Rhode Island Golf Association
Rhode Island Golf Association 56th Northeast Amateur
56th Northeast Amateur
| Wannamoisett CC June 21-24 | ||
Final Results Final Recap By Paul Kenyon EAST PROVIDENCE _ Collin Morikawa does not like to pay much attention to the various services that compile rankings of the best amateur golfers in the world. That could change after what he did over the last four days at Wannamoisett Country Club. The Cal All-American added to his already impressive resume when he won the 56th Northeast Amateur. He began the final day with a one-stroke lead over fellow All-American Doug Ghim of Texas, birdied the first hole and never lost the top spot. He finished with an even-par 69 that gave him a 11-under 265 total, two shots better than Shintaro Ban of UNLV and Theo Humphrey of Vanderbilt. Ban closed with the best round of the tournament, a 7-under 62, while Humphrey posted a 68 on a day delayed for three hours by rain. Morikawa’s 11-under total ties for third best in tournament history, behind Peter Uihlein’s record 15-under in 2011. Depending on which rating service is used, Morkawa began the week anywhere from third to sixth in the world rankings. Obviously, the numbers will only get better after what he did at Wannamoisett. ``I do glance at the rankings,’’ he said. ``But you can’t really think about those things. You have to go out and play.’’ Morikawa had been the top ranked amateur in the world briefly earlier this year, but lost that spot to NCAA Champion Baden Thornberry. Thornberry also beat Morikawa in a playoff for the Sunnehanna Championship just last week in Pennsylvania. He withdrew from the Northeast after his Sunnehanna victory. In the last two years, Morikawa has won the Trans-Miss Amateur, the Silicon Valley Amateur, the Sunnehanna in 2016 and the ASU Thunderbird Invitational. After helping the United States win the Palmer Cup earlier this summer, he appears all but certain to have a spot on the Walker Cup team later this year. He is not taking that for granted. ``I’ve still got three big tournaments to play this summer,’’ he said. Where Morikawa had risen to the top of the leaderboard with superb play in setting a tournament scoring record through the first three rounds, he earned the title more with a display of grit than flat-out talent. ``I missed five of my first six greens, so I knew it wasn’t going to be an easy day out there,’’ he said. ``I just didn’t have my entire game out there. . . When I was making up-and-downs to save par all day, those are the ones that really count. I’m glad I found a way to win today.’’ ``To be part of the history of the Northeast is fantastic,’’ he said. Morikawa began the day with a one-stroke lead and birdied the first hole. Ghim, who was in second, bogeyed, so Morikawa quickly was up by three. The lead varied between one and three the rest of the day. Ghim was the closest competitor much of the way but he bogeyed three of the last four to finish at 8-under and in fourth place. While most of the attention was on the final group, UNLV’s Ban made many shake their head as they checked the final scoreboard. He came flying up the leaderboard as he posted the low round of the tournament, a 7-under 62, to surge into the tie for second at 9-under. ``I was never really in position (to win). All I could think was just give it my best. I’ve been on the road a long time never had a day to finish strong in a tournament. So today is a big momentum kind of thing,’’ Ban said. His round equals his career best. He had a 62 in the ASU Thunderbird tournament. ``It’s a really stacked field. The Northeast Amateur is a really good one. I’m glad I played here instead of going back home to play a tournament, Ban said. ``I’m glad I’m back here.’’ Morikawa made sure Ban’s performance was not enough by making a host of scrambling pars. That went all the way to the end. He missed the green on the 456-yard, par-4 closing hole for the fourth straight time. And for the fourth straight day, he was able to get up-and-down for par, chipping to four feet and making the putt to clinch perhaps the biggest title yet in his terrific young career. The tournament was completed despite a heavy early morning rain storm, the remnants of tropical storm Cindy. Play began at 8 a.m., as scheduled, but had to be halted about a half hour later when the storm arrived. The course received six-tenths of an inch of rain in two hours, bringing on standing water in several areas of the course, including the low-lying second green. Play resumed at 11:30 a.m. with much better