Michael Balcar was aware of the giants he could join.
Jack Nicklaus. Byron Nelson. Tom Weiskopf. Billy Burke. Frank Stranahan. Herman Keiser. Denny Shute. Past Ohio Open champions have won a combined 29 majors and 198 PGA Tour events.
That’s why Balcar didn’t focus on the tournament’s history as he came down the stretch last year at Westfield Country Club in Medina.
“I wasn’t really thinking about everything that comes with the tournament because that’s usually not a good sign,” the Toledo native said.
The $10,000 paycheck was a nice bonus.
Balcar shot a final-round 5-under 65 to overcome a three-shot deficit and clip Cade Breitenstine by one shot. Balcar’s 54-hole total of 14-under 196 was the lowest winning score in seven Ohio Opens held at Westfield. This week he will attempt to become the 12th back-to-back winner in the event’s 103-year history.
The 54-hole, stroke play tournament will take place July 1-3, with nearly 300 professional and amateur golfers from the state of Ohio competing on the North and South courses at Westfield.
“I think we saw last year with Michael Balcar how important this victory is,” said David Griffith, executive director of the Northern Ohio PGA. “It really lends itself to the names on the trophy. I mean, it has such an unbelievable history. And for them to put their name on this trophy with all those other names is really what it’s all about. The field this year will probably be the strongest we’ve had in a number of years, if not ever.”
It includes former Ohio State All-American Maxwell Moldovan, reigning Ohio Amateur champion Andrew Bailey, and 11 former Ohio Open champions.
The 22-year-old Moldovan recently turned pro after helping the Buckeyes to a tie for third in the NCAA championships. The two-time All-American owns the lowest career scoring average (71.25) in Ohio State history and the most rounds in the 60s (48). He’s played in the past three US Opens.
“We feel like this is the biggest event in the state of Ohio,” Griffith said. “To put your name on that trophy is a huge honor.”
Balcar was a three-time state qualifier at St. John’s Jesuit before embarking on an all-conference career at Cleveland State, where he competed from 2011-15. In 2014, he qualified for the 2014 US Amateur.
Now the assistant pro at Brandywine, the 31-year-old Balcar qualified for the PGA Tour’s Puntacana Championship in 2022. He will attempt to qualify for the ISCO Championship in Kentucky in July. Balcar has been named the Northern Ohio PGA’s associate player of the year three consecutive years.
“I wanted to be able to say I was an Ohio Open champion at some point in my life,” Balcar said. “I wasn’t sure when, but I knew I wanted to win the Ohio Open, the Toledo Open, and then whatever else comes with that. It’s been relieving. Very proud of the hard work that my coaches, myself, and everybody else that's been a part of the journey that we all got to celebrate a win like that.”
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