Airways Golf League — Week 20 Recap: September 22, 2026
The seventh week of the second half
Seven players took the field on the back nine — a modest increase from last week's four — and after three consecutive weeks without a single birdie, the drought ended in the most unlikely fashion possible. Ted Cowles, on his 15th official round of the 2026 season, made his first birdie of the year. It came on hole 12. It was, in every way, a story.
Kevin Kearns led the field with a target-met round. John Gallagher held onto the second-half lead by virtue of everyone else's inability to close the gap. And the second-half bonus race, with only a handful of weeks remaining, remains tight through the top four.
Ted Cowles Breaks the Birdie Drought
Ted Cowles had played 14 official rounds this season without recording a single birdie. Not one. He'd made his living on bogey points and the occasional par — his signature staircase of steady, unspectacular scoring. On Tuesday, on the par-4 twelfth — his 15th official round of the year — he did something unprecedented in his 2026 season: he made a 3.
Birdie. Ted Cowles's first birdie of the year. The league's twenty-second overall. And the first birdie recorded in three weeks by anyone.
That single stroke turned a modest round into a target-crushing one. Ted posted 7 points on a target of 5 for two bonus points — the biggest bonus total of the night — and his second-half bonus tally leaps to 9, moving him into third place on the second-half leaderboard.
The rest of Ted's card was, as always, a mix of doubles and bogey points. But that one swing on 12 was the difference between another quiet Tuesday and the kind of round people talk about in the parking lot after.
Kevin Kearns Wins the Night
Kevin Kearns shot 43 — the lowest raw score of the night by two strokes — and posted 10 Stableford points on a target of 9. One bonus point, target met. He parred three holes (10, 15, and 16) and collected five bogey points elsewhere. It's the classic Kearns package: no birdie, three pars, and a march of bogey points that adds up.
His second-half bonus total now sits at 8, one point behind Ted Cowles and four back of John Gallagher. Kearns has now met his target in four of his five second-half appearances.
Logan Jarvis: Missing the Target Again
Logan Jarvis shot 45 — the second-lowest raw score of the night — and posted 9 points on a target of 12. Missed by three, and it's his fourth target miss in his last six official weeks. His round had three pars (holes 11, 12, and 18) and three bogey points, but doubles on 15 and 17 and a triple on 14 kept the total from reaching his climb-a-mountain target.
The Logan story of dominance in June and July feels like it happened in a different season. He still shows up. He still posts low raw scores. But the target keeps outrunning him, and his second-half bonus tally holds at 6 — well back of the leaders.
Dave Deyette: Right on the Number
Dave Deyette posted exactly his target of 6 — no bonus, but target met. He parred hole 10 and hole 11 to open his round, added a bogey on 12, and then endured a rougher middle stretch before closing with a bogey point on 16. Two pars in his round is a Deyette rarity — he leans on bogey points more than any other player in the league — but they were what put him over the target line this week.
John Gallagher's Rough Night
John Gallagher — the second-half bonus leader — had his worst round in a while. He posted 4 points on a target of 9, missed by five. His only par came on hole 11, plus bogey points on 13 and 16, and everything else was double or worse. The 53-stroke round was his highest since May.
The good news for John: he still leads the second-half bonus race at 12 points. The bad news: Ted Cowles's target-crushing round pulled Ted to within three, and Kearns is within four. What looked like a comfortable-ish lead last week now feels contested.
Bill Gallagher and Bill Oravec Miss
Bill Gallagher posted 5 points on a target of 9 — his highest target of the second half, and a difficult one to meet in a round where his only par was on hole 17. Three bogey points (holes 11, 15, and 18) rounded out his scoring, but not enough to close the gap.
Bill Oravec posted 2 points on a target of 3, missing by one. His lone par (a beautiful 3 on the par-3 fifteenth) was his only scoring hole. Seven blank holes made for a 59-stroke round — the highest of the night by six strokes.
Where the Pars Came From
Twelve pars on the night across seven holes:
- Hole 11: Dave Deyette, John Gallagher, Logan Jarvis (3)
- Hole 15: Bill Oravec, Kevin Kearns, Ted Cowles (3)
- Hole 10: Dave Deyette, Kevin Kearns (2)
- Hole 12: Logan Jarvis (plus Ted's birdie)
- Hole 16: Kevin Kearns
- Hole 17: Bill Gallagher
- Hole 18: Logan Jarvis
Kevin Kearns and Logan Jarvis led with 3 pars each. Dave Deyette had 2. Everyone else had one or fewer.
