By Steve Derderian
sderderian@massgolf.org
HARWICH, Massachusetts (September 4, 2024) – Matt Parziale (Thorny Lea Golf Club) has put together a stellar season that has included a trip to the U.S. Amateur and an appearance in the semifinals of the Mass Amateur. But each September feels like a whole new season for the exceptional amateur, kicking off a string of elite mid-amateur events on the calendar.
Starting this week with the Massachusetts Mid-Amateur Championship, the three-time champion continued his strong play, carding a 3-under-par 69 for the second consecutive day. He moved into a share of the lead for the final round on Thursday. He hopes a victory here will carry him into the prestigious Crump Cup at Pine Valley and the U.S. Mid-Amateur, which begins two weeks from Saturday.
Joe Harney, a Mass Amateur semifinalist the year prior and a former pro himself, rallied in the afternoon to shoot 4-under and earn a final group pairing with Parziale at 6-under total. Daniel Bukoff (Foxborough Country Club), James Othus (Braintree Municipal GC), and Thomas Kelly (Wollaston Golf Club) are the closest chasers at 3-under.
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For the second straight day, Parziale drained six birdies, continuing to get solid distance off the tee. While there were “frustrating” misfires and bogeys along the way, it didn’t bog down his round. Parziale countered wayward tee shots that led to bogeys on the 5th and 7th holes with birdies on the 6th and 8th, making a 25-footer uphill on the 6th and hitting a chip to 5 feet on the par-5 8th. His best roll of the day, however, was on the par-4 3rd. After hitting his pitch way short of the hole, Parziale stepped up and sank a 40-footer, one of many shots that padded his lead in the morning.
“I had the right speed there, and I had a good line on it the whole time, just had enough to get there,” said Parziale, who was 2-under on the back nine to start his day. “The fresh greens this morning were a little bit of help and kept the ball on line a little bit better than yesterday.”
Parziale, who missed last year’s competition, now seems poised to become just the second person to win the state Mid-Amateur four times. He would stand alone at that mark with 10-time winner and Hall of Famer Frank Vana, Jr.
“It’s a bummer when I have to miss this one,” Parziale said. “This year was a good week. It’s always fun to compete around here and get some nice weather down the Cape for three days.”
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Like Parziale, Harney also kept his composure when things didn’t exactly go to plan. After making the turn at 2-under, Harney’s tee ball on the 1st ended up in the trees, forcing him to re-tee. Despite that hitting three from the tee box, he drove one down the middle, hit a wedge to 6 feet, and watched his putt sit on the edge for a few second before finally dropping for a hard-earned five to keep him on pace to challenge for the lead.
“It made a weird noise in the tree,” Harney said of his tee shot. “I kind of know from living down in Florida it might have got stuck in the tree. I was playing very well at the time and kind of drew back on when I play well, bogeys don’t bother me as much because I knew birdies were in front of me.”
Harney, the 2015 Mass Open champion, was spot on. He played the rest of the round at 3-under, making a birdie on the 4th and 5th holes and one more on the 8th. “It was nice to be able to be a little more comfortable off the tee,” said Harney, who has played the course just twice now. “I really got the putter going early. I got a couple good breaks, a couple bad breaks, but most likely, just the putter and the wedges were really good for me today.”
Now, with a young family, Harney’s priorities toward golf have shifted. However, he feels confident he can find himself hoisting a trophy once again.
“You sign up for a golf tournament to win it, so I’m really excited to have the opportunity tomorrow,” he said. “I got a little girl, Camille, so it doesn’t really matter as much if I make bogeys. I don’t mind making bogeys, but hopefully I make a lot of birdies tomorrow.”
The best round from Wednesday came from Salem Country Club’s Mike Rattigan, who shot a bogey-free 4-under on the front nine. After striking a 7-iron onto the green, he sank a 20-foot eagle putt on the par-5 14th to finish 5-under 67, surging into the top 10.
Rattigan, who was a college teammate at St. Anselm with 2022 champion Sean Fitzpatrick, said this week has been his only exposure to Cranberry Valley. However, with improved ball striking, he shaved eight strokes off from the day prior.
“I putted well yesterday; I just didn’t hit it well,” he said. “I hit it well today. I also putted it pretty solid. I left a few out there, but it was much better ball striking than yesterday.”
As imagined, there was cutline drama as well. Though Patrick Frodigh (Dedham Country & Polo Club) was sitting on the final spot at 4-over, eight additional players wound up getting through at 5-over. Among those were 2020 champion Arthur Zelmati (George Wright Golf Course), two-time Mass Amateur winner John Hadges (Thorny Lea Golf Club), and Jordan Burke (Needham Golf Club), whose 7-shot improvement (78-71) got him into the final day.
The final round begins at 7:30 Wednesday morning, with 37 players who made the cut at 5-over. Parziale and Harney will tee off in the final pairing.
Getting 𝐒𝐎 close to that cut line. How close? This close… #MassMidAm pic.twitter.com/UHL0iAXKQj
— Mass Golf (@PlayMassGolf) September 4, 2024
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