Lenane Returns To Semis; Spencer, Jones & Moy To Make First Appearance

For Immediate Release: August 4, 2021

KINGSTON, Massachusetts – On an overcast and rainy day at the Junior Amateur Championship at Indian Pond Country Club, match play lived up to its reputation that anything can happen in a given round. High and low seeds shined and now four players are through to the semifinals.

*UPDATE* Due to heavy rainfall, the final day of the championship is being moved to Friday morning.

Joey Lenane, Colin Spencer, Weston Jones, and Jack Moy will all compete on *Friday for the shot to call themselves Junior Amateur Champion. Lenane made the semifinals last year and joins Spencer and Jones as top 4 seeds to advance through. Moy, a No. 14 seed, will look to continue riding his momentum towards the ultimate goal.

WHAT’S NEXT

Here are *Friday’s semifinal matchups:

6:45 a.m. – Joey Lenane (Kohr Golf) vs. Colin Spencer (Cummaquid Golf Club)

6:55 a.m. – Weston Jones (Charter Oak Country Club) vs. Jack Moy (Pleasant Vally Country Club)

The final championship matchup will begin 30 minutes after the conclusion of the final semifinal match.

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WATCH: DAY 3 VIDEO HIGHLIGHTS

QUARTERFINAL RECAPS

1-Joey Lenane, Kohr Golf Center def. 9-Will Campbell, Bayberry Hills/Bass River, 4 & 3

In their second match of the day, Joey Lenane and Will Campbell had a back and forth affair. They changed the lead four times on the front nine, but Lenane used birdies on the 6th and 8th holes to go 2-up at the turn. Another birdie on 12 helped Lenane put away the competitive Campbell.

“I think the key was getting those first couple holes and getting ahead there,” Lenane said. “Then, trying to keep it clean on the back, just don’t do anything crazy, trust what I can do and trust my game plan. That’s all I really had to do today.”

4 -Colin Spencer, Cummaquid Golf Club def. 5-Sean Dully, Kernwood Country Club, 3 & 1

Colin Spencer was once again tested in his afternoon round. After building a 2-up lead early, Spencer slipped and went into the turn tied with Sean Dully. Spencer was able to stabilize himself on the back nine and finished up with a par on 17 (par-3, 182 yards) to end the match.

2-Weston Jones, Charter Oak Country Club def. 10-Raymond Dennehy, Oak Hill Country Club, 1 up

After going 3-up through 13 holes, it looked like Weston Jones was going to cruise past Raymond Dennehy and into the semifinals. Dennehy then birdied 14, 15, and 17 to tie things going into 18. Jones was able to make a birdie on 18 to survive the furious late rally from Dennehy.

“It was pretty similar to my match against Ryan Riley at Brae Burn,” Jones said, referencing the Mass Amateur. “I wasn’t as much in cruise control then as I was today, but I was doing fine. I was 3-up through 12 and Ray birdied three or four of his last six. He just made a crazy run, I just barely held him off.”

14-Jack Moy, Pleasant Valley Country Club def. 11-Kevin McGough, The Captains Course, 3 & 2

Jack Moy once again built a big lead in his afternoon match. The Assumption College commit built a 5-up lead by the turn. Though Kevin McGough made a charge and cut that lead to 2-up, Moy made a birdie on 15 on his way to picking up another victory. 

ROUND OF 16 RECAPS

1-Joey Lenane, Kohr Golf Center def. 16-Nolan Skaggs, Plymouth Country Club, 3&2

Co-medalist Joey Lenane kept up his hot play in the round of 16 and played mistake-free golf to get past Nolan Skaggs. Lenane had a solid front nine, finishing 1-over and holding a 1-up lead over Skaggs. The match remained tight through 14 holes, but Lenane capitalized on a pair of mistakes by Staggs on 15 and 16. Skaggs had consecutive bogeys and Lenane got in for par each time to end the match.

