Rogowicz falls to Ross in opening-round match in U.S. Women's Mid-Amateur at Montclair

 

   Merion Golf Club’s Jackie Rogowicz earned a spot in the match-play bracket in the U.S. Women’s Mid-Amateur Championship at Montclair Golf Club in West Orange, N.J. over the weekend, but fell to Jessica Ross of Northern Ireland, 3 and 2, in the opening round of match play Monday.

   Rogowicz, who starred scholastically at Pennsbury and collegiately at Penn State, reached the semifinals of the U.S. Women’s Mid-Am when it was staged at Stonewall’s North Course in the northwest corner of Chester County in 2023, but has been unable to match that kind of run in her three ensuing tries.

   Three of Montclair’s four nines are Donald Ross designs and Nos. 2 and 3 are being utilized for this year’s U.S. Women’s Mid-Am and the layout proved challenging.

   Rogowicz got on the bogey train a couple of different times in two rounds of stroke play over the weekend.

   In her opening round Saturday, Rogowicz made bogeys at the second, fourth, fifth and eighth holes, but settled down a little in the middle of the round before making bogeys at 15, 16 and 17. She rescued a 6-over-par 76 with a birdie at the 18^th hole.

   Starting off the 10^th tee in Sunday’s second round, Rogowicz made bogeys at the 10^th, 11^th 13^th, 14^th, 15^th and 18^th holes on the incoming nine. A birdie at the second hole stopped the bleeding and, after a bogey at five, Rogowicz again closed her round with a birdie at nine.

   Rogowicz’s 5-over 75 left her in the group tied for 40^th place at 11-over 151.

   Rogowicz wasn’t the only player in the field to struggle at Montclair.

   There was a playoff among eight players who finished at 14-over 154 for the final four spots in the match-play bracket.

   Included among that group were two former champions, Kimberly Dinh of Midland, Mich., the winner at Stonewall’s North Course three years ago, and 2015 winner Lauren Greenlief of Oakton, Va. Dinh and Greenlief both survived the playoff and advanced into the match-play bracket.

   Ross got the jump on Rogowicz in their opening-round match with wins at the fourth and eighth holes, both with birdies.

   Rogowicz kept fighting back. She cut her deficit to 1-down by taking the 10^th hole with a par. After Ross restored her 2-up advantage by winning the 11^th hole with a birdie, Rogowicz again cut into the lead by taking 12 with a birdie.

   Ross, however, spurted out to a 3-up lead by winning the 13^th hole with a birdie and 14 with a par.

   Rogowicz cut her deficit to 2-down by winning the 15^th hole with a par, but Ross closed out the match when she took 16 with a par.

   Meghan Stasi, a four-time U.S. Women’s Mid-Amateur champion and a 10-time winner of the Women’s Golf Association of Philadelphia Match Play Championship, was also an opening-round casualty as she fell to Victoria Jackson of Memphis, Tenn. by a 3 and 2 margin.

   Stasi, a South Jersey native who resides in Fort Lauderdale, Fla., had added a 3-over 73 in Sunday’s second round of qualifying for match play to her opening-round 77 as she finished in the group tied for 32^nd place at 10-over 150.

   Stasi, who captained the United States Curtis Cup team to a 13-7 victory over Great Britain & Ireland in June at Bel-Air Country Club in Los Angeles, Calif., was playing in her 19^th U.S. Women’s Mid-Am at Montclair and, obviously, is still quite capable of earning a spot in match play.

   Jackson, a college standout at Memphis, was recently named the head coach at Division III Rhodes College.

   Sarah Willis of Eaton, Ohio was a freshman at Penn State when Rogowicz was wrapping up her time in Happy Valley.

   Willis opened with a solid 2-over 72 in qualifying for match play Saturday and added a 76 in Sunday’s second round to earn a spot in the match-play bracket, her 8-over 148 total leaving her in a tie for 21^st place.

   Willis cruised into the second round of match play with a 6 and 4 victory over fellow Ohioan Sathika Peters of Maumee in Monday’s opening round.

   Willis will have a tough assignment in Tuesday morning’s second round as she takes on Krissy Carman, the 2022 U.S. Women’s Mid-Am champion who recently was named the head coach at Division II power Rollins College.

   Carman survived her opening-round match with Ali Schrock of Pontiac, Ill., who starred collegiately at Illinois State, on the 19^th hole.

   Medalist honors in qualifying for match play was shared by Emilia Doran, who you might remember as Emilia Migliaccio when she starred at Wake Forest, Ivy Shepherd of Peachtree City, Ga. and English women Lucy Jamieson, all of them landing on 1-over 141.

