By Rich Rapp
rrapp@massgolf.org
FRAMINGHAM, Massachusetts — When you hear the term “home course advantage,” you might take it to indicate a strategic edge. You know the right club to pull on each par-3, where to miss, when to be aggressive, what the prevailing wind is, etc. But for Framingham Country Club member Matthew Naumec, the advantage is emphasized more in the home than the course.
“I play here so much, right? I was just kind of showing up and having fun playing the game for, you know, the game itself, rather than…obviously I’m a little bit removed from professional golf. I’m still falling back in love with the game and just out here having fun. I have a great club,” said Naumec.
That love of the game that Naumec has recaptured in his post-professional career appears to suit him well on the competitive amateur circuit, as the Boston College alumnus will, for a second straight year, compete in the 36-hole finale of the Massachusetts Amateur.
On Tuesday evening, a slot in the match play bracket was uncertain. He survived a 4 for 3 playoff and hasn’t looked back, rolling through the bracket with victories of 4&3 and 3&2 Wednesday, followed by a 3&2 win over John Broderick (Dedham Country & Polo Club) Thursday morning and a 4&3 trumping of past champion Matt Parziale (Thorny Lea Golf Club) in the afternoon.
“I didn’t really do anything that I wouldn’t do on a Saturday morning with the guys,” said Naumec. Maintaining that level of certainty and simplicity may be the key on Friday.
He’ll meet with reigning Massachusetts Mid-Amateur champion Ricky Stimets (Worcester Country Club) in the final, marking the first all-mid-am final since 2014.
Given the demanding physical nature of the format–144 holes, give or take, over five days–you’d think the young players would be at an advantage. But Stimets is reaping the benefits of a renewed focus on his fitness, and in true mid-am fashion, that has meant giving up the good stuff: “A lot of walking, gym, better diet, cut out sugars and fried food for the whole year. So that’s been tough, but it’s paying off, the sacrifice.”
Stimets went the distance in the afternoon, defeating Ethan Whitney (Oak Hill Country Club) 1-up on the heels of a 4&2 morning win over Danny Frodigh (Dedham Country & Polo Club).
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So how bad do you want this tomorrow?
Naumec: “Pretty bad. Yeah, I mean, last year, obviously with Ryan, I love Essex, and I remember posting on Instagram, ‘See everyone at Framingham next year,’ and set the tone to just say, you know, you have 365 days.”
Stimets: “I want it pretty bad. I know there’s a lot at stake. I’m trying to treat every day as, ‘Okay, one more step towards the U.S. Am spot.”
But it’s not quite Friday yet, and on day four of a long, hot week, Stimets’ thoughts were elsewhere. “I wonder if I could sweet-talk my way into a dip in the pool,” he said, not exactly unseriously.
Hometown: Wilbraham, MA
Instagram: @matthew.naumec
ROAD TO THE FINAL
Stroke Play: 73-73–146 (+2)
R32: Def. Matt Cowgill, 4&3
R16: Def. Tyler Dupuis, 3&2
Quarterfinals: Def. John Broderick, 3&2
Semifinals: Def. Matt Parziale, 4&3
Hometown: Osterville, MA
Instagram: @rstimets
ROAD TO THE FINAL
Stroke Play: 71-71–142 (-2)
R32: Def. Carter Nunez, 3&2
R16: Def. Collin McMahon-Shea, 5&3
Quarterfinals: Def. Danny Frodigh, 4&2
Semifinals: Def. Ethan Whitney, 1up
32-Matthew Naumec vs. 28-Matt Parziale, 4&3
Naumec played an extremely neat first seven holes of golf, birdieing the two gettable par-5s, and parring the rest, which garnered him a quick 4-up lead. Parziale found a window on the short par-3 8th when Naumec flew the green down a steep bank. Parziale took advantage by knocking it on and making birdie. But Naumec got that hole right back on the 9th when he hit a beautifully flighted wedge that took one bounce and stopped two feet from the front hole location. Parziale missed his birdie bid, and Naumec brushed in the birdie to cap a dominant, 4-up front side.
Parziale looked a little worn out as he stalked off the 9th green, but he mustered something up, making birdie on 10 to get it back to 3-down, then won 11 with a par to get in striking distance. Naumec, however, was loathe to let this one slip away.
“Getting to the par-5 12th, I know that’s one of the holes I feel comfortable on. Suits my eye. So just, you know, kind of reassuring yourself, saying that you’re still in a good position in the match,” said Naumec. “And you know Parz wasn’t going to go away, right? He has played the Masters in two U.S. Opens. He knows how to get the golf ball in the hole better than a lot of people.”
