On Monday, Oct. 12, Port Washington Youth Activities (PYA) held its 18th Annual Marty Rybecky Memorial Golf Outing, once again at the Village Club of Sands Point. For the 17th year in a row, the event was presented by Finn MacCool’s restaurant through the gracious generosity of proprietor Connie O’Reilly.
The Rybecky Memorial is so named for a longtime PYA volunteer coach, officer, director and Hall-of-Famer who passed away some years ago. An avid golfer who introduced the game to his four sons, Rybecky’s love for the game and the youth of Port Washington embodies the fun of the festive event that bears his name.
More than 90 sponsors and 104 golfers led the way to PYA’s largest fundraising event of the fall. The golfers enjoyed an exciting chipping contest run by PYA director Jimmy Cosolito and competitive longest drive, “beat the pro” and “closest to the pin” challenges.
Scoring and golf skills category winners were as follows.
• Low Gross Foursome (and winner of the coveted Marty Rybecky Trophy): Nick DeMeo, Nick DeMeo Jr., John Klein, Steve Folan—66
• Low Net Foursome: Phil Rybecky, Rich Rybecky, Paul Rybecky
• Low Gross Individual, Men: Nick DeMeo Jr.—69; Women: Kathy Doughty—91
• Low Net Individual: Kaelan O’Reilly—69
• Closet To the Pin on Hole #7, Men: Joe Asselta, Women: Michelle Bazzini
• Longest Drive on Hole #1, Men: Fuzzy Strippoli, Women: Kathy Doughty
• Most Honest Golfer: Ron Novinski: A few strokes over par
At the conclusion of the 18-hole tournament, all golfers retired to Finn MacCool’s for dinner and celeberation. The camaraderie of the day was enhanced not only by the fine food and excellent service of the restaurant, but also the fabulous awards, raffles and silent auctions. These included consumer electronics, golf equipment and gift certificates for local restaurants and golf foursomes at prestigious private clubs on Long Island.
Michele Bazzini and Sheril Feldman
In his summary of the results of another job well done by the PYA Golf Committee, Chairman Nick DeMeo thanked not only the participants and sponsors, but in addition gave special mention to Connie O’Reilly, as well as the staff at Finn MacCool’s. DeMeo also praised the Village Club for staging the well-run tournament. DeMeo said, “Once again, the outing was another success with great weather and the consideration, promotional efforts, enthusiasm and overall great job put forth by the staff at the Village Club. We look forward to another great time next year as we mark our calendars for our 19th Annual PYA Golf Outing on Columbus Day, Oct. 10, 2016.”
PYA is a nonprofit organization whose purpose is to promote the exemplary development of local youth through the participation in sport. PYA teaches teamwork and individual responsibility in an atmosphere of respect and sportsmanship. While PYA places emphasis on the development of sports skills, its primary mission is to develop character and an understanding of how participation in sporting events can prepare one for success in all endeavors.
