MGA: Massachusetts Golf Association Illustration Illustration

News Release

For Immediate Release: July 12, 2002

 Rob Oppenheim (Indian Ridge CC) withstood a late-match rally by Brian Higgins (Franklin CC) this afternoon to capture the 94th Massachusetts Amateur Championship title at Winchester Country Club. Oppenheim drained a 39-foot birdie putt on the 18th hole to seal his 1 Up victory over Higgins and claim his first ever Massachusetts Amateur Championship title.

Higgins made a tremendous comeback on the back nine, including birdies on the 13th, 14th and 15th holes, to make things interesting down the stretch. The match hit its ultimate climax on the 18th hole when Higgins sent his second shot to within six feet. With Higgins' easy birdie putt sitting on the green and with the prospect of going to extra holes staring him in the face, Oppenheim coolly drained the 39-foot putt to end the match.

The ending didn't always seem so obvious, however. Oppenheim broke out to an early lead in the match and seemed poised for an easy victory (he was 4 Up after the first 18 holes). However, Higgins made a valiant comeback on the back nine during the afternoon match to the delight of the more than 300 fans who ventured out to Winchester Country Club this afternoon to watch the Final Round.

In the end, it was Oppenheim who prevailed at this five-day tournament, which includes a grueling 36-hole Final Round.

Highlights From the Final Round
• During the morning session, Oppenheim took control of the match on the back nine by posting four birdies -- on the 10th, 11th, 12th and 18th holes.
• One of the highlights of the afternoon match was a shot made by Oppenheim on the par-5 12th hole. After his tee shot sailed right and landed in the woods behind a 3-foot rock, Oppenheim - reminiscent of Sergio Garcia's shot at the U.S. Open in 1999 - sliced his second shot around the rock and left it just short of the green. After chipping onto the green, Oppenheim then made a 10-foot curling putt to make birdie and halve the hole.
• Higgins and Oppenheim earned a spot in the Final Round after winning both their quarterfinal and semifinal matches yesterday. After squeaking by Ferdi Taygan (The Willowbend Club) in the quarterfinals, Oppenheim swiftly moved past Hans Sherman (The Country Club) in the semifinals by a score of 7 & 5. Meanwhile, Higgins pulled out the 1 Up win over John Gilmartin (Indian Ridge CC) to gain entry into the Final Round.

Highlights From Round 4:

Following the quarterfinal and semifinal matches held today at Winchester Country Club, only two players will return on Friday morning to compete for the 94th Massachusetts Amateur Championship title. Rob Oppenheim (Indian Ridge CC) and Brian Higgins (Franklin CC) were victorious in their two matches today and will face off tomorrow morning at 8:00am for the 36-hole Final Round.

Oppenheim, the former standout player at Rollins College, was dominant in his semifinal match against Hans Sherman (The Country Club). Oppenheim, who was coming off a strong 2 Up victory over Ferdi Taygan (The Willowbend Club) in the morning, posted three birdies and only one bogie en route to his 7 & 5 victory over Sherman. Two of his three birdies came on the 12th and 13th holes to close out the match.

Higgins and John Gilmartin (Indian Ridge CC) participated in a nail-biter in the second semifinal match. Gilmartin took an early 1 Up lead when Higgins made bogie on the 3rd hole. Higgins then capitalized on a bogie by Gilmartin on the 6th hole to square the match. It remained all square through the next 8 holes until Higgins ended the stalemate with a birdie on the par-3 13th hole. The pair went back and forth one more time before the match was all square heading into the 18th hole. Gilmartin left his approach shot short and opened the door for the Higgins's 1 Up victory.

Highlights From the Quarterfinal Round:
• Sherman, a college student at Vanderbilt, was the first competitor to advance to the semifinals after he defeated Bruce Carter (Cyprian Keyes GC), 5 & 4, this morning. Sherman took a 2 Up lead heading into the 5th hole after Carter posted bogies on the 3rd and 4th holes. Another Carter bogie on the 5th hole put Sherman ahead 3 Up and that would be all he needed as he cruised to victory on the back nine.
• Higgins, a re-instated amateur, continued his strong play against a very tough opponent in Tele Wightman (Holyoke CC). Already 2 Up heading into the 9th hole, Higgins nearly scored a hole-in-one when he sent his tee shot directly at the flagstick. The ball rolled along the right lip of the cup and settled just inches from the hole. Higgins tapped in his birdie to take a commanding lead en route to his 6 & 4 victory.
• It took Gilmartin 19 holes to defeat Jim Ruschioni (Oak Hill CC) in the third morning match. Ruschioni, who pulled off the biggest upset of the Round of 16 when he knocked off Frank Vana, Jr. (Marlborough CC), was 1 Up heading into the 18th hole, but Gilmartin managed to square the match by making par on the 18th hole. A par for Gilmartin and a bogie for Ruschioni on the match's 19th hole sealed the victory for Gilmartin.

