News Release

For Immediate Release: September 23, 2004

Headline: Starting Times, Pairings Released for Massachusetts Mid-Amateur Championship

Norton, MA – With less than a week remaining before the 21st playing of the Massachusetts Mid-Amateur Championship, the Massachusetts Golf Association (MGA) today released starting times and pairings for the first two days of the event. The Championship will take place on September 27-29 at Blue Hill Country Club in Canton, Massachusetts.

The 120-player field will compete in 18 holes of stroke play on Monday and Tuesday. Following the first two rounds, the 30 low scorers and ties or anyone within five strokes of the leader will continue on to a third and final round of stroke play on Wednesday, September 29th.

This year’s Championship will surely be one to remember as five-time MGA Player of the Year Frank Vana, Jr. (Marlborough CC) will be shooting for his record-breaking sixth straight MGA Championship title. Last year, Vana matched Alex Ross’ record of five straight championships – he won the Massachusetts Open Championship from 1906-1910 – with a six-stroke victory at Myopia Hunt Club. Vana is currently enjoying another dominating summer of golf, highlighted by his victory at the Massachusetts Amateur Championship as well as a trip to the Deutsche Bank Championship.

In order to make Massachusetts golf history at Blue Hill Country Club next week, however, the 42-year-old Vana will have to best the likes of 2004 Massachusetts Public Links Champion Bill Drohen (Bradford GC), his older brother Andy Drohen (St. Anne CC), who just last year captured the Massachusetts Amateur Championship, and this year’s Massachusetts Amateur runner-up Mike Cole (Larry Gannon Municipal GC).