conditions for the players. The greens were soft, the winds were down and the humidity was on the way down, as well. The biggest problem was that the delay caused travel problems for a number of players who had booked flights for late afternoon and early evenings. Round 3 Recap By Paul Kenyon EAST PROVIDENCE _ Collin Morikawa and Doug Ghim have been spending a lot of time together in the last several weeks and they will do it again on Saturday at Wannamoisett Country Club, this time under special circumstances. They will play in the final group as they compete for the championship of the 56th Northeast Amateur. The two All-Americans _ Morikawa plays for Cal Berkley and Ghim for the University of Texas _ put on another display of big-league golf in Friday’s third round to move to the top of the leaderboard. As they have since opening day, they are breaking tournament records along the way. Morikawa recorded a 3-under par 66 over the 6,732-yard layout and stands at 12-under 195. No one has ever been that low through three rounds. Peter Uihlein had the record at 196 in 2011. Still as well as Morikawa has played, he will carry only a one-stroke lead into Saturday’s finale. His new good buddy, Ghim, continued to hang with him. Ghim was tied with Morikawa until bogeying the 18th hole. He settled for a 67 and 196 total. It is three strokes back to midway leader Theo Humphrey in third place at 199 after a 71. Chandler Phillips moved up to fourth at 7-under 200, thanks to a third-round 66. No one else is within nine shots of the lead. Overall scoring went up in round three, but the leaders barely seemed to notice. They have put on one of the great displays through three rounds in tournament history. So far, Morikawa and Ghim are acting more like friends than rivals. Because of weather concerns, tournament officials decided to have the players compete in threesomes over the final round, rather than twosomes as have been used all week. That means the top three will play together. ``We’re all playing well,’’ Ghim said. ``I’m excited with the pairings, excited to play with Collin again.’’ ``It should be fun, said Morikawa of the final day. He, like Ghim, played round three wearing one of his Palmer Cup team shirts. ``We've played some good golf this week but we’ve still got one round to go.’’ Morikawa was as happy with his 66 as his 64 and 65 the first two days. ``I’m really pleased with the 66 today. The conditions were a lot harder, tougher pins and a little windier,’’ he said. ``I kept the ball in play.’’ Ghim was a bit more up and down. He finally made his first bogey of the week on the par-3 8th, which played 202 yards dead into the wind. He had four birdies as he was helped along by his caddie, his father, Jeff. Jeff Ghim is working for his son even though he has a sprained ankle and is noticeably hobbling along. Doug Ghim spoke about how his father has a positive attitude and keeps him in a good frame of mind. While he lost his share of the lead with his bogey on the last hole, Ghim kept a positive attitude even there. ``I hit a bad first shot, bad second shot, bad third shot, bad fourth shot,’’ he said. He still had a considerable putt for bogey. ``Very rarely can you say you made a good bogey. I was staring at double in the face,’’ he said. ``To make a good putt keeps the momentum. To make that putt was big.’’ In the 55 year history of the Northeast, only seven players have ever finished double-digits under par. Peter Uihlein has the record at 15-under 261 in 2011. Four of the seven players who have reached double digits played in 2011. James White finished second at 12-under, Blayne Barber shot 11-under 265 and Patrick Rodgers 10-under. The others with the low scores were Dan Woltman, when he won at 11-under in 2009, Cory Whitsett won at 10-under in 2013 and Hunter Stewart took the title in 2015, also at 10-under. The leaders tee off at 9:40 on Saturday. Round 2 Recap By Paul Kenyon EAST PROVIDENCE _ There are still two rounds remaining in the Northeast Amateur, but the theme for the year has been established. The 56th annual event at Wannamoisett Country Club is about birdies this year, with more eagles than usual thrown in, as well. And most of all, it is about low scores. The strong field, led by a host of All-Americans, put up red numbers all over the place in Thursday’s second round. Theo Humphrey, a Connecticut native who was one of the stars of Vanderbilt’s national semifinalists this year, led the onslaught. He followed up his opening 65 in afternoon winds on Wednesday by going two better in