Hole 11 and Hole 15: The Friendly Ones
Hole 11 — long established as the friendliest hole on the course — gave up three pars again (Dave Deyette, John Gallagher, and Logan Jarvis) plus two bogey points. Its season total now stands at 18 pars and 3 birdies across seven back-nine visits.
Hole 15 also had a generous night — three pars (Bill Oravec, Kevin Kearns, Ted Cowles) plus one bogey. For the par-3 that opened the season looking like a killer, this was another data point in its gradual mellowing.
Hole 17: Not So Kind
The par-4 seventeenth handed out three triples or worse — Ted Cowles, Dave Deyette, and Bill Oravec all posted 7s, and John Gallagher went one worse with an 8. Only Bill Gallagher (a par!) and Kevin Kearns (bogey) walked off with points. Not every hole is trending down.
By the Numbers
Seven players, 1 birdie (ending the three-week drought), 12 pars, 15 bogeys, 3 targets met. The 2026 season birdie count climbs to 22.
Second-Half Bonus Race After Seven Weeks
- John Gallagher: 12
- Kevin Gallagher: 11 (still likely stuck)
- Ted Cowles: 9
- Kevin Kearns: 8
- Logan Jarvis: 6
- Chris McKone: 4
- Bill Gallagher: 4
- Len Stadnicki: 3
- Bill Oravec: 3
John still leads, but the gap has compressed noticeably. Ted Cowles moves within three of the top after his birdie-fueled bonus night. Kearns within four. If John doesn't post bonuses in the remaining weeks, the top of the leaderboard could look very different.
Attendance Watch
Nine absent this week. Notable regulars out: Chris McKone missed again (his second in three weeks), Len Stadnicki broke his three-week target streak with an absence, Joe Alvarez missed after his mini-hot streak, and Tom Wieland's absence hits seven consecutive weeks. Kevin Gallagher remains presumed done for the season.
Seven players. One birdie — the birdie of the year, at least emotionally. Kearns wins the night. Ted Cowles gets his first. John Gallagher's lead shrinks. And on to Week 21.
SEASON STANDINGS (through Sep 22, 2026)
# Golfer Rounds Avg Pts Pts
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1 John Gallagher 6 8.5 12
2 Kevin Gallagher 4 8.3 11
3 Ted Cowles 7 5.3 9
4 Kevin Kearns 5 9.2 8
5 Logan Jarvis 6 11.3 6
6 Bill Gallagher 5 8.4 4
7 Chris McKone 5 6.4 4
8 Len Stadnicki 5 4.6 3
9 Bill Oravec 4 3.3 3
10 Dave Deyette 6 6.0 2
11 Joe Alvarez 2 4.0 2
12 Dave Zogbaum 1 3.0 0
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Airways Golf — Weekly Stableford Report
Date: Sep 22, 2026
Golfer Score Target Net Pts
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Ted Cowles 7 5 +2
Kevin Kearns 10 9 +1
Logan Jarvis 9 12 0
Dave Deyette 6 6 0
Bill Gallagher 5 9 0
John Gallagher 4 9 0
Bill Oravec 2 3 0
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UPDATED TARGETS (after this week)
Golfer New Target
----------------------------------
Alex Fisher 6
Bill Gallagher 8
Bill Oravec 3
Chris McKone 6
Dave Deyette 6
Dave Zogbaum 3
Hermann Keilich 4
Joe Alvarez 4
John Gallagher 8
Kevin Gallagher 7
Kevin Kearns 9
Len Stadnicki 5
Logan Jarvis 12
Ted Cowles 5
Tom Confrey 12
Tom Wieland 5
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SEASON LEADERS — EAGLES (since Apr 13, 2026, through Sep 22, 2026)
(none)
SEASON LEADERS — BIRDIES (since Apr 13, 2026, through Sep 22, 2026)
Golfer Count
--------------------------------
Logan Jarvis 8
Bill Gallagher 4
John Gallagher 3
Kevin Gallagher 2
Kevin Kearns 2
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SEASON LEADERS — PARS (since Apr 13, 2026, through Sep 22, 2026)
Golfer Count
--------------------------------
Logan Jarvis 54
Kevin Kearns 33
John Gallagher 28
Kevin Gallagher 28
Bill Gallagher 24
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