I do not want to say anything that in anyway diminishes the accomplishment of Dennis and his win of the Walker Cup in 1972. I was there and saw it happen. It was close between him and Al Rabe, but Dennis won and deserved the win. I think the only person that was more proud of Dennis than me on that day was Art. That is one of those moments that I will always remember and cherish.
It was unfortunate in that period of Walker Cup flyoff history that by the time the flyoff occurred, about the only people that stayed to watch were personal friends, pit crews and maybe some family. It was a shame really because the competition and the importance of that event was and is intense. At least with the current format used at the Nats, there is more interest shown by a significant number of bystanders.
The achievement by Dennis in being the last Senior to win the Walker Cup is significant. There is another story that is worth mentioning, again, not intended in anyway to diminish Dennis' achievement. Rob Gruber almost took the Walker Cup in 2004. Rob had just won the Junior category in the FAI World Championships held in Muncie just prior to our Nats. (The FAI age category for Junior fliers overlaps our AMA Junior Senior divisions.) Rob won the Senior event at the Nats and then flew against David Fitzgerald, the Open Champion, for the Walker Cup. The Walker Cup flyoff is a best two of three flights affair. Rob completed his third flight and his score was posted just as David was preparing to fly. Unknown to David, Rob's best two of his three flights was a higher score than what David had on his first two flights which meant that David needed to improve on at least one of his previous flights. David put in an excellent flight and won the Walker Cup by a few points out of a total of over 1,100 points. Both flew very well. Both received excellent scores. This is another of those stories where Rob Gruber's achievement received little attention in our model press.
(There is something about these young guys with reflexes, no fear of the ground, and excellent training with excellent coaching that makes a formidable combination.)
Keith Trostle
Topic: NATS Champs (Read 2054 times)