For Immediate Release: July 22, 2010
Headline: Brian Higgins Captures First Career New England Amateur Championship Title at The Course at Yale
New Haven , CT – He was playing against competitors many years his junior but experience and poise won out on Thursday afternoon as Brian Higgins (Franklin CC) captured his first New England Amateur Championship title at The Course at Yale.
“I am extremely excited,” said Higgins, who got up-and-down from the right bunker to save par on the 18th hole. “I didn’t have a number in mind. I wanted to be aggressive for most of the day. I figured that if I could putt today then I would be ok.” (Story Continues Below...)
Day 3 Quick Links
Higgins, a 35 year old from Bellingham, entered the third and final round three strokes back of the leaders but emerged – thanks to a final-round score of 3-under par 67 – in first place overall with a three-round total of 6-under par 204.
From the first hole, Higgins’ putting came through especially at critical points in the round. Following a bad drive off the 410-yard, par 4 1st tee, Higgins landed his third shot on the green and drained an eight-foot par putt to set the tone for the rest of the round. In total, he made four birdies – three of which came on the back nine – and one bogey on Thursday.
For Higgins – the 2008 Richard D. Haskell MGA Player of the Year and two-time Massachusetts Mid-Amateur Champion – the victory is especially sweet since it marks his first major New England victory since he was reinstated as an amateur back in 1998.
“It was the biggest win of my golf career,” said Higgins, who becomes the second Bay State golfer to win this title in as many years. “I am still excited.”
With the wind picking up and players getting worn down by the conditions and the 54-hole march to the finish, Higgins appeared to gain strength with each passing hole.
After making the turn at even par 34, Higgins took a brief break on the 9th tee and proceeded to make his second birdie of the day on a challenging par-3 hole. He then made his move up the leaderboard by making back-to-back birdies on the 190-yard, par 3 15th and 553-yard, par 5 16th holes.
Interestingly, it was those two holes which marred what had been a near perfect tournament one day earlier. Heading into the 15th hole on Wednesday, Higgins was 3-under par for his round. He went on to make a double bogey on the 15th and then he made an incredible save from the right woods on the 16th hole for bogey.
“I had a horrible time on those two holes yesterday so I tried to forget everything I did yesterday,” said Higgins.
What he ended up doing was nothing short of incredible. He hit a cut 6 iron shot to 10 feet and rolled in an aggressive birdie putt (it bounced off the back of the hole). On the 16th hole, a good drive was followed by an approach that landed in the left bunker. Almost identical to the bunker shot he would go on to make on the 18th hole, Higgins hit his third shot to eight feet and made that putt to go 6-under par and take his first lead of the tournament.
“It was nice to make birdie, birdie there and I felt good heading into 17,” said Higgins.
Although he had never led before today, it seemed as if the stars were aligned for Higgins. After all, he was one of only two competitors in the 150-player field to score a hole in one this week. He made that incredible shot on Wednesday on the 213-yard, par 3 9th hole. Despite the fact that it came midway through a round that was riddled with stoppages (the players were pulled off the course due to lightening in the area on three different occasions), the shot kept him in a round that could have spelled certain doom for his title chances.
“I was shocked to see it go in,” said Higgins, who has made five holes in one over the course of his career. “It’s always great to make those shots, but to do it in a stroke play event is special.”
Making things interesting down the stretch were a handful of young guns – many of whom are some of the top collegiate stars in the country. Finishing in a tie for second place overall was Michael Ballo (Woodway CC), a Connecticut native who recently graduated from St. John’s University.
With Higgins in the clubhouse with a score of 6-under par for the tournament, Ballo had a chance to draw even on the 18th hole. His 20-foot birdie putt lipped out and ended Ballo’s last chance to win a New England Amateur Championship title. He plans to turn pro later this fall.
“I knew that it was good and when it came within a few inches of the hole I thought that it was going in,” said Ballo. “It was the worst lip out I have ever had in a tournament.”
Minutes earlier Higgins had stood on that same green except that he watched his key par putt roll 360 degrees and fall into the hole.
Weather, Weather Everywhere
Midway through the Wednesday afternoon wave, a series of storm systems rolled through the New Haven region and forced two postponements in play. Play resumed for the second time at 6:35 p.m. before the players were called off the course for the third and final time at 7:20 p.m.
