AGAWAM, Massachusetts – On the fourth day of qualifying for the 2018 Massachusetts Junior Amateur Championship, being contested from August 6-9 at Belmont Country Club, four competitors from Wednesday’s qualifier, held at Agawam Municipal Golf Course in Agawam, earned entrance into the Championship Proper.
An additional competitor who finished one spot below the final qualifying spot, earned alternate status and will be placed on a priority list per the Alternate Policy, which can be found on the Mass Golf Policies and Procedures Page.
One week removed from scooping up a qualifying spot to the U.S. Junior Amateur Championship from Bernardston’s Crumpin-Fox Club, Northampton resident Peter Bowie fired a 2-under par 69 to earn medalist honors and advance to the Championship Proper.
The Bryant University-bound golfer, who has competed in each of the past three Junior Amateur Championships, registered five total birdies, including four on par-5’s, to lead the day as the only golfer who finished the 18-hole qualifier under par.
Springfield Country Club’s Matt Brosseau placed second on the leaderboard, while GreatHorse’s Michael Sosik and William Pieczynski, were the additional golfers to advance Wednesday. Pieczynski is one of a handful of golfers who obtained a Mass Golf/USGA GHIN Handicap Index – one of the eligibility requirements for the Massachusetts Junior Amateur Championship – through Mass Golf’s MIAA Student-Athlete program (click here to learn more).
Celebrating its 100th year in 2018, the Massachusetts Junior Amateur Championship has long been associated as one of the top junior golf competitions in the country. It is open to amateur golfers who have an active Mass Golf/GHIN Handicap Index at any public, private, semi-private, municipal or non-real estate Mass Golf member course/club and who have reached their 14th birthday and will not reach their 19th birthday by midnight August 9, 2018.
New for the 2018 Championship Proper, the Junior Amateur Championship will include two days of match play to coincide with two days of stroke play – joining the Massachusetts Amateur Championship, Massachusetts Women’s Amateur Championship and several team and women’s tournaments with a match play format. All competitors will enjoy two full days of stroke play before the top-16 competitors in the field advance to the match play portion, which will take place on August 8 &9.
When the Massachusetts Junior Amateur Championship originally began in 1914, the tournament began as a match play format then eventually transitioned to a three-day, 54-hole stroke play format.
Peter Bowie (CC of Wilbraham) 69
Matt Brosseau (Springfield CC) 72
Michael Sosik (GreatHorse) 78
William Pieczynski (MIAA) 78
Patrick Bergin (Longmeadow CC)
The 2018 Massachusetts Junior Amateur Championship will be contested at Belmont Country Club from August 6-9. Qualifying for the Championship Proper is scheduled to take place at five sites from June 19 to June 28. Additional qualifiers will be held on the following days.
*** The Final Massachusetts Junior Amateur Championship qualifier has been rescheduled to July 11 at Tatnuck CC due to the projected forecast for its original date of June 28. ***
For complete coverage of the 2018 Massachusetts Junior Amateur Championship, visit massgolf.org or follow Mass Golf on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram at @PlayMassGolf and by using the hashtag, #MassJunior.
