For Immediate Release: July 21, 2009
Headline: Three Players Lead Following Day 1 of New England Amateur Championship at Portsmouth Country Club
Greenland , NH – Rain and dark skies could not keep play from continuing on at the 2009 New England Amateur Championship which is being held this week at Portsmouth Country Club. (Story Continues Below...)
Day 1 Quick Links
Three players undeterred by the inclement weather that persisted throughout the day were Matt Parziale (Thorny Lea GC – MA), Michael Amato (Blue Hill Club – ME) and Peter Keilty (Rochester CC – NH) who all carded scores of 2-under par 70.
“I kept it out of trouble and putted well,” said Parziale, a resident of Brockton. “I felt good out there and made a lot of good putts. I didn’t make all of them, but I was giving them a chance.”
After making the turn at 1-under par 35, Parziale took on the first nine holes of the course. Following two pars and a bogey (his first of the round), the 22 year old went on to register three straight birdies on the 4th, 5th and 6th holes. On the 190-yard, par 3 5th hole, Parziale drained a 20-foot uphill putt. Although he stumbled on the 210-yard, par 4 8th hole with a bogey, Parziale came millimeters from sinking an 80-foot birdie putt on his final hole of the day.
Playing well is nothing new to Parziale who is enjoying a strong summer of golf thus far. The recent Southeastern University (FL) graduate who plans to turn professional later this season finished as low amateur at the 2009 Massachusetts Open Championship and advanced to the quarterfinals of the Men's North & South Amateur Championship held on Pinehurst No. 2 earlier this month.
Last week, he dominated during the stroke play portion at the Massachusetts Amateur Championship before suffering a disappointing defeat in the Round of 32. Without missing a beat, Parziale took to the course that same week and captured the Brockton City Four-Ball Championship with partner and fellow club member Steve Tasho.
“I have been playing well ever since,” said Parziale of his Massachusetts Amateur Championship defeat to John Gilmartin (Indian Ridge CC – MA) who is also in this week’s New England Amateur Championship field. “I just ran into the wrong guy at the wrong time.”
Amato also posted a 2-under par 70 this morning as he began his round with a birdie on the 401-yard, par 4 1st hole and proceeded to make one birdie and seven pars to make the turn at 2-under par 34. Amato was 5-under par through 14 holes after making birdie on the 10th, 13th and 14th holes. He hit a bump in the road with a double bogey-par-bogey finish for a final score of 2-under par 70.
During the afternoon hours, Keilty was on fire during his first nine holes as he registered three birdies and six pars to make the turn at 3-under par 33. He dropped to 4-under par through 13 holes before making bogey on his final two holes.
Defending champion Matt Broome (Rhode Island CC – RI) is on the heels of the leaders after posting a score of 1-over par 73. Broome knows a thing or two about playing through rainy conditions as he was declared the champion after just 36 holes during last year’s rain-shortened New England Amateur Championship. Broome is another collegiate standout who is looking forward to his junior season at Furman University.
Weather Blues
Play was suspended for a brief period of time this afternoon due to rainfall that caused the course to be temporarily unplayable. A combination of improved weather conditions and an efficient and attentive maintenance staff helped to make the course playable and competitors returned to the course in less than an hour. This marks the third straight season that this event has been impacted by weather. One year ago, the event was reduced to 36 holes following downpour conditions at Charles River Country Club (MA).
A Test of Endurance
Many consider the New England Amateur Championship not only a test of skill but of true endurance. After all, the event is held during the peak of the summer season and just days after three of the state associations completed play at their major amateur championships.
Bobby Leopold (Potowomut GC – RI), for instance, captured the 2009 Rhode Island Amateur Championship on Friday afternoon following a 34-hole final match.
Another player – Frank Vana, Jr. (Marlborough CC – MA) – advanced to the finals of the Massachusetts Amateur Championship where he was defeated by Bill Drohen. With very little time to prepare and clearly no rest for the weary, Vana traveled to Portsmouth Country Club this weekend for a practice round in preparation for today’s first round.
