MT. HOLLY, N.J. – Matthew Gaffney of Little Mill CC and Jack Wallace of Burlington CC each shot 1-over par Thursday at Burlington CC (par 70, 6,580 yards) to earn medallist honors at the Golf Association of Philadelphia’s Middle-Amateur Championship Qualifier.
Gaffney, 28, and Wallace, 24, sat atop the 105-player field attempting to each earn one of the 45 qualifying spots and ties available for the 26th edition of the Middle-Amateur Championship set for May 20-21 at Tavistock CC. Thursday’s qualifier was delayed three and a half hours due to severe weather.
“I felt pretty relaxed out there. I hit it pretty solid. I hit a lot of fairways,” Gaffney said. “It was a good round.”
Gaffney birdied No. 5 (par 3, 147 yards) and bogeyed Nos. 7 (par 4, 458 yards) and 10 (par 3, 135 yards). He hit 9-iron to about two-feet on No. 9. On No. 7, Gaffney laid it into the fairway bunker and chipped it out to about four-feet with a 6-iron.
Three holes later, Gaffney recovered after hitting his tee ball out of bounds.
“I came back, hit another one or two feet and made bogey,” he said.
Wallace, of Beverly, N.J., didn’t let an hour and a half rain delay affect his play.
“It wasn’t that bad,” Wallace said. “The course was in great shape. It wasn’t that wet out there.”
Wallace fired birdies on Nos. 4 (par 5, 479 yards), 12 (par 3, 192 yards) and 17 (par 4, 412 yards). On No. 12, he hit 5-iron to land about two yards from the hole. Wallace felt “pretty good” about his birdie on No. 4.
“I laid it up to about 90 yards and hit a 60-degree wedge in pretty close to the hole,” he said.
Wallace bogeyed Nos. 1 (par 4, 420 yards), 2 (par 3, 212 yards), 5 (par 3, 147 yards) and 18 (par 4, 315 yards). Playing at home was also a boost.
“It was definitely an advantage. I know all of the holes and the putts,” Wallace said. “I felt very comfortable out there.”
Paul Rogowicz of Yardley CC shot 2-over par 70 to finish second.
“Before you even play, you expect the scores to be a little bit higher [because of the conditions], and when you’re trying to qualify, that’s all you’re trying to do is get in the field,” he said. “You want to get off to a good start, which I did. It got easier as it went on. The course played really long. You had to hit the ball in the fairways.”
Rogowicz, 45, made par on 12 holes. The Yardley, Pa., resident fired birdies on Nos. 6 (par 4, 417 yards) and 14 (par 5, 550 yards). He hit 6-iron to the green for about a 12-foot birdie.
Rogowicz was on No. 14 when an hour and a half rain delay commenced.
“It was playing long because of the delay,” Rogowicz said. “I hit a good lay-up. I was in a little trouble off the tee. I hit a nice shot in there about 10 feet, then I made [a birdie]. Then it was just, ‘hold on and get into the house as quick as possible.’
“At that point, I was only 1-over par, so I knew I was in good shape, but I would have rather not stopped.”
Rogowicz hopes to play well in the Championship later this month.
“Tavistock CC is a great course. I’m going to have to compete with all of the homers,” he said. “You go out and try to play your best.”
“Hopefully, I can contend with those boys who have been playing out there for awhile,” Gaffney added.
When it was all said and done, the cut-line landed at 82.
Thursday’s qualifier was the final Middle-Amateur Championship qualifier used to determine who will play in the Championship later this month. The first qualifier was held yesterday at Spring Ford CC, where Scott Klee of Indian Valley CC and Blake R. Slawecki of Spring Ford CC each carded an even-par 72 to share medalist honors.
Michael McDermott of Merion GC took the 25th Middle-Amateur Championship at Fieldstone GC last year after recording 2-over par 73. The win was the third Middle-Amateur Championship for McDermott, who also took the title in 2001 and 2004. The Middle-Amateur is for players 25 years of age and older.
The GAP Middle-Amateur started in 1984, three years after the USGA created the U.S. Mid-Am as a formal championship for post-college amateurs. The Association followed suit with the USGA in creating a Mid-Am, but initially differed in its administration of the tournament in a couple of respects.
The most obvious difference was the age requirement. Prior to 2001, the GAP Mid-Am was for players 30 years of age and older.
That Committee reviewed and revised that age requirement in 2001 to match the USGA’s guidelines of 25 years of age or older for eligible players. Also at that point, the Committee changed the format of the event to a two-day stroke play tournament (instead of a one-day medal play event) with a cut to the low 70 players and ties after the first round. The field begins with 132 players. Players must have a GAP/USGA Handicap Index of 7.0 or lower.
Founded in 1897, the Golf Association of Philadelphia (GAP) is the oldest regional golf association in the United States and serves as the principal ruling body of amateur golf in its region. Its 136 Member Clubs and 56,000 individual members are spread across parts of Pennsylvania, New Jersey, Delaware and Maryland. The purpose of the Association is simple: To promote, protect and preserve the game of golf in the region.
NOTE: Mike McTyre, 42, of Sakima CC, hit 9-iron on No. 10 (par 3, 135 yards) for his first-ever hole-in-one.