9-Will Campbell, Bayberry Hills/Bass River def. 8 -Ethan Whitney, Oak Hill Country Club, 4 & 2

Will Campbell fell behind Ethan Whitney when he bogeyed the second hole, but he tied things up on the very next hole, then took a 1-up lead with a birdie of his own on hole 4 (par-4, 387 yards). After that, Campbell never looked back. Two more birdies on holes 6 and 9 had him 2-up at the turn. Campbell would sink one more birdie on 13 (par-3, 152 yards) as he cruised to a victory.

4 -Colin Spencer, Cummaquid Golf Club def. 13 -Patrick Ginnity, Norther Spy Golf Club, 1 up

Colin Spencer was given all he could handle by the lower-seeded Patrick Ginnity. Spencer had one birdie on the front nine and on the back, he needed to come up clutch on the 18th (par-5, 548 yards) to advance. Ginnity bogeyed the final hole and Spencer got in for par to move on.

“The morning match was good,” Spencer said. “I got off to an early lead and then kind of struggled pretty much the rest of the way. We both didn’t play our best, so it was good to get it done, but it was a good match. It was fun.”

5-Sean Dully, Kernwood Country Club def. 12-David Cammarata-Green, Pine Brook Country Club, 1 up

Sean Dully sunk two birdies on the front nine as he got out to a 2-up lead at the turn over David Cammarata-Green. Despite some bogeys on the back, Dully did enough to outpace Cammarate-Green and move into the quarterfinals.

2-Weston Jones, Charter Oak Country Club def. 15-Colby Sanville, MIAA, 3&1

A couple of early bogeys caused Weston Jones to fall behind Colby Sanville, trailing by 2 through 5 holes. Jones birdied hole 6 (par-4, 294 yards), then dropped in another birdie on 12 (par-4, 340 yards) to take a 1-up lead. Jones had one final birdie on 15 prior to closing out Sanville.

10 – Raymond Dennehy, Oak Hill Country Club def. 7 – Ryan Downes, GreatHorse, 2 up

Raymond Dennehy trailed by 2 shots at the turn, but he caught his groove on the back nine to pull away from Ryan Downes. Dennehy had three straight birdies on holes 12, 13, and 14 to go from tied to 2-up, which is the result the match ultimately ended with.

14 – Jack Moy, Pleasant Valley Country Club def. 3 – Aidan Emmerich, Kernwood Country Club, 5 & 4

In the shortest match of the opening round, Jack Moy buried three birdies on the front nine to go 3-up over the higher seeded Aidan Emmerich. Three birdies on five holes to open the back nine allowed Moy to comfortably put the match away.

“The game feels good,” Moy said. “The game plan was to get out to an early lead and try to hold it as long as possible. I kept the ball in play the whole day and I was putting really well. First round was lights-out putting. I had six birdies through 14, so that will get the job done.”

11 – Kevin McGough, The Captains Course def. 6 – Evan Giggey, Renaissance, 3 & 1

In the final match to tee off, Evan Giggey controlled the action for the front nine. He held a lead as large as 3-up, but Kevin McGough rallied to tie things by the turn. By the 11th hole, McGough was 2-up and he used a par on 17 (par-3, 182 yards) to prematurely end the match at 3&1.

NOTABLE

• Will Campbell needed some early morning assistance before he even teed it up in the round of 16. Campbell’s driver head came separated from his shaft on the driving range and when he asked the pro shop for help, Indian Pond’s Head Golf Professional Brian Langevin lent Campbell his driver head for the day
• Just one competitor from the 2020 Junior Amateur Championship match play bracket remains in contention this year. Joey Lenane is moving onto the semifinals while Aidan Emmerich, Ethan Whitney, Evan Giggey, and Raymond Dennehy were all ousted
• The shortest match of the day came in the round of 16. Jack Moy needed just 14 holes to put away the higher-seeded Aidan Emmerich. Moy had six birdies in the win
• Seeds didn’t seem to matter much in the match-play bracket. In the round of 16, it was an even 4 and 4 split between the high seeds and low seeds winning. Jack Moy was the lowest seed to win. Coming in as a No. 14 he now finds himself in the semifinals
• Joey Lenane will square off with Colin Spencer in the semifinals. The pair played together last week at the Ouimet and this week in stroke play for the Junior Amateur.
• Two of the semifinalist will play college golf next year. Those players will be Weston Jones (Rutgers) and Jack Moy (Assumption).

