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St. Louis, MO - The Metropolitan championship season has officially kicked off with the Shogren Cup: a competitive battle between the best Metropolitan amateurs and Gateway PGA professionals. What started as cold and windy, turned into a beautiful day at Bellerive Country Club for the two sides to face off. Each team is comprised of 14 players with 4 players in the senior division. Day one began with four-ball matches and concluded with foursome matches. 
 

In the four-ball competition, all sides started on Hole 1 and kept their matches close for the majority of the morning. Through nine holes, Team Gateway led 3 matches, Team Metropolitan led 3 matches, and one match was tied. Both sides fought hard in the final stretch of their matches. Brian Lovett and Peter Weaver of Bellerive CC for Team Metropolitan were the first on the course this morning against Bob Gaus and Steve Hausmann for Team Gateway. The homeclub duo fell 2 & 1, giving Team Gateway its first point. Metropolitan Captain Sam Migdal and Paul Neeman took on Kyle Szyhowski and Jeff Whitfield. Migdal and Neeman won the last three holes of their match to earn Team Metropolitan a point with a 2 & 1 victory. Drew Pranger and senior Captain Skip Berkmeyer held the lead for their whole match against Brett Moomey and Mike Tucker to win 2 & 1 and bank a second point for Team Metropolitan. Tony Gumper and Ryan Eckelkamp came out in dominating fashion to win 5 & 3 over Ryan McClintock and Gideon Smith. The fifth match of the day was a true tussle for Max Kreikemeier and Blake Skornia for Team Metropolitan versus Blake Sharamitaro and Adam Betz. The two sides would take it to Hole 18 where they would split the point in a tie. Team Metropolitan’s Chad Niezing and John Moore faced Jeffrey Schulte and Brian Fogt of Bellerive CC. For the second time in this round, the home club team would lose, resulting in a 2 & 1 win for Niezing and Moore. Chris Kovach and Ryan Sullivan were in the final match of the round against JD Auping and Matt Gindler. Sullivan and Kovach would squeeze out the win 1 Up to earn Team Metropolitan the last point. At the end of the four-ball round, Team Metropolitan had 5.5 points and Team Gateway had 1.5 points.  

After a quick lunch and turn around, the sides were back on the course for the foursomes round. This proved to be a fruitful afternoon for Team Metropolitan. Playing alternate shot, the sides decided to send the teams off of both holes 1 and 10. Neeman and Moore for Team Metropolitan took on Tucker and Hausmann for Team Gateway beginning on Hole 1. Coming out hot, Neeman and Moore were 4 Up through 5, and got to 6 Up through 11 before closing out the match 4 & 3. On the other side of the course, Lovett and Berkmeyer were proving their grit in a 5 & 4 win over Whitfield and Fogt. Migdal teamed up with Niezing for this round to show their strength. The pair dominated their round in a 7 & 5 victory over Auping and Moomey. Kreikemeier and Skornia started on Hole 10 to battle McClintock and Sharamitaro. Team Metropolitan would gain another point in this match won 3 & 1. In another returning pair for Team Metropolitan, Sullivan and Kovach took on Smith and Gindler, where they would bank another point for the Metro, winning 3 & 2. Gumper and Eckelkamp have been running on an undefeated streak as a duo until they met with Gaus and Betz today. A hard fought match, Team Metropolitan would fall 3 & 2 to Team Gateway in this match. The final match of the day saw Pranger and Weaver take on Szyhowski and Schulte. Team Metropolitan once again proved their power in a 6 & 4 win. Team Metropolitan earned 6 points and Team Gateway earned 1 point in the foursomes.  

At the end of the day, the point totals were Team Metropolitan with 11.5 points and Team Gateway with 2.5 points. To win the cup 14.5 points are needed. As defending Champion, Team Metropolitan needs 14 points to retain or 14.5 points to win. Just 3 points stand between Team Metropolitan and its 4th consecutive Shogren Cup win. Tomorrow the two sides will meet for a final time for the singles matches. 

 

Full Results
Singles Pairings 

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The Shogren Cup is an annual competition between the best amateurs of the Metropolitan Amateur Golf Association and the professionals of the Gateway PGA. The cup is held in honor of the late Robert A. Shogren, a dedicated member of the St. Louis golf community. This cup represents and honors the years of service of Shogren to both organizations and the impact he had. As a former member of both Bellerive Country Club and Greenbriar Hills Country Club, the two clubs agreed to host the championship on an alternating rotation.

The 2025 Teams:

Team Metropolitan: Skip Berkmeyer - The Legends CC Ryan Eckelkamp - Franklin County CC (MO) Tony Gumper - Normandie GC Chris Kovach - Old Hickory GC Max Kreikemeier - Forest Hills CC Brian Lovett - Bellerive CC Sam Migdal - St. Louis CC John Moore - Metropolitan eClub Paul Neeman - Persimmon Woods GC Chad Niezing - Meadowbrook CC Drew Pranger - Glen Echo CC Blake Skornia - Algonquin GC Ryan Sullivan - Tapawingo National GC Peter Weaver - Bellerive CC

Team Gateway PGA: Adam Betz - Family Golf & Learning Center Blake Sharamitaro - Family Golf & Learning Center Bob Gaus - Family Golf & Learning Center Brett Moomey - Algonquin GC Brian Fogt - Bellerive CC Gideon Smith - Quincy CC JD Auping - Bellerive CC Jeff Whitfield - The Quarry at Crystal Springs Jeffrey Schulte - Bellerive CC Kyle Szyhowski - Norwood Hills CC Matt Gindler - Greenbriar Hills CC Mike Tucker - Bellerive CC Ryan McClintock - Panther Creek CC Steve Hausmann - Annbriar GC