Rochester Hills' Anthony Sorentino won his second Michigan Publinx Match Play Championship on Monday, July 20, beating Josh Lahner in 19 holes at Twin Lakes Golf Club in Oakland Township.

The 48-year-old attorney, who captured his first title in 2021, had lost three consecutive final matches before breaking through. Sorentino sealed the win with a two-putt par on No. 1 of the Estates nine after Lahner three-putted for bogey.

It nearly slipped away. Lahner, a Wayne State University golfer from Roseville, trailed for most of the match and was 2-down with two holes to play. He birdied the par-4 17th and the par-5 18th on the Links nine to force extra holes.

"Oh yeah, it felt good to win today," Sorentino told GolfBlogger. "Especially because it gets harder all the time. These kids playing on these college teams, like Wayne State, they are all better now and they hit it a mile like Josh."

Sorentino, a four-time Publinx Player of the Year, also needed 19 holes in his morning semifinal to get past Jeffrey Andrus of Clawson, a Central Michigan University golfer. In the other semifinal, Lahner beat Jack Julian of South Lyon 3 and 2. Julian, who won the Michigan Publinx Medal Play Championship earlier this summer, then caddied for Lahner in the finals.

Voke rallies but Byrd holds on in senior final

Rochester's Kevin Voke reached the Senior Michigan Publinx Match Play final but fell 2-up to Brad Byrd of Belleville.

Byrd, 54, an operations manager for ABF Trucking Co. playing in the Publinx Match Play for just the second time, jumped out to a 5-up lead through 10 holes. Voke clawed back but couldn't close the gap. Byrd said he was "leaking oil" down the stretch as Voke made birdie on 17 with a long putt to push the match to 18, but Byrd held on.

Voke earned his finals spot by defeating Leon Stadwick of Roseville 2 and 1 in the semifinal. Byrd reached the final by topping reigning Michigan Publinx Senior Medal Play champion Andrew Smith of Oakland Township 2 and 1 in a Sunday afternoon semifinal.