In a similar situation was Joshua Chamberlain (Crotched Mountain GC – NH) who fell in the finals of last week’s New Hampshire Golf Association State Amateur Championship which was completed on Friday afternoon.
Notable Withdrawals
There are a few key players who are missing from this year’s New England Amateur Championship field.
- Bill Drohen (Bradford CC – MA), who captured the 2009 Massachusetts Amateur Championship last week at The Country Club in Brookline, was forced to withdraw this weekend after he experienced tightening in his reconstructed shoulder. Just seven months ago, Drohen underwent surgery on his left shoulder. He returned to action this summer and enjoyed an impressive run to the finals of the Massachusetts Amateur Championship where he defeated two-time winner of that event – Frank Vana, Jr. (Marlborough CC – MA) by a score of 3 & 2.
- The 2007 winner of this event – Brent Paladino (Timberlin GC – CT) – will not be seeking a second New England Amateur title as he made a decision to turn professional this week in order to compete in the Bangor Open. Paladino, a recent graduate of William and Mary and two-time All-CAA First Team selection, was victorious earlier this year at the 2009 Vermont Open where he was the only golfer to card rounds of 70 or lower for all three rounds.
- This year’s field is comprised of 162 players from six New England states. The geographical breakdown is as follows: Connecticut (38), Maine (20), Massachusetts (50), New Hampshire (25), Rhode Island (14) and Vermont (15).
- One player who might be thinking ahead is Craig Steckowych (Portsmouth CC – NH). The two-time New Hampshire State Amateur Champion (1990, 1998), who was one of three qualifiers who advanced at Winchester Country Club last month, will compete at the 2009 U.S. Senior Open Championship beginning on July 30 at Crooked Stick Golf Club in Carmel, Indiana.
- Jason Harris (Old Marsh GC – ME) received an early birthday present last week when he earned a spot in today’s New England Amateur Championship. Harris replaced Ricky Jones (Thomaston, ME), the 2007 Maine State Golf Association Player of the Year and 2006 Maine Open Champion. Harris, who turned 18 years old today, has competed for Team Maine at the New England Junior Invitational for the past two years. He is also the grandson of former and longtime golf professional Dick Harris of Falmouth Country Club.
- It’s hard to believe that it has been two years since Cody Paladino (Timberlin GC – CT) advanced to the finals of the U.S. Amateur Public Links Championship. Paladino, who fired a 4-over par 76, competed in Championship Proper of that event again this year but fell in the first round of match play. He is the younger brother of 2007 champion Brent Paladino and a rising junior at Baylor University.
- John Kostis (Falmouth CC – ME) is the son of renowned golf writer, television commentator and teacher Peter Kostis. Young Kostis is a rising sophomore at the University of Arizona. The Kostis family is originally from Sanford, Maine.
- When he isn’t playing golf, Brigham Michaud (Woodlands Club – ME) can be found at the track as he was a standout shot putter at Cheverus High School this past season. He is slated to compete on the golf team at Cedarville University (OH) next fall.
- Although he didn’t win the title, Garrett Medeiros (Metacomet CC – RI) made the 104th Rhode Island Golf Association Amateur Championship one to remember. The junior at Wofford College posted a score of 13-under par 129 during the stroke play portion of the event to earn medalist honors by an astounding 10 strokes. Medeiros, who was named a Cleveland Golf/Srixon All-America Scholar this past season, carded 13 birdies and no bogies through that 36-hole stretch.
Schedule of Events
Here is a schedule of events for the next two days.
Wednesday, July 22 – Second Round, 18 Holes.
The forty (40) lowest scorers and ties for 36 holes continue play.
Thursday, July 23 – Third and Fourth Rounds - 36 Holes.
Lowest scorer for 72 holes will be Champion. If a tie for first place occurs, play will immediately continue hole-by-hole until a winner is determined. If ties for other positions occur, duplicate merchandise certificates will be awarded.
If the Championship course is declared unplayable and as a result it is not possible to complete 72 holes of play in the period in which the Championship is scheduled, the Championship will not be extended beyond the last scheduled day and the winner shall be the individual who returns the lowest score for the number of stipulated rounds played. The Committee may institute a cut in order to play the last stipulated round.
