McKenna wins his 3rd city golf title

SANDUSKY — Tim McKenna won his third Mills Creek City Golf Championship on Sunday, pulling out a tight 2 up win over Cody Reed. McKenna won his first city title in 1987, when he was 37 years old. Flip those numbers and now he's 73. "That's kinda crazy. It was destiny, I guess," McKenna said. McKenna's second city crown came in 2021. McKenna shot a pair of 69s in the 36-hole match play final Sunday that went the distance. McKenna, a General Motors retiree, was 3 up after 18 holes before Reed strung together some birdies and took the lead. McKenna won hole No. 4 on the final nine and the match was tied until No. 8, when McKenna birdied to take the lead. On the final hole, a par 5, Reed hit his approach left of the green. McKenna, using a 3 hybrid from 195 yards out, put his shot on the green and had to only two-putt from 15 feet for a birdie and the win. "I knew all I had to do was hit the green and two-putt," McKenna said. "The last two times I lost the final I hit my shot to the right of the green." McKenna, who has won 13 city senior championships, had to work for his latest title. "Cody's a great golfer, a great putter," he said. "He was knocking in 8- and 10-footers for par. "I hit it solid. Didn't miss a drive off the tee. That's probably my strength." Reed had 18-hole scores of 73 and 75. "It was a very, very close match," McKenna said. "I was 3 up for just a couple. holes. Most of the time I was 1 up or 1 down." Reed defeated Josh Schwanger in Saturday's semifinals while McKenna knocked out Brian Burlovich 7 up, chipping in a couple of times. McKenna lives in Perkins Township and is a 1971 Sandusky High School graduate. He's also in the school's hall of fame as part of a golf team.