Dupuis Qualifies for U.S. Amateur Championship
By Joe McDonald
RIGA Senior Writer
SEEKONK – It didn’t take long for Ty Dupuis’ phone to light up.
He couldn’t keep up with all the text messages he was receiving, including a few from friends he hasn’t spoken to in awhile.
Dupuis, of Grafton, Mass., qualified for the 123rd U.S. Amateur Championship at Cherry Hills Country Club Aug. 14-20 in Parker, Colo. A rising senior at Bryant University, he finished as the medalist (3-under) at the local qualifier Tuesday at Ledgemont Country Club.
“It feels great,” said Dupuis, who admitted he wasn’t following the leaderboard. “I was thinking I needed to make a couple of birdies, then I saw the scores and thought, ‘I just need to make pars.’ I got kind of lucky. I missed the last four greens, but I chipped it pretty well today to stay in it.”
Dupuis finished the 36-hole round with a score of 70-69 – 139. Nick Solimene, of Naples, Fla., finished second at 2-under also qualified for the U.S. Amateur. Bryson Richards, of Vermont, and Aidan Emmerich, of Swampscott, Mass., are the two alternates out of the Ledgemont qualifier.
“It feels pretty good,” Dupuis said. “I definitely need to clean up a couple things. I need to clean up the irons, my wedges, but for the most part I kept it under control today. I felt like I lost gas around the 8th hole, so I really had to scrap it around. I definitely need to fix the swing a little bit.”
As he attempted to answer some of the texts and phone calls to congratulate him on his accomplishment, Dupuis was already thinking about the next few weeks as he prepares for the U.S. Amateur.
“Just keep grinding, keep doing what I’m doing,” he said. “I feel like my swing is close, so everything else is pretty good right now. Once I get the irons and the wedges down I should be all good.”
Dupuis was a three-year varsity starter at Grafton High School and was named team MVP three consecutive years for the Gators.
A SMART DECISION
Since Monday’s original qualifier was postponed due to over four inches of rain that saturated Ledgemeont CC and made most of the course inaccessible, Solimene almost didn’t play. Even though some of his friends had to withdraw, Solimene decided to change his flight home and play.
“It was worth it,” he said. “It’s surreal. It doesn’t feel real. It hasn’t hit me yet. To be honest, I didn’t think I was going to get it done with how I played, but I kept grinding and somehow I found a way to compete and qualified.”
Born in West Hartford, Conn., his family moved to Naples, Fla., when he was young. He enjoyed a successful youth career and still visits New England each summer.
“I love the Northeast and New England. I love the golf up here, especially the courses have a little more character,” he said.
On this trip, prior to playing Ledgemont and qualifying for the U.S. Amateur, he also played The International and Boston Golf Club. It was the first time he’s played Ledgemont and he was happy with the end result.
“I saw it blind for the first time today,” he said. “It was a fun course to play. It was a good test and it gave me chances to attack.”
As far as advancing, it still hadn’t kicked in as he was leaving Seekonk.
“It’ll probably take at least a night,” he said with a smile.