Headline: Sixteen Bay State Amateurs Look to Capture a Record 14th Straight Tri-State Match Title Next Week at Silver Spring Country Club (CT)

For Immediate Release: October 5, 2017

Meet Team Massachusetts. Click each image for a larger view.

Norton, Mass. – When the Massachusetts Tri-State team heads to Silver Spring Country Club to defend its Championship title against the likes of the host state Connecticut and fellow visitor Rhode Island next week, the Bay State contingent will have four additional competitors who’ll be able to accumulate points in their respective matches as the mix of mid-amateur and senior eligible players will look to build on their 13 straight victories in the annual end of the season competition.

The 84th playing of the Tri-State Matches, which pits the top competitors from the three southernmost New England states, begins October 12 in Ridgefield, Connecticut and will now see all competitors face off in two sets of Four-Some Matches on October 12th and a set of Singles Matches on October 13th against teams from Rhode Island and Connecticut.

In addition to the updated format, each of the three teams will increase their roster size from eight mid-amateur players and four senior amateur players to 10 mid-amateur players and six senior amateur players, respectively.

Like previous Tri-State matches, this year’s roster requirements will remain the same. Non-college competitors can make up the mid-amateur portion of the squad while the senior-eligible players must be aged 55 or older, which is consistent with USGA Senior Amateur status regulations.

This year’s squad consists of some of the region’s top amateur golfers, all of whom have competed in at least one of the 12 MGA Amateur Championship Propers on the season. Additonally, they have all competed in various regional, New England and USGA Championship Proper this past season. The team is determined based upon individual rankings in both the Richard D. Haskell MGA Player of the Year Points and George M. Cohen Senior MGA Player of the Year standings.

Once again, longtime New England Golf Association Harry B. McCracken will serve as team captain of the Massachusetts squad at the Tri-State matches, a post he has held for more than a quarter-century.

Competing for Team Massachusetts at the 2017 Tri State Matches are as follows:

Massachusetts Mid-Amateur Players
Matt Parziale (Thorny Lea Golf Club)
Herbie Aikens (Pinehills Golf Club)
David Spitz (South Shore Country Club)
Nick Maccario (Bradford Country Club)
Colin Brennan (Indian Ridge Country Club)
Jason Cook (Pine Oaks Golf Club)
Sean Fitzpatrick (George Wright Golf Club)
Mike Calef (Pine Oaks Golf Golf Club)
Jordan Burke (Needham Golf Club)
Zach Camarra (Worcester Country Club)

Massachusetts Senior Amateur Players
Frank Vana, Jr. (Marlborough Country Club)
Jack Kearney (Elmcrest Country Club)
Ronald LaVerdiere (Crumpin-Fox Club)
David Houghton (Captains Golf Club)
Joe Walker (Dennis Pines Golf Course)
John Hadges (Thorny Lea Golf Club)

The 16 aforementioned competitors are amongst the best of the best eligible competitors based on Player of the Year standings, a point system determined on an annual basis by the MGA Championship Committee. In addition to the points garnered through success in MGA Championships, points are awarded to eligible competitors based on success in three invitational events (Hornblower Invitational, Ouimet Memorial, Norfolk County Classic) as well as six regional section events (Southeastern Amateur, Worcester County, North Shore, Western MA, Berkshire Hills Singles and the Cape Cod Amateur), to name just a few.

Points are also awarded based on performance in USGA local and sectional qualifiers as well as USGA Championships.

Leading the group of 10-Mid-Amateur Players is three-time and reigning MGA Player of the Year, Matt Parziale, who garnered 1,1198 Player of the Year points in respective events during the 2017 campaign. His resume from this past year includes victories in the MGA Amateur Four Ball Championship, MGA Amateur Championship, Ouimet Memorial Tournament, the Tarlow Invitational and the Amateur Invitational, as well as appearances in two USGA Championships.

All Mid-Amateur competitors in the Tri-State matches accumulated at least 100 points in the Richard D. Haskell MGA Player of the Year standings.

Likewise, the Senior Amateur competitors representing Massachusetts all obtained 200 or more points in the George M. Cohen Senior Player of the Year standings, led by 9-time MGA Player of the Year, Frank Vana.

Vana, who was eligible for senior competition beginning in Mid-August, tallied 500 points after advancing to match play at the MGA Amateur Championship, and finishing in the top-10 at both the MGA Senior Amateur Championship and the Massachusetts Mid-Amateur Championship. Most notably, the Boxford resident was a semifinalist at the 2017 US Senior Amateur Championship held at the Minikahda Club in Minnesota.  

For a complete breakdown of the point system for all Mid-Amateur Players, click: http://www.mgalinks.org/championships/2017%20POY%20Document.pdf

For a complete breakdown of the point system for all Senior Amateur Players, click:
http://www.mgalinks.org/championships/2017%20Senior%20POY%20Document.pdf

You’ll be able to follow the Massachusetts Team at the Tri-State Matches beginning on Thursday by visiting mgalinks.org or following the Massachusetts Golf Association on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.