“Flat-liner” Huff claims third straight Sole Survivor golf win

One year ago, after clinching his second consecutive Whing Ding Sole Survivor golf title, Jason Huff of Lewiston described it as something he had “never thought would happen.”

Much less could he have envisioned in years past what he has now achieved. Huff made history on Monday at Lewiston Golf and Country Club by becoming the first player ever to win the Sole Survivor title three years running.

“I don’t care who you are; to win that three years in a row is an incredible accomplishment,” said Clarkston High alum and PGA Tour pro Joel Dahmen, who sponsored this year’s event.

Coming through clutch

Featuring the top 10 finishers in gross scoring from the traditional-stroke-play Whing Ding tournament immediately preceding it, Sole Survivor adopts a rare sudden-death format in which the golfer with the highest stroke total on each individual hole is eliminated until only one is left standing. Ties are broken with “chip-offs,” in which players take turns chipping toward the hole from the same pre-designated spot, with closer shots winning out.

This Sole Survivor field was statistically the strongest among 72 such events that have been held to date, as indicated by a record combined handicap of 34. A caravan of several dozen golf carts followed the competition from hole to hole, with other spectators periodically emerging to watch from balconies and porches of nearby buildings. Huff was clearly a fan favorite, with regular cheers to the effect of “Whoo, Huffer!” issuing from the crowd in the aftermath of his strokes.

A former U of I golfer who now teaches at Moscow High, Huff has been lauded as a “flat-liner” with an unshakable nerve particularly suited to the Sole Survivor format, which does not allow for a single blink resulting in a bad hole. He came through a tense three-way chip-off with Jared Mraz and Lewis-Clark State golf coach Zach Anderson on hole No. 17 after all three shot par-4, setting up a showdown with Anderson on the decisive No. 18. The two found themselves deadlocked again at four strokes apiece, and this time the entire hole was replayed in accordance with the rule for the title round.

An uphill chip by Huff made the difference the second time around on 18, cresting a small ridge and nestling itself within a few feet of the hole for an easy fourth-stroke putt.

“It’s kind of soft here, so I just made sure I got it up around the green and figured it wouldn’t go too far,” Huff said. “... I’ve hit a lot of those shots in my life, so just hit another one.”

A long putt from Anderson that could have once again tied things up at four strokes ran out of momentum marginally short of the hole before Huff sunk the clincher.

“That was a lot of fun today,” Anderson said. “You get a lot of nerves on the first hole, especially with all the valley coming out to support. I just kind of got in a groove today, so it was really nice to kind of compete a little bit more. Losing to a very worthy champion, Jason Huff — it’s always fun competing with him.”

Seventh-place finisher Josh Martin described Huff’s clutch chips on the last two holes as “pro-caliber.”

“If (Huff) gets in a chip-off, he’s going to win the chip-off,” said former champion Kurt Simmons, who finished fifth this time. “He’s so good at short game.”

With five career titles, Huff is now tied for most in tournament history with Joey Drep, who won it five times in the span of a decade from 1957-66, and who was among the gallery of spectators on Monday.

“He’s perfect for Sole Survivor,” Dahmen said of Huff. “He doesn’t make any mistakes, and plays within himself.”

Bigger and better things to come

This was a historic Labor Day weekend at LGCC in more ways than one. It marked the inception of of a sponsorship by the Dahmen Family Foundation, ceremonialized with an appearance from namesake Joel Dahmen — in town on a break from PGA competition — who presented a $2,500 check made out to the Boys & Girls Clubs of the Lewis-Clark Valley earlier Monday.

“This year was just kind of the beginning,” said Dahmen, a former two-time Sole Survivor champion himself. “... It’s something we thought worked out really well this year; a big success.”

Dahmen thanked his wife Lona along with his caddie Geno Bonnalie and area golf standout Corey Brown (who won the low gross prize in the pre-Sole Survivor Whing Ding round) for helping to conceive of and plan the sponsorship, which resulted in a doubling of the prize purse and a surge in attendance. In addition to continuing his support for the country club’s events and the Boys and Girls Clubs of the Lewis-Clark Valley, Dahmen said he hopes to “start a bigger junior golf foundation here in the valley” in keeping with his mission to “give back a little bit” to the community that raised him.

“The valley’s always going to feel like home,” Dahmen said. “I appreciate everyone coming out — all their support. Looking forward to doing bigger and better things in the future.”

Wendt may be contacted at (208) 848-2268, or cwendt@lmtribune.com.