calmer morning conditions, posting a 6-under 63 over the 6,732-yard course. His two-day total of 10-under 128 is the lowest ever at the Northeast. Jordan Russell of College Station, Tex., had the previous mark of 129 (63-66) in 2012. He eventually lost in a playoff for the title to Justin Shin. As well as Humphrey played, his work was good enough for only a one-stroke lead over a pair of All-Americans, Doug Ghim and Collin Morikawa. Ghim matched Humphrey for the best round of a day with a 63 that included an eagle from 160 yards on the par-4 ninth hole. Ghim has not made a bogey in the two days. Morikawa also came in at 129 thanks to a second-round 65. He briefly pulled into a tie with Humphrey at 10-under but bogeyed the par-4 16th to fall one behind. The average score for the day was an unheard of 69.8. Twenty-eight the 92 players are at par or better through 36 holes. All this on the course most agree that is the most difficult in Rhode Island. This year, though, the players have been helped by the fact that the Wannamoisett greens are not quite as fast as in past years because of a turf disease that forced the closure on the greens through mid-May. What’s more, there was rain on Tuesday, preventing the greens from becoming as firm as they are in most years. As well as Humphrey played in earning the lead, the wildest display of the day was turned in by the two guys tied for second. Morikawa and Ghim played in the same twosome. They are among the most accomplished players in the field, both in the top six in the world amateur rankings. Morikawa, a star at Cal who is from Flintridge, Cal., was number one for a time before being passed by NCAA Champion Braden Thornberry of Mississippi. Ghim is a University of Texas standout who lives in Arlington Heights, Ill. Both are playing this week with their USA golf bags, given them last month when they helped the United States win the Palmer Cup matches with Europe at the Atlanta Athletic Club. They put on one of the most impressive displays ever at the Northeast, especially on the front nine. Morikawa birdied 3, 5, 7 and 9 for a 30 on the front. Ghim birdied 1 and 4 and holed out with an eight-iron from 160 yards on nine for eagle, which gave him a 30, as well. If they had been playing as a team, they would have had a 7-under 27. A 27 might happen at par-3 Firefly down the street, but it is outlandish at Wannamoisett. Ghim did not stop there. He birdied 10 and 11, too, to go to 6-under on the day. Morikawa got in a rutt, going three straight holes with ``only’’ a par before making bird on 13 to get to 10-under for the tournament and in a tie for first with Humphrey. The two finally slowed coming down the stretch, but still finished with a best ball of 59, even both settling for pars on the par-5 17th, the easiest hole on the course. ``We had a great time,’’ Morikawa said. ``We both played pretty well yesterday and we were able to come out today and keep it going. We really fed off each other. Seeing good golf out there is always good to see.’’ ``The goal for today was to play a solid round and get in position for, I guess you could say, the weekend,’’ Ghim offered. ``Collin and I both played on the Palmer Cup two weeks and got to know each other pretty well there. . . It was cool to feed off each other.’’ Humphrey, who is from Greenwich, Ct., did not have to share the spotlight with anyone in the morning. He is at the Northeast for the third year in a row. He finished in the top 20 in each of his first two visits. He feels at home at Wannamoisett. ``I’ve played good here the last two years. I’ve just had a really bad nine both times. Other than that, I could have been in contention to win both years. I don’t feel my results show how well I have played here,’’ he said. ``I feel comfortable out here. I’m from the northeast. I like this type of golf course.’’ What made his day rewarding, Humphrey said, was that he actually struggled hitting the ball for the first few holes. But he was able to save par and made one 15-footer for bird, then settled down and piled up seven birds with only one bogey for his 63. All 92 players return Friday. A cut to the low 55 and ties will be made after the third round. Through the first two days there have been more birdies made, 298, than bogeys, 272. Round 1 Recap By Paul Kenyon EAST PROVIDENCE _ Nick Voke is on a hot streak these days, and his strong play continued Wednesday in the first round of the 56th Northeast Amateur at Wannamoisett Country Club. Voke, a recent graduate of Iowa State who hails from New Zealand, led