Golfers Greeted with Windy Conditions as Match Play Championships Got Underway at Pease
Portsmouth, NH – The Women’s, Senior and Mid-Amateur Match Play Championships got underway at Pease Golf Course with the stroke play qualifying round. Golfers were greeted with challenging conditions as the wind continued to pick up as the day went on. Rowena Wilks (Country Club of New Hampshire) led the way in the Women’s Division, earning herself the top seed for match play with a 78 (+7). Bill Everett (Laconia CC) and Danny Arvanitis (Derryfield CC) both posted an under-par round of 70 (-1) to find themselves at the top of the Senior Division leaderboard. Ryan Blossom (Concord CC) had the low round of the day among all competitors to grab the top seed in the Mid-Amateur Match Play with a 69 (-2).
Wilks turned some heads with her one-under par front nine at Pease which included two birdies, one coming on the par-3, 9th hole which can be a challenging hole for some. Although her back nine was a different story, riddled with double bogeys, she held on enough to finish with a 78 (+7), three shots better than the next competitor in the Women’s Division.
Corey Richardson (Duston CC), 2018 New Hampshire Women’s Mid-Amateur Champion, finished three shots back of Wilks with an 81 (+10). Similar to Wilks, her front nine had just three bogeys, but she struggled more with the back nine, a common theme throughout the field. Richardson lands herself the second seed heading into match play.
Bill Everett didn’t have a bogey on his card until the 17th hole. He had a three-under par round going until that point with birdies on the 1st, 7th and 9th holes at Pease. With a bogey on the 17th, he also went on to bogey the 18th bringing his once three-under par round to just one under-par. He joined Danny Arvanitis who finished just before him in the red numbers. Arvanitis was the epitome of consistency with 17 pars and one birdie on his card, the single birdie not making an appearance until the par-4, 17th hole.
Craig Steckowych (Portsmouth CC) and Bob Mielcarz (Concord CC), the two golfers who competed in the final match of the Senior Match Play last season, finished one shot back on the two leaders with even par rounds of 71. Steckowych was up and down throughout the round with birdies and bogeys but can rest comfortably with a low seed heading to match play. Mielcarz was smooth and steady throughout his round with two birdies and two bogeys, closing out his day with eight-straight pars.
Ryan Blossom had a strong front nine, opening his round with a birdie. From there, he made three more birdies and just one bogey to make the turn at three-under par. Like many others, his back nine was not as strong but he finished in one-over par for a 69 (-2). With the top seed for match play, Blossom will look to fend off a competitive Mid-Amateur field as match play begins at the end of the month.
Matt Moore (Canterbury Woods CC) had a solid round himself finishing two shots back of Blossom with an even-par 71. Moore’s round also followed the common theme of a strong front nine but more bogeys on the back nine. He made three birdies on the front and one bogey, but two bogeys on the back nine kept his round at even-par but still good enough to earn the second seed for the tournament.
The Match Play Championships are set to continue on May 30 at Beaver Meadow Golf Course where first round matches will commence.
Women’s Match Play | Qualifying Results
Senior Match Play | Qualifying Results
Mid-Amateur Match Play | Qualifying Results