QUOTABLE

• “Oddly enough we had a qualifier for something about two months ago. Similar situation, the kid cracked the face of his driver on the range. My driver was still in the cellophane, I hadn’t used it yet, so I let him use it,” –Brian Langevin, on the other time he lent personal equipment out to a competitor
• “It means so much. At the beginning of the week, I didn’t really think I’d be in the quarters or the semis. It just means a lot and proves I’m just as good as everybody else,” Jack Moy on making his first match play and advancing to the semifinals as a No. 14 seed
• “Dude, he’s hot right now. Although I don’t know his game that well, I haven’t seen him at  as many events, he’s hot. He’s going to keep riding that wave, so I gotta hold him off. It’s the  same mindset going against anybody else,” Weston Jones on playing Jack Moy in the semifinals
• “I just stuck to my game plan. I really didn’t change anything from stroke play. I got a little bit more aggressive on some holes, but I still only hit four drivers today for two rounds. I played fairly conservative, especially for match play. I struck the irons well, gave myself chances, and a couple of them fell, but nothing crazy changed over the last couple of days,” Joey Lenane, on the approach he took in match play after being the stroke play co-medalist
• “We played together the first few rounds at the Ouimet, then the first few rounds here. So, we played together a lot the last couple of weeks. Joey’s a great kid. I love playing with him. He’s a good kid and it’ll be a great match,” – Colin Spencer on facing Joey Lenane in the semifinals
• “That was the first time I’ve ever had all six of my family here. My sister just came back from the Navy and this is first time I’ve seen her in nine months. For them to come here, I’ve been staying at the Cape all week, so for them to be here that was special for sure to have them cheering me on,” Weston Jones on having his family in attendance for today’s round
• “Originally I thought I’d have to play a little more aggressive, but as the day was going on I played the exact same as I did for stroke play besides getting a little bit more aggressive on those downhill putts,” Jack Moy on his strategy in match play, as opposed to stroke play

GRATEFUL FOR THE RIDE

Wednesday marked the end of the road for both Ethan Whitney (Oak Hill Country Club) and Nolan Skaggs (Plymouth Country Club) in match play. Additionally, since both will be turning 19 and entering college, this marked their final time competing in the Junior Amateur Championship.

The event is a favorite for many Junior players and though both Whitney and Skaggs will play many more Mass Golf events in the years ahead, they will both look back fondly on the event and the other Junior competitions they played in.

“It’s definitely kind of sad to think about that I’m done with this junior stuff now,” Whitney said. “It’s kind of crazy, but I’m excited, I can’t wait to start playing college golf. I absolutely love to play in all the Mass Golf events. They always do a fantastic job, all the staff is great, courses are always fantastic. I was saying to my referee today, I don’t think I’ve ever had a bad experience playing in a Mass Golf event.”

Whitney will continue his playing career at Temple University in Philadelphia, while Skaggs will be playing at St. Thomas Aquinas College in Sparkill, New York. Skaggs made match play for the first time ever at the Junior Amateur this year and that memory is one he’ll forever be grateful for.

“It was really fun making match play this time around,” Skaggs said. “I’ve had a really good summer this year, so it’s been cool playing in Mass Golf events. That was a pretty fun shot I hit yesterday [Tuesday] in the playoff hole. It’s fun trying to get to match play”

Whitney credited the Junior Amateur for helping him grow into the player that he has become today.

“My first Mass Junior that I made match play at Belmont in 2018, that was kind of my realization that I can do this stuff and I can play well,” Whitney said. “That’s definitely my most memorable moment. I was able to win a match at least and then lost to Jack Tobin, but that was kind of what kick started me into being able to actually play good golf and believe in myself.”

Whitney and Skaggs have lots of golf left to play, but their Junior Amateur experiences will always be ones they look back on fondly.

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