   Doran seemed headed for professional golf when she decided to remain an amateur and pursue a career in broadcasting. She has been part of The Golf Channel’s coverage of college golf and amateur golf and just seems to get better at it every time I see her.

   She was buzzing around the East Course at Merion Golf Club, where she played on a winning U.S. Curtis Cup team in 2022, during the U.S. Amateur a couple of weeks ago.

   And Doran can still play. I would think she is a logical favorite this week, but I thought that a year ago and she fell in the quarterfinals, 3 and 1, to Katherine Zhu of San Jose, Calif. at the Monterey Peninsula Country Club on northern California’s Monterey Peninsula.

   Doran, residing in Charlotte, N.C. these days, started slowly with a 4-over 74 in Saturday’s opening round of stroke play and, starting off the 10^th tee in Sunday’s second round, made a bogey at the 10^th.

   But, with her mother Ulrika Migliaccio on the bag, Doran started to look like her old self. She ripped off birdies at the 11^th, 12^th, 17^th, 18^th and sixth holes before a closing bogey at nine left her with a sparkling 3-under 67 and a share of medalist honors.

   Doran rolled to a 7 and 6 victory over Ashley Freeman of Houston, Texas in her opening-round match and will take on Jackson, the conqueror of Stasi Monday, in Tuesday’s second round.

   Shepherd, who was a standout at Clemson and took a fifth year at Kentucky, was one of just two players in the opening round of stroke play to solve the Montclair layout well enough to get it in under par as she carded a 1-under 69.

   Shepherd, an assistant coach for the Indiana women’s team in the Big Ten, added a 2-over 72 in Sunday’s second round to get her share of medalist honors.

   Shepherd’s opening-round opponent was Sarah Spicer-Baldwin of Silver Spring, Md., another survivor of Monday morning’s playoff for the final spots in the match-play bracket.

   Shepherd was in trouble, 2-down after Spicer-Baldwin won the ninth hole. But Shepherd rallied, taking a 1-up decision with a birdie at the 18^th hole.

   Shepherd will take on Gabby Minier of Santa Barbara, Calif. in Tuesday morning’s second round. Minier earned a 2 and 1 victory over Emily Dunlap of Greenville, S.C. in her opening-round match.

   Jamieson, the third co-medalist, was not so fortunate.

   Jamieson got a tough draw in Greenlief, who survived the playoff to get into match play, but who has played in a ton of high-leverage U.S. Women’s Mid-Am matches.

   Jamieson had a 3-up lead with four holes to play, but Greenlief, relying on all that match-play experience, won the last four holes in a row, all with birdies, to stun Jamieson, 1-up.

   Greenlief will face Jensen Jalufka of Austin, Texas in Tuesday morning’s second round.

   Jalufka, a mid-am rookie who turned 25 Friday, advanced with a 3 and 2 victory over a pretty tough customer in Canadian Shelly Stouffer, winner of the 2022 U.S. Senior Women’s Amateur Championship.

   Dinh, the 2023 U.S. Women’s Mid-Am champion at Stonewall’s North Course, survived the playoff to get into match play, but got a tough draw in defending champion Ina Kim-Schaad of Jupiter, Fla.

   Kim-Schaad’s victory at Monterey Peninsula was her second U.S. Women’s Mid-Am title as she added it to the U.S. Women’s Mid-Am crown she won in 2019.

   Kim-Schaad claimed a 3 and 2 victory over Dinh in the battle of past champions.

   Kim-Schaad’s second-round opponent will be Brooke Tyree of Scottsdale, Ariz., who rolled to a 6 and 4 victory over Elayna Bowser of Dearborn, Mich. in another opening-round match.

   Weather permitting, only eight quarterfinalists will be left standing when the sun sets on Montclair Tuesday evening as Tuesday morning’s second-round winners will meet in the round of 16 in the afternoon.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Gohel simply flawless in cruising to a Philly Junior Tour victory at Rancocas

 

   Ravi Gohel of Mount Laurel, N.J. put together a flawless 4-under-par 67 at Rancocas Golf Club in Willingboro, N.J. to earn an impressive Philadelphia Section PGA Junior Tour victory in the 16-to-18 division Aug. 4^th.

   Gohel, in the midst of a summer hot streak on the Philly Junior Tour, was bogey-free as he made birdies at the third, fifth, 14^th and 18^th holes and had 14 pars on his scorecard, including eight straight pars to finish up his round.

