Headline: A Mix of 10 Amateurs and Professionals Advance to 2017 Massachusetts Open Championship at a Qualifier Held at GreatHorse

Bay State native Jason Parajeckas was among the 10 competitors who advanced to the MGA Open Championship at a qualifier held on Wednesday at GreatHorse.

For Immediate Release: May 16, 2017

Hampden, MA — A mix of 10 professional and amateur players qualified for the 2017 Massachusetts Open Championship on Wednesday afternoon at GreatHorse, increasing the field size to 44 players with three additional qualifiers remaining.

The 108th Championship Proper will take place June 12-14 at TGC at Sacconnesset in Falmouth. The Open Championship, the second longest running tournament hosted by the MGA, remains the only Championship Proper with a professional purse.

The 10 qualifiers scores ranged from even par-72 to 4-over par 76 while seven players who shot 5-over par 77 are listed as alternates and will be placed on a priority list per the Alternate Policy, which can be found on the MGA Policies and Procedures Page.

CLICK HERE for complete results from the GreatHorse qualifier. A list of qualifiers and alernates is as follows:

QUALIFIERS:
John Jackopsic (West Hartford, Conn.) 72
Rasmey Kong (a) (West Haven, Conn.) 73
Blake Morris (Southbury, Conn.) 73
David Schuster (New York, NY) 73
Jason Parajeckas (Pleasant Valley CC) 74
John Clare (a) (Camillus, NY) 74
Geoff Vartelas (Cromwell, Conn.) 74
Nick Pandelena (Renaissance) 76
Blake Kelley (a) (Manchester, Conn.) 76
Kevin Wheeler (a) (St. Anne CC) 76

ALTERNATES:
Brian Valencia (a) (Marlborough CC) 77
Sean Gaudette (Wyckoff CC) 77
Kole Kelly (a)(Fresh Pond GC) 77
John Singh(Grahamsville, NY) 77
Brendan Hester (a)(Pleasant Valley CC) 77
Derick Fors(Townsend Ridge CC) 77
Aaron Donnelli (a) (Newington, Conn.) 77

NOTES:
Kevin Wheeler registered a hole-in-one on GreatHorse’s 15th hole to finish the day at 4-over par 76. The hole-in-one was the difference maker, allowing the St. Anne CC member to enter into the Championship Proper field.

UP NEXT:
Three more Massachusetts Open qualifiers will be held next week to conclude the qualifying schedule. The MGA will be at Tedesco CC on May 22, Taconic GC on May 23 and Eastward Ho! on May 24 as the remainder of the field is determined.    

For continued information regarding the Massachusetts Open Championship, visit mgalinks.org or follow the MGA on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram using #MassOpen.