an onslaught on par at the old Donald Ross-designed course, posting a 6-under 63. He had seven birdies, three of them deuces on par-3s. He needed all of them to be in the lead by himself. Collin Morikawa, a first-team All-American at the University of California and member of the United States Palmer Cup team, was second with a 64 that included an eagle when he spun his approach from 92 yards back into the cup on the 391-yard, par-four 11th. Another All-American, Scottie Scheffler of Texas, followed up his low amateur performance at the U.S. Open last week by tying for third at 4-under 65. Clemson All-American Doc Redman and Vanderbilt star Theo Humphrey also had 65s. Reigning Rhode Island Amateur champion Davis Chatfield, a Wannamoisett member, was the low area player with a 67. In all, 35 of the 92 starters shot par or better. The majority of the low scores were posted early on when the winds were light and the greens softer than usual because of rain on Tuesday. Voke was among those in the early wave who took advantage. He came in on a roll, having finished third at last week’s Sunnehanna Amateur, one stroke out of a playoff for the title. That followed a first-place finish in the Texas Regional of the NCAA Tournament. ``It was a good day,’’ Voke said. ``I got off to a pretty hot start. I holed a putt on the first hole and chipped in on the third, so I was 2-under quick,’’ he said. He birdied 11, 12, 13 and 15 to make it a special round. ``I was feeling good and my game is in a good spot,’’ he said. Voke, who tied for fifth at the Northeast two years ago, is delaying turning pro for two reasons. He wants to play the amateur circuit for a final summer and he also is taking time to do an internship. A kinesiology major, he is interested in a possible career as a chiropractor. He has arranged to do an internship with a chiropractor later this summer. Morikawa also picked up where he left off last week. He lost the Sunnehanna title in a playoff. The resident of La Canada Flintridge, Cal., has moved to third in the world amateur rankings after earlier being number one. Another highlight of the opening day was that it also included what is believed to be a first in the Northeast’s 56-year history, and a first in the more than century old Wannamoisett annals, as well. Ben Wolcott, a junior at the University of Mississippi, made back-to-back eagles on 16 and 17. He had been 4-over through 15, including a pair of double bogeys earlier on the back nine. But he holed out a wedge from 135 yards on the par-4 16th, then reached the green from 282 yards on the par-5 17th. His shot ended four feet from the hole and he made that one, too. So, in the span of two holes he went from 4-over to even. His feat was unheard of previously because Wannamoisett has only one par-5. The 17th annually gives up some eagles. But few eagles are made elsewhere, so having eagles on back-to-back holes simply is unheard of. ``I know it’s never been done in the Northeast,’’ said Bill Lunnie, the former director of the Northeast and a long time Wannamoisett member. ``And I don’t think it’s ever been done at this course.’’ Scheffler was among the others putting himself in good position after the first day. The University of Texas All-American, who turned 20 on Wednesday, was a late arrival. He had travel issues after finishing as low amateur in last week’s U.S. Open at Erin Hills. He did not arrive until midnight Monday at the home of the Conley family, his hosts for the last four years. ``I kind of slept in Tuesday,’’ he said. He did limited prep work but was back in stride well enough to record six birdies and two bogeys for an opening 65. Scheffler spoke about the difference going from the 7,800-yard Open to the 6,700-yard Northeast. ``There it’s long and open,’’ he said. ``Here it’s all about precision.’’ Auburn star Jacob Solomon provided another highlight with an ace on the third hole. ``It was 144 yards dead into the wind,’’ Solomon said. ``It was playing more like 160, so I hit eight iron.’’ ``With the pin way back, it was as tough as that hole plays,’’ said Brad Valois, the four-time Rhode Island Amateur champion who was his playing partner. ``It hit about a foot behind the hole and spun back in.’’ ``That’s a memory,’’ Solomon said. Solomon finished with a 66 that also included birds on each of the last two holes. The stroke average for the day was 70.6. No records are kept in that department, but that is thought to be the lowest one-day number in tournament history.
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