News Release

For Immediate Release: September 26, 2006

Headline: Jim Ruschioni Captures Massachusetts Senior Championship On the Fourth Playoff Hole

Pittsfield, MA – The three-time George M. Cohen MGA Senior Player of the Year is having quite the month of September. Just weeks after advancing to Match Play at the U.S. Senior Amateur Championship, Jim Ruschioni (Indian Meadows GC) captured his first Massachusetts Senior Championship title today following a three-person playoff at Country Club of Pittsfield.

Ruschioni, who has captured the MGA's top senior amateur honor the past three years, prevailed today over defending champion Joseph Keller (Oyster Harbors Club) and John Crook (Cape Cod National GC). Ruschioni sent his tee shot on the fourth playoff hole – the 200-yard, par 3 17th – to five feet and calmly tapped in his birdie putt for the victory over Keller, who matched Ruschioni shot-for-shot through the first three playoff holes, and Crook. All three players finished the first two rounds of play with scores of 5-over par 147.

Leading up to the playoff, Ruschioni displayed consistency over the course of the two-day event, which has been a trademark of his game for years. While his 3-over par 74 score posted today was one stroke more than his first-round score of 2-over par 73, Ruschioni was the only player in the top of the leaderboard to post rounds within one stroke of each other. It didn't always appear so rosy for the three-time Massachusetts Mid-Amateur Champion (1985, 1991, 1997), however, as he made double bogey on the 386-yard, par 4 2nd hole. He turned things around by making birdie on the 170-yard, par 3 9th to make the turn at 1-over par 36. On the back nine he made bogey on the 11th, 13th and 16th holes and one birdie on the 14th hole. In the end it proved to be just enough to earn him a place in the playoff.

Down the stretch in regulation it was Keller who made the biggest move up the leaderboard by firing a 1-over par 72 score, which featured a sizzling 2-under par 33 front nine. On that stretch of nine holes, Keller made four birdies – on the 3rd, 5th, 7th and 8th holes – and two bogeys. Aside from a birdie on the 406-yard, par 4 11th hole, Keller lost his steam down the stretch as he made bogey on the 15th hole and then three-putted for double bogey on the 16th hole. He carded pars on his final two holes to finish at 1-over par for the day and 5-over par for the tournament.

Crook, meanwhile, played in his way into the three-way playoff after he followed up his first-round score of even par 71 with a 5-over par 76, which included six bogeys and only one birdie. After making par on that first playoff hole, Crook was eliminated from the playoff after suffering an untimely three-putt on the 17th hole.

One stroke off the lead with final scores of 6-over par 148 was an impressive duo – Paul Murphy (Charles River CC) and Chuck Costello (Ferncroft CC). Both players followed up their round-one scores of 1-over par 72 with 5-over par 76s today. First-round leader Paul McCarthy (Unicorn GC), whose 1-under par 70 score on Monday was the only sub-par round posted for the tournament, struggled on the second day as he fell into a tie for 21st place following a 13-over par 84.

Winners in the Super Senior Division – which includes all competitors 65 years and older – were Jim Holbrook (Ferncroft CC) and Alexander Lindsey (Kelley Greens GC) with scores of 8-over par 150.