Headline: John Beadle Uses Home-Course Knowledge to Jump Into Pre-Junior Division Lead at the 2010 Massachusetts Junior Amateur Championship
For Immediate Release: July 28, 2010
Foxborough, MA – Prior to the start of play on Wednesday at the Massachusetts Junior Amateur Championship, John Beadle (Foxborough CC) meandered around the clubhouse and appeared completely relaxed.
True to his outgoing nature, he did not miss a chance to say hello to nearly everyone in the room. When asked where he stood heading into the second round, he said matter of factly,
"I am a few shots off the lead but I am going low today."
True to his word, the 14 year old came out firing on Wednesday, battled a whipping afternoon wind and posted a 4-over par 76 to take a two-stroke lead in the Pre-Junior Division heading into the third and final round of play. (Story Continued Below)
Day 2 Quick Links
His impressive performance was especially meaningful since he has enjoyed the luxury of playing on his home course this week and is looking forward to earning a title for his home club.
"It has been incredible," said Beadle, who will be a freshman at Nobles and Greenough School in the fall. "This is my favorite tournament of the year anyway, but to play here is special. I have had a lot of members come out and watch and support me this week which I really appreciate."
Prior to his time here at Foxborough and for the past six years, Beadle has been a shining star for The First Tee of Massachusetts, the junior golf program managed and operated by the Massachusetts Golf Association. As one of the first junior golf members at The First Tee of Massachusetts' home course – MGA Links at Mamantapett in Norton – he has gained valuable experience participating in the free Saturday morning clinics and traveling across the country competing in special The First Tee competitions. It wasn't until two years ago, when Beadle bid adieu to the par-3 MGA Links course and joined Foxborough Country Club to better hone his skills.
"The Barclays trips were probably the highlight for me," said Beadle about the annual trip which featured competition between members of The First Tee chapters of Massachusetts, Metropolitan New York and Ireland. "It was a really cool experience because I was put up against New York's top player every year. It taught me about not being intimidated when playing top competition."
Over the years, his Barclays experience took Beadle to sites such as Plainfield Country Club (NJ), Liberty National Golf Course (NJ) and The Country Club. On this day, his commute was much shorter and he took advantage of his home course knowledge. He avoided trouble and kept his score down despite the challenging conditions.
"The players who played in the morning definitely had an advantage because it wasn't blowing this much earlier in the day," said Beadle, who finished with seven bogies and three birdies (including two straight on the 14th and 15th holes. "I overcame a rocky start... I made a few mistakes out there, but overall I considered it a good round under the circumstances and given the conditions."
Sitting in second place in the Pre-Junior Division is Eric Marchetti (Highland CC), who posted the division low score of the day – a 1-over par 73.
As a result of the change in format for this year's event, all Pre-Junior competitors who finished as part of the 50 lowest scorers and ties will return to Foxborough Country Club on Thursday to take part in a third and final round. The field was repaired according to score.
Junior Division Highlights
It has already been a winning month for Dylan Mattos (LeBaron Hills CC) and he hopes the trend continues this week. Two weeks after capturing his fourth consecutive Taunton Junior City Open, Mattos finds himself once again in contention... this time at the Massachusetts Junior Amateur Championship.
"To win and nothing else," said Mattos with a smile when asked what his expectations were heading into this week. "I just kept the ball down out there and hoped it went straight. At the end the wind started picking up which made it tough."
Mattos, who will be a senior at Coyle-Cassidy in the fall, followed up his day-one score of 1-under par 71 with a 4-over par 76 this afternoon to stand just three strokes off the overall lead.
"The only highlight was my birdie on 8 which I felt good about because it was the number one handicap hole," said Mattos. "I have been working on my short game a lot and it proved itself out there with the tough greens. I didn't miss many fairways over the past few days and it has helped me out a lot with my approach shots."
During his victorious march to the Taunton Junior City Open podium, Mattos was simply dominating in the 16-18 age group as he captured the title by an amazing 16 shots. On the final day of play, Mattos posted a 2-under par 68 at John F. Parker Golf Course to break away from the competition and seal his fourth straight title. Firing birdies is nothing new to Mattos, who made birdie on four of his final holes here on Tuesday to keep pace with the leaders.
"It seems like I have to shoot a low round tomorrow," said Mattos. "I'll do my best and try to win tomorrow and see what I can do."
Standing in his way is second-round leader Dan Slavin (Belmont CC), who followed up his first-round score of 4-under par 68 with a 4-over par 76 this afternoon. Andy Mai (The Ranch GC), who is second overall with a two-day score of 1-over par 145, has been a model of consistency after posting scores of even par 72 and 1-over par 73. Kevin Burpee (Charles River CC) is three shots off the lead, while Jack Whelan (Myopia Hunt Club) and Curtis Collopy (Hyannis GC) are tied with Mattos at 3-over par 147.
Boys Division Highlights
The second day of play included the start of the Boys Division competition, which includes players who are 13 years old and younger. New for this season, the Boys Division featured a total of 33 competitors (no qualifying was held this year) who will take part in 36 holes at stroke play. Following today's round, that starting field was reduced to the 10 lowest scorers and ties. A champion will be crowned on Thursday afternoon.
Leading the way once again is defending champion Steven Dilisio (Swampscott, MA) who will be looking to capture the title for a second straight year. On Wednesday, Dilisio made the turn at 3-over par 39 and went on to card two bogies and one birdie — on the 316-yard, par 4 15th hole — to finish at 4-over par for the day.
In second place two strokes back of Dilisio is Will Frodigh (Dedham G&PC) with a score of 6-over par 78, while Andrew Flynn (The Captains GC) is in third place at 7-over par 79.
Collegiate Entrée
While this event provides a fun summer experience for all competitors, it is also an opportunity for many of the future college-bound players to display their skills in front of coaches from top universities.
Throughout this week, the handful of college coaches have been following the action both online and here on site at Foxborough Country Club. For some players, this is nothing new since collegiate coaches are a mainstay at the major USGA, U.S. Challenge Cup and AJGA events. While competing at the 2010 U.S. Junior Amateur Championship, for example, Dan Slavin (Belmont CC) noted that there close to 40 college coaches watching him tee off during the first round of Match Play at Egypt Valley Country Club (MI) earlier this month.
"I looked around before I was going to tee off and saw all of these college coaches standing there," said Slavin. "I ended up hooking my drive off the tee but I pulled it together after that. It was very exciting."
Although the U.S. Junior Amateur Championship draws more attention than most events, there is no doubt that coaches from around the country will be watching the results with keen interest.
Many of the past champions of this event have gone on to successful collegiate careers at top Ivy League institutions. The 2008 Champion – Bradley Kushner – is a rising sophomore at Yale University, two-time champion Antonio Grillo is enjoying a terrific career at Harvard University and Evan Harmeling – the 2005 champion – is finishing up his fourth season at Princeton University.
Schedule of Events
Here is a schedule of events for the final day.
2010 Junior Division Schedule — 54 Holes
The Field is limited to 120 players in the Junior Division.
Thursday, July 29
Final Round, 18 Holes.
The MGA Junior Amateur Champion will be the low scorer for 54 holes from the Junior Division (14-17). Any tie for first place will be decided immediately by a hole-by-hole playoff.
2010 Boys Division Schedule — 36 Holes
The Field is limited to 30 players in the Boys Division.
Thursday, July 29
Final Round, 18 Holes.
The MGA Boys Division Champion (13 & under) will be the low scorer for 36 holes. Any tie for first place will be decided immediately by a hole-by-hole playoff.