   Logan Hyndman, a Newtown resident and a senior on the golf team at The Pennington School, played a pretty impressive round of his own as he made a birdie at the fifth hole and then really went off on the incoming nine at Rancocas with birdies at 10, 12, 14 and 18 while touring the back nine in 4-under 32 on his way to a 1-under 70 that left him in second place.

   Hyndman had 10 pars on his card.

   Pennridge senior Tim Croyle, a District One Class AAA qualifier a year ago, went back-to-back with birdies at the fourth and fifth holes, added birdies at 14 and 16 and had nine pars on his card as he finished in third place with a solid 2-over 73.

   Avon Grove senior Shane Cornell, a District One Class AAA qualifier a year ago, took fourth place with a 74 and Finn Cooper, a Lafayette Hill resident and a senior on the Springside Chestnut Hill Academy golf team, was fifth with a 77.

   Carter Smith of Wayne and Shea Henefer of Moorestown, N.J. shared sixth place, each tallying a 78, Holden Stephenson, a West Chester resident and a senior on the Malvern Prep golf team, was eighth with a 79 and David Watts of Haddonfield, N.J. was ninth with an 80.

   Rounding out the top 10 in the 16-to-18 division were Vyom Shukla of Berwyn and Evan Hall of West Deptford, N.J. as they finished in a tie for 10^th place, each signing for an 81.

   Preston Minio of Lansdale, solid all summer long, made birdies at the fifth, 10^th and 14^th holes and had 11 pars on his scorecard, including four straight pars to close out his round, as he earned a Philly Junior Tour victory in the 13-to-15 division with a 2-over 73.

   Helmut Dang of Newtown Square, coming off a Philly Junior Tour victory the previous week at Bluestone Country Club, made a birdie at the seventh hole and had a steady 14 pars on his card, closing out his round with eight consecutive pars, as he finished a shot behind Minio in second place with a 3-over 74.

   Jackson Roy of Medford, N.J. made birdies at the sixth, 10^th and 18^th holes and had nine pars on his card as he finished in third place with a 76.

   Gavin Lane, a sophomore on the Cinnaminson High golf team, took fourth place with a 77, Blake Anderson of Manahawkin, N.J. and Leonard Anthony of Center Valley shared fifth, each recording a 78, and Mark Westfall of Medford, N.J. finished seventh with an 81.

   Jack Burke of Bryn Mawr and Carter Parrish of Woolwich Township, N.J. shared eighth place, each registering an 84 and Charlie Murray of Berwyn rounded out the top 10 in the 13-to-15 division as he finished 10^th with an 86.

   Mariana Walker, who wrapped up her scholastic career at Council Rock North last fall, had six pars on her scorecard, including consecutive pars at the 15^th, 16^th and 17^th holes, as she captured a Philly Junior Tour victory in the girls 16-to-18 division with a 92.

   Madison Gibson of Cinnaminson, N.J. had three pars on her card, including back-to-back pars at the 12^th and 13^th holes, as she finished two shots behind Walker in second place with a 94.

   Emily Catalfano, a Lafeyette Hill resident and a senior on the Mount St. Joseph golf team, had four pars on her card, including back-to-back pars at the 14^th and 15^th holes as she finished in third place with a 99.

   Rounding out the field in the 16-to-18 division was Taylor Hanna of Cinnaminson, N.J. as she finished in fourth place with a 106.

   Emma Cowan of Moorestown, N.J. had three pars on her scorecard, including back-to-back pars at the 11^th and 12^th holes, as she topped a short field in the 13-to-15 division with a 93.

   Annabelle Barr of Gladwyne made a par on the 12^th hole as she rounded out the field in the 13-to-15 division, finishing in second place with a 104.

   Samuel Karas of Blue Bell made a birdie at the seventh hole and had six pars on his scorecard, including a string of six consecutive pars from two through six, as he bested a typically competitive field of boys 12-and-under nine-holers with a 1-over 36.

   Niko Muego of Bryn Mawr also made a birdie at the seventh hole and made consecutive pars at two, three and four as he earned runnerup honors with a 5-over 40.

   Ryan Kaye of Lansdale and Kelly Selvesen of Cape May Court House, N.J. shared third place, each posting a 41.

   Kaye, coming off a Philly Junior Tour the previous week at Bluestone, made a birdie at the fourth hole and pars at one and seven. Selvesen made a birdie at the fifth hole and had three pars on his card.

