Eric Pohl
PERSONAL – Eric lives in Loomis, CA with his wife Kate, daughter Vaida (10), and son Maverick (8). He’s been an Engineer Paramedic with Sac Fire and has worked there for 13 years. Eric is the son of a golf pro so he’s been playing since he was very young but unfortunately, in his own words, doesn’t have the golf gene. He used to play a lot more, and actually worked at my course for about 10 years before I got here, but doesn’t pay as much lately due to the kid’s and life. He’s trying to get back into it a little more.
TIE TO THE MONTEMAR – As mentioned above, Eric worked at my course for about 10 years before me. Him and Nathan Udy have known each other since high school and since Nathan has been here at Bartley for 20 years, I’m assuming all 10 of Eric’s years at Bartley were spent working with Nate.
When we scraped the first ever Montemar together a few years ago, Nathan invited Eric and that’s how he became a part of this spectacular event.
Eric finished 3rd place in 2022 but a pre-planned trip to Disneyland with the family took precedence over our 2023 trip to Scottsdale. Eric was a joy to get to know a little at the original Montemar and fits in really well with this group of guys. He’s a great guy and we’re pumped to have him back for Idaho!
ADDITIONAL CONTRIBUTIONS TO THE MONTEMAR – Aside from being a guy who fits in perfectly with the group, Eric also brought us Jimmy Crider. We’ll get to Jimmy’s profile later, but he’s been an awesome contribution to this event, and even showed up to Scottsdale when Eric couldn’t make it. Insert - Jimmy won the jacket in 2024!
WHAT NEEDE TO HAPPEN IN 2024– Despite an individual score of 98 at Yoche Dehe, Eric had some success in the team portions in 2022, and ended up finishing tied for 3rd place. Word on the street (the street being Nathan) is that Eric has a solid game but can beat himself up a little bit. For Eric to have his best chance in 2024 he’ll have to have a mentality of fun, shaking off bad shots with a smile and move onto the next, realizing that’s what this game is all about. He’s got good payment points, a few referral points, and his scramble team should be competitive. No reason Eric can’t throw together another top 10 finish.
WHAT ACTUALLY HAPPENED IN 2024 - Pohl was a top three finisher at the original Montemar Classic but had to miss Scottsdale. He bounced back in Idaho and proved that Sacramento was no fluke, putting up a very respectable 13th place finish. He played solid most of the way through but there were two blemishes to his tournament; the opening round 98 and a failure to hit 11 out of 12 kp greens. Eric ended very strong with an 89 at the not so easy Resort Course.
WHAT NEEDS TO HAPPEN IN 2025 - The opening round 98 was shitty in 2024, but it’s great in 2025 as it will give Eric an opening round handicap of 26, putting him in a division he should be able to handle. If he can keep Jimmy’s drives on his scramble team and build the rest of it out right, then day 2 should be good for him as well. How he drafts and what happens in the random pairings will play a big role in how he finishes. If those go well a top 10 finish, or even a win, are well within the realm of possibilities.
ODDS TO WIN: 44-1
FUN FACT – He’s starting to spend more time on the peloton because he gets hurt every time he lifts. Old man problems!
MONTEMARS PLAYED – 2 (Sacramento 2022, Coeur D’Alene 2024)
MONTEMAR ROUNDS PLAYED – 5 (Yoche Dehe, Darkhorse 2022/Circling Raven x 2, Coeur D’Alene Resort Course - 2024)
LIFETIME POINT TOTAL – 403 (31st)
JACKETS WON – 0
TOP 3 FINISHES – 1 (3RD In 2022 – Sacramento)
TOP 5 FINISHES – 1 (3RD In 2022 – Sacramento)
TOP 10 FINISHES – 1 (3RD In 2022 – Sacramento)
RECORDS –T1 (Individual net wins – 1 – Darkhorse/2022)
TOURNAMENT HANDICAP - 26
INVITED BY – Nathan Udy
PLAYERS INVITED - 2 (Jimmy Crider, Chris Whiteside)
PRIZES DONATED – He’s thinking of something good.