Naumec birdied the 12th, then hit another of his patented, low, controlled wedge shots to kick-in range on 13, prompting Parziale to roll an aggressive birdie putt well past the hole, leading to a 3-putt.
Back to 4-down, and with just five holes remaining, Parziale would need to start firing at pins to have a chance; however, with two challenging hole locations on both 14 and 15, there was little opportunity to do so. They halved the uphill, par-4 14th with two-putt pars from distance, then on 15th, needing to make a birdie putt from about 18 feet, Parziale ran it past the hole and scooped up his ball.
10-Ricky Stimets vs. 6-Ethan Whitney, 1up
Stimets and Whitney traded blows throughout their opening nine. Stimets won 2 with a par, then Whitney took 3 with a par of his own. On the downhill par-3 6th, Whitney went over the green, leaving himself short-sided, while Stimets stuck his approach in tight, going 1-up with a birdie. The pendulum swung when Whitney won 7 and 8, before Stimets knocked his approach within a few feet, winning 9 with birdie to square things up.
Both players stubbornly carried about their business of exceedingly solid golf on the back nine. There was only one 5 scribbled on the mutual card, and that was the difference. On the par-5 12th, Stimets took a 1-up lead, besting Whitney’s 5 with a birdie 4. Aside from matching 3s on 17, each of the other holes on the back nine were tied with 4s.
The most exciting of those knotted 4s came on the par-5 18th. Stimets cleared the creek and found the center of the second fairway segment, while Whitney found the right rough, a bit further up. Playing first, Stimets’ conservative iron settled in the front left fringe, putt-able but a good ways away. Whitney proceeded to hit an excellent approach that appeared bound for the moon, flying up and over a tree in his path and landing hole high on the back of the green, to the delight of an attentive gallery.
Stimets was away and hit a beautifully weighted putt to about 2 feet, all but ensuring that Whitney would need to hole his eagle look from 18 feet to extend the match. The putt trickled by on the right side, and Stimets cleaned up his birdie to advance.
“We’re [Whitney] pretty comfortable with each other. We played in the Willett Outing (past champion Connor Willett was on the bag for Whitney) at Charles River. Had a blast together. So right when I knew that this was going to be the match-up, I was pumped because it kind of takes the stress off of it,” said Stimets. “And, you know, we’re just having fun out there for a game. Of course, down the stretch, you’re grinding, and it’s a little bit more competitive. But it was a blast.”
32-Matthew Naumec def. 8-John Broderick, 3&2
The stars remained aligned for Framingham CC member Matthew Naumec, who, after surviving a playoff to make the cut, has found his form in match play. He took control of the match with a chip-in birdie on the 6th to go 3-up, then birdied the 8th and 9th to build a commanding lead at the turn. Broderick battled back with wins on 10 and 11, but his bid to return to the semi-finals for a second straight year fizzled at the hands of the man who took him down in 2023. Matching two-putt pars on the 16th meant hats off and another spot on the semi-final marquee for Naumec.
28-Matt Parziale def. 20-Aidan O’Donovan, 3&2
Like Naumec, Parziale built an early lead, going 3-up through the first five holes. O’Donovan got one back with a birdie on the difficult par-3 8th, but match-play veteran Parziale put the squeeze on him after that, never allowing the current U. of Rhode Island Ram to get any closer. Parziale won the 12th with a birdie and the 14th with a par to swell the lead to 4-up. O’Donovan won the 15th, but it was too little too late. This will mark Parziale’s seventh trip to the semi-finals.
10-Ricky Stimets def. 31-Danny Frodigh, 4&2
Stimets came out of the gates with a birdie on the first to go 1-up, but for a while, it was a back-and-forth affair. Frodigh won the 3rd, Stimets the 6th, Frodigh the 7th, then Stimets birdied the 8th to go 1-up. For much of the morning, it was the tightest match on the course. Stimets clung to that 1-up lead with halves on five consecutive holes; then he finally gained some breathing room with a birdie on the 14th to go 2-up with 4 to play. Frodigh, feeling the pressure of time running out or perhaps the fatigue of a long week, bogeyed 15 and 16 to close it out.
6-Ethan Whitney def. 30-Ryan Downes, 5&4
Whitney got his revenge in a rematch of the 2023 round of sixteen, a thriller that Downes won with a birdie on the 19th at Essex on his way to the title. There was no such drama in 2024. Whitney took advantage of a Downes bogey on 2 to go 1-up, then went 2-up on the 5th. Whitney won four consecutive holes, 8 through 11, a stretch that included three birdies, to put a sleeper hold on the match. Downes cut it back to 4-down on the 12th and looked poised to cut it to 3-down on the 14th when he knocked his approach well inside of Whitney’s. But Whitney drained his 20-something foot putt, and Downes missed to end the match.
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