Hey Everyone,

It was a busy week. Tiff and I went to Ludlow, Vermont, last weekend. I got to check out Fox Run Golf Club up there. It was outstanding. It's one of the best public courses I’ve played in the region. I'm looking forward to sharing a bunch of photos and videos from the rounds in the coming weeks. In short, it’s worth the trip. I’m going to figure out how you can build a weekend trip up in those parts and play some other courses, too.

I also played in a qualifier for the MassGolf Public Links, which is the main topic of this newsletter.

News and Notes:

• CJ Winchenbaugh wins New England Amateur: The recent Belmont Hill grad set the course record at Laconia CC in the final round of the New England Am. The 61, with a 28(!) on the back nine, got him into a playoff. He birdied the first hole, of course, to beat John Broderick, who was looking for his second NE Amateur trophy. Winchenbaugh will now head to Detroit for the U.S. Junior Am. The win also earned him an exemption into the U.S. Amateur in August at Hazeltine CC.

• Isabel Brozenaplays great at U.S. Girls’ Junior: She reached match play at the U.S. Girls’ Junior and lost on the 19th hole in the Round of 62. A solid showing, as she fired rounds of 68 and 74 in the stroke play portion. Maddie Smith shot 78-79 and missed the two. An incredible achievement by both for reaching a USGA Championship.

• Ryan Downes, Matthew Quinn, and C.J. Winchenbaugh will play in the U.S. Junior Championship at Oakland Hills in Detroit, Mich. starting on Monday. The name Quinn is synonymous with golf in these parts. Matthew is the nephew of Fran Quinn. USGA wrote a nice story about Matthew and the Quinn lineage.

• Ryan Downes qualifies for U.S. Amateur: He had to fly to Columbine, CO to play in U.S. Amateur final qualifying because the Concord CC qualifying conflicted with the U.S. Junior Am this Monday. He survived a 6-for-2 playoff to earn a spot. Worth the trip!

• Wes Paine wins MassGolf Young Golfers' Amateur Championship: He kid from Longmeadow CC won the event at North Hill in Duxbury, Mass. The 18-hole event used a modified Stableford for scoring. Paine earned 44 points in his two trips around the nine-hole course. A great event for players 13 and under.

In addition to my Open Championship preview pod, which is still worth listening to because we always get into some interesting topics, I also recorded a podcast about Ozarks National, my favorite course at Big Cedar Lodge.

I also made a video about the closing holes at the new Pines Course at The International. It’s going to be pretty great.

Another MassGolf Qualifier in the Books

I begged my chunked 5-iron to fly.

It did not.

Just like last year at Presidents Golf Course, I reached the final stretch of my Public Links qualifier in the hunt for a spot. And just like last year, I hit a shot that made things start to move very quickly.

I hunted along the edge of the hazard knowing I wouldn’t find the ball, but also knowing that it would let me collect my thoughts before returning to the other side of the hazard to hit my fourth shot.

At Presidents last year, I made an eight on the par-5 16th hole.

This year, I made an 8-footer for 6. The double bogey dropped me to 6-over par for the day. I didn’t look at the live scoring. I’m not good enough to “dial up” birdies. I made it my goal to focus on the shot in front of me. If I ended up inside the qualifying number, then so be it because Cyprian Keyes is not really a place to go birdie hunting.

After last year’s triple bogey, I made two pars to finish the round. I took that as a very good sign. I moved on from the disaster and didn’t compound my mistakes with dumb shots. I’ve thought about those two holes a lot when I hit bad stretches or make a big number. It helps me calm down.

It’s what I drew on as I watched Mike and Jeremy hit their irons on the par-3 16th. I had a bit of time to calm my nerves and refocus. During a practice round two weeks earlier I actually finished with three straight birdies at Cyprian Keyes, so I had more good vibes to propel me forward.

Over this season, I have made a concerted effort to stay away from shooting at pins. It’s a fool’s errand. I am into the fat part of the green, and sometimes I get lucky, and a push or pull gets a little closer to the flag, and I have a good birdie look. Sometimes it bends away from the flag and I have a long putt. I’ve made more birdies this summer than I can ever remember making. And that’s a big reason why.

My 8-iron bent away from the flag, and I had a long putt. I got down in two. More good vibes. Lag putting under pressure is hard.

About 50 minutes after begging the ball to fly on the 15th hole, I was tapping in for a birdie on the last hole. I had also made a birdie on the 17th hole after hitting a lob wedge into a back left pin to about five feet.

I signed for a 76. It turned out a 77 would have been good enough to qualify. A 78 would have had me on the outside looking in and hoping to get in as an alternate. Walking off the 15th, I was 6-over par.

I have been trying to qualify for MassGolf events for more than half my life. I had missed every single time. I had a few close calls, and still consider the Mass Amateur my White Whale. Golf kicks you in the teeth a lot no matter who you are.

Those failures all provided little lessons, some that fade away, some that linger, and some that impress themselves forever. The biggest lesson is just to keep trying. It is so easy to find excuses not to play in qualifiers and just play recreational golf. Qualifiers are fun, but they’re also miserable. It takes as long as a marathon to complete a round of golf and can lead to embarrassment and frustration.

On the night before the round, I recorded an Open Championship preview pod with Paul Burke. We chatted about my round, the course, and the weather. It was nearly 100 degrees on Tuesday, so he suggested I ride in a cart.

“Tomorrow is not about enjoying the round,” Burke said. “It’s about qualifying.”

After hitting balls on the range and slowly melting at 8:45 in the morning, I decided to ride. I don’t love to ride, but everyone was riding and this wasn’t about taking pictures and walking the course. It was about being fresh at the end of the round. It was about carrying a ton of water because it was dangerously hot. Shoutout to MassGolf for having coolers packed with water on the first and tenth tee.

My strong finish on those last three holes were because I was riding in a cart. Cyprian Keyes is a good, tough walk. I’ve been the only walker in a group and things can speed up as you try to keep up, especially when you have long walks between tees and greens.

On July 30, I’ll stick a tee in the ground at The Ledges in South Hadley as a competitor in the MassGolf Public Links.

Of course, after 18 holes, the field will be cut to the top 60. So, there’s golf again, giving and then threatening to take away.

It’s the best, and I’m going to see how much I can take before another kick in the teeth.

When I’m not golfing…

I’m reading…

• Still working through Say Nothing. It’s very good.

I’m listening to…

• Returned to an old favorite this week and listened to Illinois by Sufjan Stevens.

• PigPen Theatre Co. is doing Paul Simon’s “Only Living Boy in New York.” You’re welcome.

I’m drinking…

• We were in Vermont this weekend. Switchback on draft up there just hits different.

• We also visited a spot called Main and Mountain in Ludlow, incredible cocktails.

I’m eating…

• Had General Tsao’s chicken wings and Tuna Wonton Nachos at Culcutta’s in Ludlow. Both were very good.

• We also had a delicious breakfast at The Hatchery in Ludlow, Vt.

• The Loft has excellent Buffalo Wings.

I’m watching…

• Well, The Open Championship is on.

• We paused on The Bear; one of the episodes kinda stopped us in our tracks, and we didn’t feel the desire to get back into it right away. Tiff found an Australian crime show called Mystic Road. It’s pretty good!

New here? Reached the bottom?

Hell Yeah.

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Bay State Archives

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• Bay State Picks: Nine-hole courses to play before or after work

• Bay State Picks: 18 public golf that is worth your time

• Bay State Picks: Easy 18-hole public walks

• Bay State Deep Dive: Myopia Hunt Club

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