MASHPEE | OSTERVILLE, Massachusetts – In what turned out to be a battle atop the leaderboard at the first round of the 2019 Massachusetts Senior Four-Ball Championship, the defending champion duo of brothers Jon and Carter Fasick matched the tandem of Frank Vana, Jr. and Jack Kearney by shooting 4-under 66’s at Willowbend, while the team of Mark Chylinski and Ralph Dastoll, of Berkshire Hills CC, carded a 4-under 66 of their own on the Wianno Club layout to enter into a three-way tie on Tuesday. In total, 16 sides finished below par as the tournament heads to its second and final day on Wednesday at both courses.
ONLINE: Round 1 Results | Round 2 Starting Times
Looking to become the first team since Kevin Carey and Ray Richard in 2011 and 2012 to win back-to-back Massachusetts Senior Four-Ball titles, twin brothers Jon and Carter Fasick, of Bellingham and Milford, respectively, birdied their first hole on Willowbend’s Bog Course, added two more helpers over their first nine, and a fourth birdie on Hole No. 1 of the Bay course, to cruise to into a share of the lead. The Fasicks, who captured their first title together last year at Hopkinton Country Club and Shining Rock Golf Club, also lead the senior division, edging the next closest competitors, William Boucher and Bob Reni and Herbert Morrison & Stephen Morrison, by three strokes at the completion of Tuesday’s action.
While the Fasicks look to defend their title, the longtime playing duo of Jack Kearney and Frank Vana, Jr. look to capture their first title together in the Massachusetts Senior Four-Ball after finishing T2 at last year’s championship, which was the first year that Kearney and Vana, Jr. were eligible to compete together.
Starting on the 10th Hole of the Bog course Tuesday morning, the team, who finished 1-2 individually at last year’s Massachusetts Mid-Amateur Championship and Massachusetts Senior Amateur Championship, collected their first birdie of the day on the par-3 second hole and added a second birdie on the par-5 ninth hole before adding two more on Holes No. 2 and No. 3 of the Bay course. Similar to the Fasicks, the Kearney-Vana, Jr. duo shot par or better en route to jumping to the top of the leaderboard.
At Wianno Club, Pittsfield residents Mark Chylinski and Ralph Dastoli birdied five of their first nine holes on their front nine, and added a sixth on the par-4 13th hole, to rebound from a pair of bogeys, to earn their share of the lead
Working & Playing
The 23rd annual Massachusetts Senior Four-Ball Championship kicked off Tuesday at Willowbend and Wianno Club, two clubs separated a mere seven mile away from each other on Cape Cod. While many were playing the courses competitively for the first time, one of the five competitors who were competing on their home Willowbend courses likely had more knowledge than most anyone in the field. Ray Richard, who won the event in both 2011 and 2012, is playing the course that he finds himself at almost every day – as either a player or as an employee. For the past 10 years, the now 69-year old Richard has worked various roles around the club, including the last seven years working inside the pro shop.
“I’m here every day and I really like to showcase this golf course,” said Richard, whose responsibilities include booking tee times and assisting customers when he is on the clock, and enjoying one of Willowbend’s three 9-hole courses when he is off of it. “It’s one of the best courses down here and I love being here and I love playing here.”
Despite being a seasoned veteran at the Mashpee course, Richard says that the weather conditions prevented him from having any home-field advantage in Tuesday’s first round.
“It really didn’t help today,” he said, referring to the numerous rounds he has played over the years here. “The wind was swirling. We were ok on the greens because the winds doesn’t effect that, but the shots to the greens were hard. One time I was down-wind, I stepped back and I was into the wind, I stepped back again and I was down wind, the wind made it very, very difficult today.”
Despite the tricky conditions, he and playing partner David Pierce, from the Country Club of Halifax, finished the day at even-par 70, in a tie for 17th place, four strokes off the lead. Of the four competitors in the field from Willowbend, Richard led the home crowd as the next highest Willowbend member on the leaderboard, Scott Beers, finished at 2-over 72. Gary Smith (5-over 75) and the team of Jim Maddalena and David Wood finished at 7-over 77, respectively.
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