A Humbling Experience
By Joe McDonald
RIGA Senior Writer
Mike Caparco described his U.S. Open Final Qualifying experience as a humbling round of golf, but it also motivated him to want more.
The Cranston native competed in the “golf’s longest day” Monday at Canoe Brook Country Club in Summit, N.J., shot 74-80 – 154 but did not make the cut. Nonetheless, it was a great experience.
“It was really awesome,” Caparco said. “I didn’t play the golf I wanted to, but to put it all into perspective, just being out there with some (PGA) Tour guys, legit world-class players, was something completely different than what I’m used to.”
Caparco was paired with Michael Thorbjornsen, 22, of Wellesley, Mass., who is No. 3 in the World Amateur Golf Ranking (WAGR) and recently finished No. 1 in the PGA Tour University standings and secured his Tour card as soon as the Stanford standout decides to turn pro. It was a thrill for Caparco, 26, who plays out of Agawam Hunt, to play alongside one of the best players in the world.
“At the beginning I had no idea what to expect,” admitted Caparco. “I was obviously shaking on the first tee, but as the round went on, I got a little more comfortable and started to play my game. Believe me, (Thorbjornsen) has plenty of shots that I do not have. He hits the ball 60 yards by me, and his iron shots go into the stratosphere. He was off a little to shoot the number he did (74-75 – 149), but I did a good job scraping it around a little bit.”
As a golf junky, Caparco has no issues playing 36 holes in a day, but when a trip to the U.S. Open in on the line, and all eyes were on his pairing, it was a mental grind for him.
“I was definitely grinding,” he said. “I made a quad on my fifth hole of the second round and that took me out of it, so after that I turned grind mode off and just enjoyed the course, my pairing and tried to have fun with some shots. I hyped it up a lot in my head because I didn’t know what to expect.”
It’s been a successful season so far for Caparco. Along with close friend and playing partner Jamie Lukowicz, Caparco won the 75th Rhode Island Four-Ball Championship May 8 at Rhode Island Country Club. He then advanced to the U.S. Open Final Qualifier with an outstanding round May 14 at Kirkbrae Country Club. Now, getting a taste of a national tournament, he’s motivated to experience it again.
“It made me hungrier than ever to get back there,” he said. “Once you get in that arena that’s what you want to feel now. I’m more motivated than ever to feel that juice.”
His friends and golf partners like to chirp Caparco for his deliberate pace of play during regular rounds and RIGA tournaments. He joked that there were no issues while playing with Thorbjornsen.
“The pace of play was immaculate. I got zero slow-play penalties and we finished under four hours in the first round, which is unreal for me,” Caparco said with a laugh. “I didn’t get put on the clock and luckily we were put into twosomes, so we were able to buzz around. I tried to stick to my game as much as I could. I’m sure I went a little bit faster in the beginning because I was nervous, but I settled down after the first few holes and played my game. I was trying not to be conscience of it, slowing somebody down, especially a guy like Thorbjornsen, who is there trying to win the thing. I just tried to stay in my own world as much as possible. I didn’t want to be annoying, but at the same time, I was there to compete, too. Maybe I had unreal expectations, but I was trying to stick to my game as much as I could.”
Caparco hopes his game takes him back to another U.S. Open Final Qualifier and possibly beyond.