Two local golfers have been named finalists out of more than 73,000 contestants to try to break 100 on the Black Course at New York’s Bethpage State Park — the site of the 2009 U.S. Open.
Dale Matthews, a doctor from McLean, and Bob Ray, a firefighter from Baltimore, made the final four. The winner will play an 18-hole round at Bethpage Black in Farmingdale that will be taped by NBC Sports and will air at noon June 21, immediately before the broadcast of the tournament’s final round.
Contestants had to submit a six-word statement in December as to why they should be chosen. “I’m a doctor. I understand pain,” Matthews wrote. Ray’s entry was “Fire chief burns up the course.” Editors narrowed the four finalists down from 73,581 entries.
Though Matthews, a Virginia State Golf Association member at Hidden Creek Country Club in Reston, boasts an impressive 4.1 USGA Handicap Index, he says in his biographical video that his dream job is to be the radio voice for the New York Yankees.
Ray started working as a firefighter in 1977.
“After 31 1/2 years, I still get up every morning and look forward to going to work,” he says in his bio video.
“Golf is a big part of my life,” he added.
The finalist is being chosen through public voting, which began March 19 and closed at 11:59 p.m. Friday. Joining the winner to play his round will be Michael Jordan, Ben Roethlisberger and Justin Timberlake.
