July 20-21: Best time of year! My Dad and I set off the quest to repeat as club champion. First round was 97 degrees and humid. Second day was in the 80s and still humid. A big thanks to my Dad for carrying in this heat. I was steady through the first two rounds, no score worse than bogey. At the same time, I was scrambling and never got too much momentum. Finished strong both days, going -1 under on last 4 and even on last 6. Shot 75-76. Led after first day and currently in 2nd place, one shot back. Below is a recap from Lexington GC website.
Round 2: Several players used round 2 to make a serious move up the leaderboard. Brett Douglass made the most of the ideal scoring conditions to fire low round of the day, a 1 under par 70. Combined with his opening round 80, he is your half way tournament leader at 150 (+8). Round 1 leader and defending champion Kurt Flionis stumbled a bit on the back nine, opening with 3 consecutive bogeys. However, he held on the shoot a 76 for a 2 day total of 151, good for 2nd place. Also making a big move up the leaderboard was Steve Geldart. His 1 over par 72 - 153 total was good for T3. Also at 153 was Rob Lynch (76-77).
Rounding out the top 10, we had Steve Keegan (154), Chris Barry (155), Dave Rubin (156), Kenny Collina (156), Jim Magliozzi (157), and Brian DelGreco (158).
In all, there are 12 players within 10 strokes of the leader. With 36 holes to be played next weekend, anything can happen. This years tournament may well prove to be the closest on in several years.
After Round 2, my family and I headed to Foxwoods to gamble and party with my 97 year old Gram. And that we did at Scorpion Bar, David Burke's, and Cedars. Amazing trip.
Looking forward to the final two rounds,
Kurt
Wednesday, July 24, 2013
US Amateur Qualifier at Weston GC
July 15 - What a great experience and opportunity to compete for a spot in the US Amateur at The Country Club, marking the 100th anniversary of Francis Ouimet's US Open victory. I came in swinging awesome. Played the day before at Lexington in our Memorial Scholarship tournament with the Keegans and D. Brennan. I was loose and ripping it. The bad news was my caddy got sick. I scrambled to find a replacement, but ultimately ended up carrying myself for 36 holes at Weston. Conditions were hot, low 90s and humid. Course conditions were excellent, fast greens and thick rough. Pin positions were very difficult. My game plan was solid and I rarely got myself in bad spots on the green. My self-inflicted pressure and strong desire to make it translated into some tight swings that cost me and was scrambling. I managed a 78 in the morning, which surprisingly put me 4 shots off the cut line. After a short 15 minute break, I stepped up at #1 and knocked my approach stiff for birdie. Here we go! (short lived :( ) I was up and down to shoot 39 on the front. Then my final nine included three consecutive disaster holes on 11, 12, and 13. It was the end of a hard fought day. Was really bummed about missing a dream opportunity, but felt so good about the experience and will try every year I can in the future. Great vibe, great competition, great tournament operation. Played with K. Rourke which was a pleasure. He and I actually competed in high school at St John vs. Woburn matches and local NEPGA events. Good times. Lesson learned: Caddy is very important in this thing! (Score 78-86; Cut was 150, very high for this event; typically its under par, course was playing very difficult)
Onward,
Kurt
Onward,
Kurt
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