ROCKPORT, Maine (June 25, 2024) –
It was a picturesque day for the Women’s Amateur Championship at the beautiful Samoset Resort in Rockport, Maine. While the resort is host to many events for Maine Golf, including the 2023 Maine Amateur, this is the first time Samoset has hosted the New England’s Women’s Amateur Championship.
Noted in Golf Digest as the Pebble Beach of the East, Samoset Resort is a premier golf championship course in New England. The course sits along seaside woods and gardens, while showcasing its most challenging holes along the seawall that offers breathtaking views of the Atlantic, almost making you forget about the challenge on the course.
First played in 1957, the New England Women’s Amateur Championship is a 54-hole stroke play competition that is contested annually in one of the six New England states, with hosting duties rotating among the states every six years.
Online: Starting Times & Scores | New England Women’s Amateur Homepage
Representing Massachusetts, last year’s senior division champion, Tara Joy-Connelly (The Kittansett Club, MA) is the only title defender in the field this year. She opened round one with a strong title defense at 4-under, 67. Joy-Connelly remains one of the only players in the entire field under par, thanks to a handful of birdies on the course.
Carefully playing her shots on the course without a practice round, Joy-Connelly prefers to keep the ball where she can see it and not get into anything too risky.
“When I got to 14, I knew I should just hit it in front of me, hit it where I can see it, that’s usually my mantra on a course I’ve never seen before. And so I just hit my three wood off the tee and then you can’t see anything going down the hill to the water, so I was like alright, I did the math last night in the yardage book and knew not to be closer than 70 yards because you can tell it gets really narrow so I think I laid it back to like 90 yards with the seven wood and then just wedged it down.”
Having a solid strategy like this one is proving it’s importance with her low score on the course.
Rounding off the top-5 is Thorny Lea’s Megan Buck. She closed out round 1 with a solid seven-pars on the back-nine and looks to keep herself in contention headed into the cut line tomorrow.
Early in the day, Carys Fennessy (Cochecho CC, NH) was off to a hot start, being the only player in the championship division to card a bogey-free front nine.
While Manchester, CT may have been far out of the woods for our fellow competitors from Maine, not only were they represented in the field, but Jade Haydock (Turner Highlands CC, ME) ended with the solo lead 2-under, 69, after a strong start with three birdies on the front nine.
Round 2 will begin at 8:00 a.m. Wednesday with new pairings based on scores. The Championship division will head off first followed by the Tournament division. At the end of 36 holes, the cut will be made to the low-50 players and ties (prorated based on field size within each division).
LEADERBOARDS AFTER ROUND 1
CHAMPIONSHIP DIVISON
1. Jade Haylock, (Maine); 69 (-2 )
2. Amelie Phung, (Connecticut); 72 (+1)
3. Carys Fennessy, (New Hampshire); 73 (+2)
T4. Megan Buck, (Thorny Lea GC); 74 (+3)
T4. Maria Cianchette, (Maine); 74 (+3)
SENIOR DIVISION
1. Tara Joy-Connelly, (The Kittansett Club); 67 (-4)
2. Pamela Kuong, (Charles River CC); 69 (-2)
T3. Debbie Johnson, (Connecticut); 79 (+8)
T3. Thea Davis, (Maine); 79 (+8)
5. Ruth Colucci, (Maine); 78 (+9)
LEGENDS DIVISION
1. Thea Davis, (Maine); 79 (+8)
T2. Danielle Lee, (Renaissance); 85 (+14)
T2. Kathi O’Grady, (Maine); 85 (+14)
4. Mary Brandes, (Maine); 87 (+16)
5. Kerry Dolan, (The Tour); 88 (+17)
JUNIOR DIVISION
1. Jade Haylock, (Maine); 69 (-2)
2. Amelie Phung (Connecticut); 72 (+1)
3. Carys Fennessy, (New Hampshire); 73 (+2)
T4. Lillian Guleserian, (Blue Hill CC); 75 (+4)
T4. Amanda Adams, (Winchester CC); 75 (+4)
T4. Adriana Eaton, (Rhode Island); 75 (+4)
T4. Maddie Smith, (Vesper CC); 75 (+4)
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