Paras Pandya is an emergency room doctor at John Randolph Medical Center in Hopewell. His expertise was not needed, at least in a physical sense, yesterday at the Lakeside Invitational.

Psychologically, though, he could have seen quite a few patients after they toured the golf course at Jefferson Lakeside Country Club.

The short golf course that Pandya calls "the hardest 6,200 yards in Richmond" played true to form yesterday. Only six golfers from the area's various clubs came in even or under par.

Two of them - Jordan Utley (3-under 68) and David Partridge (71) - came from Hermitage Country Club. They combined with Deni Dennis (73) and Mark Lawrence (77) to win the event with a 289 score.

Willow Oaks' foursome - Hank Klein (71), Scott Campbell (71), Cam Young (76) and Larry Loving Jr. (76) - finished second at 294. Providence's Scott Bemberis also shot 71.

Pandya, from Salisbury, matched Utley's 68. He took individual honors after scorecards were matched on the back nine.

Pandya had a 34 on both sides. Utley, a senior at the University of Richmond and last year's Lakeside Invitational medalist, shot a 37 on the back. His 31 on the front nine included five straight birdies.

Pandya's round included birdies on Nos. 10, 14 and 15. He bogeyed 18.

"I'm just learning how to play this golf course," he said. "You have to hit conservative shots all the way around. There's a double-bogey waiting for you on every hole."

Said Utley: "As always, the story is where the pins are located. There were some really tough pin placements."

Holes 3 and 4, a pair of par 4s, were especially brutal. A scan of about three-quarters of the scorecards revealed almost twice as many bogeys, double-bogeys and triple-bogeys as pars or birdies.

"Making a par on 4 felt like an eagle," Pandya said.

Contact staff writer Tim Pearrell at tpearrell@timesdispatch.com or (804) 649-6965.