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Former Ball State golfer reunites with boyhood friend for surprising US Senior Open berth

Boyhood friends Tony Soerries and Andy Kern team up again this week at the U.S. Senior Open at Notre Dame Mike Berardino, IndyStar

SOUTH BEND – Their friendship began with an awkward phone call between teenagers 33 years ago.

About a week after a chance pairing in a junior golf tournament, Tony Soerries was surprised to hear from the wisecracking 16-year-old who kept him laughing that summer day. Andy Kern of Penn High School wasn’t close to being the golfer Soerries was at Clay High School, but the two still hit it off.

“He said, ‘Hey, Tony, it’s Andy,’" Soerries recalled Tuesday on the practice tee at Warren Golf Course, site of this week’s U.