is an Am Tour legend in the making.
Conover won his third National Championship in a row, shooting a final round 7- on the Norman Course at PGA West in La Quinta.
It wasn’t pretty. Conover hacked his way from waste area through the 18th hole en route to a double bogey. Turns out, he needed the cushion, beating Dan Steinman, third round leader, by one shot.
‘I thought I wouldn’t be so nervy,’ admitted Conover. ‘On the back nine the nerves kicked in and I missed a few short putts. But overall I kept it together.’
Conover’s feat is even more remarkable when you consider the Palmer Flight was this largest flight in the Am Tour National Championship Senior division by far: 125 players. His nationals success may have some flight-mates itching for a rematch. But Conover thrives on not only the competition but the camaraderie.
‘It’s great competition,’ he said. ‘You’re playing against people from all over the U.S. You meet friends from all over. I can go golfing now in Texas. I can call someone up (I met at nationals) and I’ve got a match.’
