Stern, Womack win 2026 spring fling
“We will be back next year and - hopefully - will get to play two days,” said 2026 Spring Fling winner Nick Stern.
Bracton Womak and Nick Stern won the McMinnville Country Club Spring Fling for the second time in three years over Memorial Day weekend.
The 2026 Spring Fling has been cut short, but don’t expect to see Nick Stern or Bracton Womack rushing to put asterisks on the title this year. Both felt like they put an exclamation point on another championship with Saturday’s showing.
Heavy rain Sunday forced golfers off the course at McMinnville Country Club before the 59 teams, including 10 squads set to joust for the championship flight title, could barely get started. And while there was hope the weather would cooperate like it did Saturday, ultimately club officials had to make the call to cancel Day 2.
“We definitely wanted to finish but it wasn't going to be possible,” said MCC head golf pro Clayton Myers Sunday afternoon after all possible courses of action were discussed during the downpour.
Myers confirmed that winners were decided in all five flights based on Saturday’s scores, including Womack and Stern claiming their second championship in three years. They were set to enter the day two strokes ahead of Greg and Andrew Brock, while several past championship teams were also in play on what could’ve set up as one of the more competitive final rounds in recent memory.
Or, if Saturday’s play was any indication, it could’ve been an absolute romp by two of the youngsters in the field who were mashing the ball.
“The way we hit it yesterday, no one was catching us today,” Womack said with a laugh after news the tournament wouldn’t continue. “Obviously, we wanted to go there and play and cap it off on a Sunday. The way we played yesterday put us in the position to win if the weather did end up playing a role.”
Stern, further adding to his collection of Spring Fling championships this year, agreed with his teammate’s outlook, especially with rain being expected all weekend and every team knowing any opportunity to play would provide a chance to win.
“I’m super proud of the round yesterday and how we played. It sucks we didn’t get to finish it off today - It is what it is, 11-under is a great score on Day 1,” said Stern.
And while he - like Womack - was extremely confident that the lead would hold up, Stern had plenty of disappointment that they didn’t get to go out for a second day in an event that has become the biggest showcase of local golfers for five decades.
“I was really looking forward to playing with Greg and Andrew - they would’ve gave it their all, that’s for sure. We will be back next year and - hopefully - will get to play two days,” said Stern.
The duo were already looking poised to eclipse their mark from 2024, when they shot 18-under over two days to defeat a large field. Saturday’s opening-round 61 was the second-lowest starting round since 2018, trailing only the blistering 59 Casey Talbert and Mark Hitchcock shot last year when they won the event by shooting 24-under over two days.
Talbert and Hitchcock were in the championship flight going into Sunday, as were four-time champs Matt Cotten and John Wilson and champs from multiple decades - Bill Locke and Tommy Sims.
The championship flight was also going to feature the only female golfer in the 59-team field: Michelle Dodson. The longtime female club champion teamed with Sean Kelley to shoot a 6-under, 66 Saturday.
Jeffery Simmons photos - Shots from the lone day of this year’s Spring Fling.
Day 1 breakdown
Nick Stern and Bracton Womack made it clear Saturday they are looking to steal the Spring Fling spotlight once again.
The 2024 champions scorched McMinnville Country Club with an opening-round 61 Saturday to grab the lead entering the final day of the 53rd annual Spring Fling. Stern and Womack were nearly flawless throughout the round, surging to 11-under while building a two-shot advantage over Greg Brock and Andrew Brock heading into Sunday’s finale.
It was the kind of round everybody knows the duo can post whenever they tee it up together in the Spring Fling. The 59-team field found itself left in the dust most of the day when everything clicked.
“Ham and egged better today than we ever have,” said Womack. “Nick played great - we were both really good off the tee so we were never really in trouble. I chipped in for eagle on No. 12 that capped off a really hot run from holes 9-12.”
Stern echoed the confidence after the pair continued adding another chapter to would could begin one of the strongest modern runs in tournament history.
“Just had a day with my partner,” said Stern. “We both hit it really well. Vibes were great - could’ve had a couple more putts fall. All in all, it was a great day and looking forward to tomorrow. Bracton’s chip in on No. 12 was huge.”
The duo already owns a Spring Fling championship together, while Stern also captured the 2020 title alongside Zack Molloy. Their chemistry and firepower were on full display Saturday as they separated themselves from another loaded championship flight.
Still, there’s little room to breathe entering Sunday.
Greg Brock and Andrew Brock sit just two shots back after carding a 63, continuing the Brock family tradition of hanging around contention at the Spring Fling. Matt Cotten and John Wilson - arguably the tournament’s modern dynasty four championships since 2017 - lurk at 64 and remain more than capable of making another patented Sunday charge.
Three teams are tied at 65 entering the final round: Brad Brock and Liam Brock, defending champions Mark Hitchcock and Casey Talbert and the pairing of Mickey Heath and Hayden Proffitt. The deepest storyline may belong to Bill Locke and Tommy Sims, who also posted 65 Saturday.
Locke, a walking legend at McMinnville Country Club, has won the club championship and/or Spring Fling title in each of the last four decades and is now playing during the 50th anniversary year of one of his earliest Spring Fling victories in 1976.
The championship flight remains stacked from top to bottom. Pieter van Vuuren and Jamie Stinson - annual contenders still chasing the elusive title that has narrowly escaped them multiple times - sit at 66 alongside Bill Rogers and Keith Bryson and Sean Kelley and Michelle Dodson.
Bryson and Rogers are another legendary pairing in the event, now spanning four decades playing together in the Spring Fling. Their experience and course knowledge make them dangerous anytime they linger within striking distance entering Sunday.