   Grayson Wright of Philadelphia took fifth place with a 43, Victor Wang of Hockessin, Del. and Chase Venne of Moorestown, N.J. shared sixth, each signing for a 44, and Kamran Patel, another Moorestown, N.J. guy, finished eighth with a 48.

   Rounding out the top 10 in the boys 12-and-under division were Quinn Haberman of Ocean View, N.J. and Christian Bandoy of Marlton, N.J. as they finished in a tie for ninth place, each recording a 51.

   Victoria Leonard of Merion Station was the lone entry in the girls 12-and-under division and she carded a 58.

 

 

 

 

Throm goes low at Bear Trap Dunes to capture a Philly Junior Tour victory

 

   Grayson Throm of Delmar, Del. blitzed Bear Trap Dunes’ Grizzly and Kodiak nines in Ocean View, Del. with a sparkling 3-under-par 69 to capture a Philadelphia Section PGA Junior Tour victory in the 13-to-15 division Aug. 3^rd.

   Throm made a birdie at the ninth hole that set the stage for some serious fireworks on the incoming nine as he added a birdie at 14 and then went back-to-back with birdies at 16 and 17 while carding a 3-under 33 on his back nine.

   Throm also had 13 pars on his scorecard, opening his round with seven consecutive pars.

   Charlie Sears of Wilmington, Del. made birdies at the second, 13^th and 16^th holes and had nine pars on his card, including four straight from three through six, to earn runnerup honors among the younger guys with a 4-over 76.

   Patrick Thomas of Hockessin, Del. had 13 pars on his card, including a string of five straight pars from the ninth through the 13^th holes as he finished in third place with a 77, a shot behind Sears.

   Adrian Santiago of Millsboro, Del. took fourth place with an 85, Mason Hall of White Hall, Md. was fifth with an 89, Charlie Wei of Cochranville was sixth with a 90 and Luke Peyton of Frankford, Del. was seventh with a 91.

   Carter Tracy of Smyrna, Del. took eighth place with a 95 and Brendan Wik of Berwyn rounded out the field in the 13-to-15 division as he finished ninth with a 119.

   Garnet Valley senior Jack Ferm, a District One Class AAA qualifier a year ago, made birdies at the fourth and seventh holes, went back-to-back with birdies at 11 and 12 and had eight pars on his scorecard as he finished at the top of the leaderboard in the 16-to-18 division with a 2-over 74.

   Ferm matched par on his front nine with a 36.

   Grady Rupe, a senior on the Perkiomen Valley golf team, and Hayden Bartie, a junior on the Southern Lehigh golf team, shared second place, each ending up a shot behind Ferm with a 3-over 75.

   Rupe, coming off a Philly Junior Tour victory the previous week at Meadia Heights Golf Club, made a birdie at the 16^th hole and had 14 pars on his card, opening his round with five straight pars.

   Bartie made birdies at the second, eighth, 10^th and 17^th holes and had eight pars on his card.

   Ryan Bechtel of Cherry Hill, N.J. took fourth place with a 76 and Drake Brogan of Ocean View, N.J. and Joey Higgins, a senior on the golf team at reigning Public League champion Philadelphia Academy Charter, shared fifth, each recording a 77.

   Chase Schmidt of Waterford, N.J. took seventh place with a 78, Chris Cipollone, who wrapped up his scholastic career at Haverford High last fall, was eighth with a 79 and Ben Fifer of Wyoming, Del. was ninth with an 80.

   Liam Kirk of Mickleton, N.J. rounded out the top 10 in the 16-to-18 division as he finished in 10^th place with an 81.

   Gabrielle Hamstead, a sophomore on the Cape Henlopen golf team, made birdies at the third and eighth holes and had eight pars on her scorecard, including four consecutive pars from 11 through 14, as she earned a Philly Junior Tour victory in the girls 16-to-18 division with an 80.

   Ellie Walls, who capped her sophomore season at Indian River by finishing in third place in the Delaware Interscholastic Athletic Association Championship at Baywood Greens in May, made a birdie at the 12^th hole and had eight pars on her card, finishing up her round with pars at 16, 17 and 18, as she earned runnerup honors with an 84.

   Emmerson Gleber, a senior on the golf team at the Charter School of Wilmington, had four pars on her card, three of them on her incoming nine, as she finished in third place with a 91.

   Sommer Baker, a junior on the West Chester Henderson golf team, rounded out the field in the 16-to-18 division as she finished in fourth place with a 108.

   Tyler Drinker of West Chester was the lone entry in the boys 12-and-under division and he made pars at third and ninth holes on his way to an 8-over 44.