News Release

For Immediate Release: August 27, 2007

Headline: Clapp Fires Course Record at Charter Oak CC to Headline U.S. Mid-Amateur Qualifying

Hudson, MA – One week after competing at the U.S. Amateur Championship, Doug Clapp (Walpole, MA) made headlines once again as he led a field of qualifiers at U.S. Mid-Amateur Qualifying, which was held today at Charter Oak Country Club in Hudson.

Not only did Clapp capture medalist honors, he did it in record fashion as he fired a 6-under par 65, which broke the Charter Oak Country Club competitive course record by four shots!

After making the turn at 3-under par 32, Clapp continued to press on and delivered a 3-under par 33 on the back to secure his spot at next month's U.S. Mid-Amateur Championship and earn a place in the club’s course record books.

Four shots back of Clapp with a score of 2-under par 69 was Dan Ladd (Weston, MA), a golfer who has enjoyed a successful summer of golf. Just last month, Ladd advanced to the semifinals of the Massachusetts Amateur Championship where he was defeated by eventual champion Burgess Houston.

Also qualifying today were Charlie Blanchard (Tiverton, RI) and Mike Slosek (Adams, MA). Blanchard, a Wannamoisett Country Club member, has also been playing well as of late as he advanced to Match Play at last week's U.S. Amateur Championship. Both Blanchard and Slosek finished with scores of 1-under par 70.

A second round of local qualifying will be held on September 6 at The Georgetown Club. Sectional qualifying is being held at 67 sites located across the country. From the more than 3,000 golfers making the attempt at sectional qualifying, only 264 players (including exemptions) advance to the U.S. Mid-Amateur Championship, which will be held on September 29 – October 4 at Bandon Dunes Golf Resort in Bandon, Oregon .

The MGA annually conducts qualifying rounds for the major United States Golf Association (USGA) Championships, including the U.S. Open, Senior Open, Amateur, Junior Amateur, Senior Amateur, Mid-Amateur and the Amateur Public Links.

For more information about the U.S. Mid-Amateur Championship, please visit the USGA's web site at www.usga.org.