Qualifiers
Name
Club
Scores
Jack Wallace
Burlington Country Club
71
Matthew Gaffney
Little Mill Country Club
71
Paul Rogowicz
Yardley Country Club
72
Gregg Angelillo
Moselem Springs Golf Club
73
Joseph Russo
Running Deer Golf Club
74
Bryan McClaskey
Merchantville Country Club
76
Mark Kosko
Seaview Marriott Resort & Spa
76
Scott Bergson
Little Mill Country Club
76
Steven Passalacqua
Wedgwood Country Club
76
Tim Westfall
RiverCrest Golf Club & Preserve
76
Ajai Sirohi
Mercer Oaks Golf Course
77
Brad Sokol
Green Valley Country Club
77
David Livermore
Greate Bay Country Club
77
John Aloisio
Seaview Marriott Resort & Spa
77
Thomas DiCinti
Links Golf Club
77
Bradley Roberts
Wedgwood Country Club
78
Douglas Cusick
Tavistock Country Club
78
Gerry Baldachino
Olde York Country Club
78
Jamie Slonis
Tavistock Country Club
78
Paul Kupcha
Fieldstone Golf Club
78
Ken Matt
Philadelphia Publinks GA
79
Kevin Bair
Wyncote Golf Club
79
Michael DiGiandomenico
French Creek Golf Club
79
Lance Oberparleiter
Wedgwood Country Club
80
Ron Weaver
Meadia Heights Golf Club
80
Sean Sexton
Philadelphia Publinks GA
80
Steven Budenz
Yardley Country Club
80
Alexander Maguire, Jr.
Brookside Country Club
81
Brian Leftwich
Pine Valley Golf Club
81
Chris Parmer
Olde York Country Club
81
David Barnett
White Clay Creek Country Club
81
Frank Marckioni
Mercer Oaks Golf Course
81
Greg Root
Manufacturers Golf & Country Club
81
Marlin Detweiler
Lancaster Country Club
81
Patrick O’Brien
North Hills Country Club
81
Raymond Andrusiewicz
Mercer Oaks Golf Course
81
Bob Ursomarso
Saucon Valley Country Club
82
Brian Corbett
Huntsville Golf Club
82
Brian Sexton
Seaview Marriott Resort & Spa
82
Casey Murray
Philadelphia Cricket Club
82
Eric Fonner
Huntingdon Valley Country Club
82
Fred Giblin
Merchantville Country Club
82
Gavin Grimes
Chester Valley Golf Club
82
Johan van Schalkwyk
Burlington Country Club
82
Lee Grout
Whitemarsh Valley Country Club
82
Michael French
Burlington Country Club
82
Sean Coyle
Llanerch Country Club
82
Tom Piersanti
Saucon Valley Country Club
82
Failed to qualify
John Campanelli
Woodbury Country Club
83
John Cobb
Tavistock Country Club
83
Thomas Mensel
Olde York Country Club
83
Tim Sindorf
Burlington Country Club
83
William Stanley
Olde York Country Club
83
Brad McFadden
Overbrook Golf Club
84
Duane Pinnock
Philadelphia Publinks GA
84
George Connell, Jr.
Gulph Mills Golf Club
84
Joe Olin
Little Mill Country Club
84
Ryan Luke
Mercer Oaks Golf Course
84
Santo Lafoca
Huntsville Golf Club
84
William Moule
Links Golf Club
84
Andrew Dietz
Laurel Creek Country Club
85
J. Clark O’Donoghue
Riverton Country Club
85
Michael Bennis
Talamore Country Club
85
Ted Harris
Mercer Oaks Golf Course
85
David Hoegel
Little Mill Country Club
86
Ed Kahn
Little Mill Country Club
86
Jim Witt
Commonwealth National Golf Club
86
Kenneth Zimmer
Laurel Creek Country Club
86
Shawn Knechtel
Whitemarsh Valley Country Club
86
Dino Stathis
Mercer Oaks Golf Course
87
James Levy
Downingtown Golf Club
87
Mike McTyre
Sakima Country Club
87
Tim McNerney
Philadelphia Publinks GA
87
Vaughn Schill
Manufacturers Golf & Country Club
87
Fred Hartwell, Jr.
Torresdale-Frankford Country Club
88
Michael Beran
RiverCrest Golf Club & Preserve
88
Rick Wright
Philadelphia Publinks GA
88
Robert Catelli
Commonwealth National Golf Club
88
Scott Vasbinder
Mercer Oaks Golf Course
88
Vivek Dhayagude
Mercer Oaks Golf Course
88
Matt Brady
Penn Oaks Golf Club
89
Michael Hodges
The Springhaven Club
89
Marty Crounse
Mercer Oaks Golf Course
90
Jason Sieminski
Philadelphia Cricket Club
91
Michael Sokorai
Little Mill Country Club
91
Lynn Kilduff
Huntsville Golf Club
92
Robert Mairone
Greate Bay Country Club
92
Arthur Kania, Jr.
Overbrook Golf Club
WD
Bill Holsten III
Aronimink Golf Club
WD
Bill Murray
Merchantville Country Club
WD
Brian Dobisch
Talamore Country Club
WD
Brian Fiala
Rolling Green Golf Club
WD
Christopher DeSana
Medford Village Country Club
WD
David Guertler
Merchantville Country Club
WD
David Krausse
Mercer Oaks Golf Course
WD
Frank Corrado, Jr.
Jericho National Golf Club
WD
Joseph Costanzo
Blue Bell Country Club
WD
Joseph Roeder
Links Golf Club
WD
Kevin Wall
Old York Road Country Club
WD
Lee Cook
Laurel Creek Country Club
WD
Len Fox, Jr.
Tavistock Country Club
WD
Mark Walker
Laurel Creek Country Club
WD
Michael O’Hara
Riverton Country Club
WD
Richard Blumberg
Philmont Country Club
WD
Thomas Holt, Jr.
Torresdale-Frankford Country Club
NC
NC-no card; WD-withdrawal
