75th Delaware Amateur: Day One

Shah leads after Round One

REHOBOTH BEACH, Del. – Eli Shah’s confidence in his golf game was taking a hit. He didn’t feel like himself. 

| Scoring | History | Round One Video |

A couple of days ago his father Tushar hit him with some fatherly advice. It has changed everything.

“I haven’t been practicing as much recently as I had the last few years,” Shah, of Penn Oaks Golf Club, said. “My dad told me that self-doubt is a poison. I didn’t have a great semester. He said that I was really playing good golf and that brought me a confidence I didn’t have. I was as confident today as I have ever been. Him saying that flipped a switch in my mind.”

Playing with confidence, Shah, aided by his bullet iron play and posture switch, grabbed the 75th Delaware Amateur lead with a 67 at a blustery Rehoboth Beach Country Club Monday (par 72, 6,627 yards).

The field will be cut Tuesday following Round Two to the Top 36 and ties for Wednesday’s 36-hole marathon.

“I had zero idea how I was going to play,” Shah, 21, of Newtown Square, Pa., said. “This is my first 18-hole round since the Big East Championship in May. I wasn’t able to get a practice round so I was just winging it out there. I felt the wind direction wasn’t that difficult. But the wind played a huge factor. I was very pleased with my round.”

Shah, a senior a Seton Hall University, put the clubs in the proverbial coffin. They arose to perform at the right time. 

“I wanted to take a break from golf,” Shah said. “If you keep playing throughout the summer to follow your college season, it ends up being five consecutive years straight of golf. I wanted to take a little break and have some fun. I got back into practicing recently. The main reason is to try and avoid burnout.”

The only thing heating up was his scorecard.

Starting on the second nine, Shah jumped out of the gates with an eagle on No. 12 (par 5, 491 yards) that would’ve made the eagle that graces RBCC’s logo proud. He soared a gap wedge from 130 yards to six feet. He would make the turn in 4 under. 

“Having GPS on the carts was a huge help for me considering I hadn’t seen the course,” Shah said. “It helped take the guesswork out of the round. There were a couple holes I wish I didn’t hit driver on but there wasn’t much to the course. The greens are relatively flat and if you can manage the winds that helps. I feel like one of my strengths is flighting my irons low.”

He played the front nine, his second nine, in 1 under after clanking a 14-footer for birdie on No. 7 (par 4, 335 yards) and an eight-footer for his final red figure on No. 9 (par 5, 507 yards).

“I noticed that at setup I was standing very tall,” Shah said. “My spine angle was very stiff and didn’t have much bend. I made an effort to get some more bend and get more weight in my toes. It has made a huge difference.”

Shah is an anti-leaderboard watcher, so he has no idea whether he’s leading the tournament. He just wants to run his own race. But if college has taught him, anything it’s good golf comes in many shapes and sizes. With 54 holes remaining, Shah said he’s not looking too far in front of him.

“It doesn’t take great golf to compete,” Shah said. “The best golfers hit fairways, greens and are very methodical. They don’t try to do too much. They keep the ball in front of them. There are plenty of ways to play good golf and still have mistakes.”

GAP
Celebrating Amateur Golf since 1897, GAP, also known as the Golf Association of Philadelphia, is the oldest regional or state golf association in the United States. It serves as the principal ruling body of amateur golf in its region. The organization’s 345 Member Clubs and 140,000 individual members are spread across Pennsylvania, Delaware, New Jersey and Maryland. The GAP’s mission is to promote, preserve and protect the game of golf.