Bells win 4-Ball Touranment

David Bell

Bells toll loudly while dominating 4-ball event

Chris Bell

By Kevin Myatt, Managing Editor

Bells tolled loudly on the leaders board at the White River Classic 4-ball tournament this weekend, loudest of all at the top of it.

David Bell and Chris Bell shot rounds of 67 both Saturday and Sunday for a 6-under-par 134 total and a 4-stroke victory at Batesville Country Club, the second time the father-son duo has won the tournament in recent years.
Four of the top five teams included at least one member of the Bell clan. Sunday's leaders pairing featured three generations of Bells, as R.E. "Red" Bell - David's father and Chris' grandfather - and Steve Felts entered Sunday two strokes behind the leaders at 69.

The only duo among the top five without a Bell, Andy Brock and Doug Matthews, slipped ahead of Red Bell and Felts with a 68 Sunday to capture second with a 138, four shots behind David and Steve Bell. Felts and Red Bell took third after shooting 70 on Sunday for a 139 total. "As a family, we play a lot," said David Bell, a Batesville dentist and Batesville School Board member. David's brother Steve teamed with Rusty Gregg for a fourth-place score of 140, while David's younger son Danny teamed with Brandon Ward for a fifth-place score of 142.
The tournament was called off last year after few competitors signed up due to the condition of the course's greens. The recently redone greens were still a concern Sunday, even for the leaders. "It's hard to score out there with the greens like they are," David Bell said. "They changed the greens from bent grass to Bermuda, and right now, they're not very good," added Chris Bell. David and Chris Bell got off to a solid start Sunday with birdies on both No. 2 and No. 3. They had only one bogey Sunday, on No. 6, but made up for that with birdies on No. 7 during both trips around the nine fairways. They made par on the other 14 holes. "I didn't know how anybody else was doing until the last hole," said David Bell. "You always assume the scores are better until you get to the last hole."

David Bell said Chris Bell provided most of the long drives Saturday and Sunday that got them close enough to the greens for birdies. David said Chris got the opportunity to play with his father instead of Danny because David and Danny teamed up in a father-son tournament earlier in the summer and because Chris has been in Fayetteville all summer, where he attends the University of Arkansas. "He just asked me, Do you want to play?'" added David Bell. "I try to play whenever I can afford it," said Chris Bell. "It's not cheap up there."

Here are the scores from the White River Classic:

Championship Flight
Steve Bell-Chris Bell 67-67-134; Andy Brock-Doug Matthews 70-68-138; R.E. Bell-Steve Felts 69-70-139; Rusty Gregg-Steve Bell 71-69-140; Brandon Ward-Danny Bell 71-71-142; David Ford-Tommy Ford 70-74-144; Carter Jeffery-Danny Yeager 72-73-145.

First Flight
Chris Stahr-John Weaver 75-71-146; Virgil Butler III-Randall Montgomery 76-71-147; Aaron Street-Dustin Taylor 76-72-148; Chip Aycock-Dennis Butler 77-72-149; Jim Terrall-Jim Sullivan 74-77-151; Phil Farris-Jack Dunn 79-74-153; Rick VanHook-Andy Lawrence 76-68-154; Neal Wilkins-Joe Don Reynolds 85-85-169; Jon Ives-Randy Ward 86-92-178.