As a result, tournament officials announced that the second round would be completed on Thursday morning beginning at 8:00 a.m. Following the completion of the second round, the field was cut to the low 40 scorers and ties.
Weather delays are nothing new to this event. One year ago, play was suspended for less than an hour on day one due to rainstorms that made the Portsmouth Country Club course unplayable. More favorable conditions followed and allowed the scheduled 72-hole event to finish on schedule. In 2007 and then again in 2008, however, the New England Amateur Championship was shortened to just 36-holes due to inclement weather. The last time that this event was shortened to 54 holes was in 2003 at Salem Country Club.
Shots of the Tournament
Despite the inclement weather, two players came through with the shots of the tournament on Wednesday. Bret Lawrence (Crestbrook Park GC) and Brian Higgins (Franklin CC) both carded holes in on during their second rounds of play at The Course at Yale.
After carding one bogey and two pars, Lawrence stepped up to the tee on the 212-yard, par 3 13th hole and sent a perfect 5-iron shot towards the middle-left hole location. Later in the afternoon, Higgins matched that ace on the 213-yard, par 3 9th hole. He too used a 5 iron to make that memorable shot.
Round 2 Highlights
Two weeks ago he won the Troy Invitational and last week he was victorious at the Vermont State Amateur Championship. Following two rounds of play at the New England Amateur Championship at The Course at Yale, Devin Komline (Dorset Field Club) is looking like he might go three-for-three. The East Tennessee State standout posted a two-day score of 7-under par 133 – including a stellar 6-under par 66 on Wednesday – to stand atop the leaderboard.
Going low is nothing new for Komline, but it’s not often that he makes the turn with an eye-popping score of 29! On Wednesday morning, that is exactly what the 20 year old accomplished on the front nine of The Course at Yale.
“I just knew when I stepped over the ball that it was going to be good,” said Komline. “It doesn’t happen often, but it happens.”
Following a par on the 410-yard, par 4 1st hole, Komline went on a tear which saw him card birdie on five of his next six holes. There were no 50-foot putts or chip ins. It was simply a dominating performance where Komline was finding fairways and putting himself in position to make birdie on each hole. In fact, he had only two putts outside of 10 feet during that first nine holes.
“I was just hitting it close on the front nine,” said Komline. “I didn’t make anything long. I made five putts between four and eight feet. I missed one eight footer, and that was about it.”
Although his back nine was less dramatic, he was consistent from start to finish. He drained his sixth and final birdie of the day on the 379-yard, par 11th hole and then made seven straight pars to cap off his bogey-free, 6-under par round.
“I am starting to take it lower more consistently,” said Komline. “I just figured if I could get under par going into tomorrow I would be in good shape because anything can happen with 36 holes.”
Nipping at Komline’s heels is his friend and golfing foe – Josh Salah (Bass Rocks GC) – who finished with a two-day total of 6-under par 134. Days after qualifying for Match Play at the Massachusetts Amateur Championship, Salah arrived in New Haven and has been playing impeccable golf.
On Tuesday, the 19 year old lit up the back side of the course by carding four straight birdies – on the 14th through 17th holes – to post a score of 4-under par 66. Although the results were quite as good on Wednesday, Salah still came through with a solid 2-under par 68.
“I was just hitting it close and I made the putts that I was supposed to,” said Salah, whose round featured two birdies – on the 11th and 12th holes – and 16 pars. “I didn’t do anything special. I just made putts under eight feet, got on a roll and kept it going.”
Hitting 18 greens in regulation certainly helped his cause today.
“I have probably only missed a handful of fairways and I’m knocking it close and hitting good wedge shots,” said Salah. “My ball striking and iron play is really good right now. Hopefully tomorrow they’ll all go in.”
A former high school standout from Gloucester who was one of the leading scorers for Sacred Heart University this past season, Salah has made it a mission to compete well this week in an event that includes friendly faces like his buddy Komline.
“It is probably the strongest field in any amateur tournament in New England,” said Salah. “You see your friends from junior golf and it’s fun just to compete.”
Several of the first-round leaders struggled to match their day-one performances as they battled the afternoon weather issues. Round-one leader Jonathan Pannone (Warwick CC) posted a score of 2-over par 72, while Garrett Medeiros (Metacomet CC) was 2-over par through 15 holes but made a great comeback by making birdie on two of his final three holes to post an even par 70.