Highlights From Round 3:

Eight players survived two rounds of Match Play today at the 94th Massachusetts Amateur Championship, which is being held at Winchester Country Club this week.

Many of the top names survived, including former Rollins College standout Rob Oppenheim (Indian Ridge CC), who defeated defending champion Brendan Hester (Pleasant Valley CC), 2 Up, in the Round of 16. The biggest upset of the day came courtesy of Jim Ruschioni (Oak Hill CC), who knocked off second-seeded Frank Vana, Jr. (Marlborough CC) in the Round of 16, 1 Up. The match was all square heading into the 18th hole, but Ruschioni made par to seal the victory.

Other players advancing to the Quarterfinal round were Hans Sherman (The Country Club), Brian Higgins (Franklin CC), John Gilmartin (Indian Ridge CC) and Tele Wightman (Holyoke CC). The first Quarterfinal match will feature Carter and Sherman. The two players will tee off at 8:00am with the other seven matches to follow at 10-minute intervals. The Semifinal round will be held tomorrow afternoon immediately following the conclusion of the Quarterfinals with the 36-hole Match Play Final to take place on Friday.

Highlights From Round 2:

Due to inclement weather that hit the Winchester area on Tuesday evening, the 32 qualifying spots for Match Play at the 94th Massachusetts Amateur Championship, which is being held at Winchester Country Club this week, are not yet set. A total of seven players turned in a score of 6-over par 148 and will return to Winchester CC on Wednesday morning to compete in a playoff for the final five qualifying spots. That playoff will commence at 7:00am.

Before the thunderstorms hit, however, the field of competitors was able to finish Round 2 of play. Doug Clapp (Walpole CC) captured medalist honors after surging up the leaderboard on Tuesday by shooting a tournament low of 5-under par 66. He finished with a two-round score of 6-under par 136. Frank Vana, Jr. (Marlborough CC), who led the field after Round 1, concluded his second round of play at 3-under par 139 and will enter Match Play as the second seed. Defending champion Brendan Hester (Pleasant Valley CC), who claimed the 12th qualifying spot with a score of even par 142, will begin his quest to capture a second Massachusetts Amateur Championship title at 8:56am when he takes on Jared Meyers (Crestview CC).

In a shocking turn of events, last year's runner-up Jim Renner (Foxborough CC) failed to make Match Play after posting a disappointing 7-over par 79 on Tuesday. Renner started his day by firing his first tee shot into the woods and he never seemed to recover from that point on. He had a chance to move into qualifying position, but couldn't drain the birdie putt on the 18th hole that would have put him in an eight-way tie for 28th. In the end, Renner finished this year's tournament with a score of 7-over par 149.

Match Play competition will begin at 8:00am. The winners of the Round of 32 will then play in the Round of 16 that afternoon. The quarterfinals and semifinals will be held on Thursday with the final match to be contested on Friday.

Highlights From Round 1:

Following the first round of play at the 94th Massachusetts Amateur Championship, there were many familiar names atop the leaderboard. The 2001 Richard D. Haskell Player of the Year, Frank Vana, Jr. (Marlborough CC), took a one-stroke lead following Round 1 after shooting a 3-under par 68. Fueled by three birdies on the back nine - he started his day on the 10th tee - Vana played even par golf on the front nine en route to his top score.

Vana is followed closely by Jim Ruschioni (Oak Hill CC) and Paul Nunez (Longmeadow CC), who finished Round 1 with a score of 2-under par 69. Ruschioni is making his return to MGA play after missing last month's Massachusetts Open Championship due to a bout of the flu.

Last year's runner-up in this event, young Jim Renner (Foxborough CC), currently sits in a five-way tie for fourth place after an eagle on the par-5 12th hole lifted him to a first-round score of 1-under par 70. He shares that spot with, among others, collegiate standouts Rob Oppenheim (Indian Ridge CC) from Rollins College and Tele Wightman (Holyoke CC) of the University of South Florida.

Defending champion Brendan Hester (Pleasant Valley CC) is still very much in the hunt -- thanks to a string of birdies on the 11th, 12th and 13th holes -- after playing even par golf this morning.

The 143-player field of competitors will return to Winchester CC on Tuesday for a second round of stroke play (18 holes). At the conclusion of the second round, the top 32 qualifiers will advance to the Match Play portion of the tournament, which will begin on Wednesday morning.