Round 3 Recap
By: Paul Kenyon
SEEKONK _ Michael Carbone gave himself a very nice wedding present on Wednesday _ a check for $3,240 for winning the 86th Rhode Island Open.
The URI grad from Cape Cod staged an impressive, almost flawless demonstration as he put together a 7-under 64 at Ledgemont to win the tournament by three strokes over Easton Renwick of Pennsylvania. Carbone finished with a sparkling 16-under 197, the third lowest total in the event’s 86-year history.
All three low scores have been by URI grads. Dana Quigley has the record at 194 at Pawtucket in 1996 and Jesse Larson shot 195 in 2012, when the event also was at Ledgemont.
Carbone, who also won the Open in 2009, becomes the first two-time champion since Kirk Hanefeld in 2005. At age 36, Carbone has won a number of other events, including the Maine Open, the Providence Open and a tournament in Quebec, but rarely has he been as much in control as he was for three beautiful days at Ledgemont.
``I felt pretty good,’’ Carbone said. ``Any one of us can say it doesn’t happen often, but sometimes you feel good over the ball and feel like you know where it’s going. It so happened ever time I looked up it was going right at the hole.’’
``I went to URI so this is huge for me,’’ he added. ``I’m getting married next month, so this is really huge for me.’’
Carbone made a hole-in-one in the first round and was in at least a share of the lead every day. The final round was his best of all.
``I birdied the first three holes, then five and seven so I was 5-under after seven,’’ he noted. ``I didn’t really know what was going on, so I just stuck to my game plan. . . I was just trying to do my own thing. I’m usually too concerned with everything else that’s going on, so I tried doing my own thing for once and it actually worked out.’’ Carbone had only two bogeys in the tournament.
He added birds at 10 and 14. His 64 was one stroke off the course record 63 set by Brad Valois in this tournament in 2012. Valois was low amateur this time at 8-under, one ahead of Davis Chatfield. Renwick, the runner-up, was coming off a victory last week in the West Pennsylvania Open. Brad Adamonis, who began the final day tied with Carbone for the lead, shot 2-under but had to settle for a tie for third with Matt Campbell. Carbone said getting to play the final day with Adamonis helped him.
``We’ve been friends for a long time,’’ he said. ``Dave (Adamonis’ brother who runs the US Challenge Cup) has done so much for junior golf. I don’t think any of us would have done what we have without him.’’ Instead of worrying about how he stood, Carbone said he and Adamonis had other topics.
``We talked about the Red Sox, kept it light,’’ he said.
Carbone played so solidly that his lead was three by the time he headed down the home stretch and he simply ran off pars to the finish. Carbone has played in the PGA Tour qualifying most years, but is not sure if he will do so this year.
``I’m getting married first, we’ll see what happens after that,’’ he said. The first stage for him would be in October.
Round 2 Recap
By: Paul Kenyon
SEEKONK _ Brad Adamonis is making the best of a rare chance to return home.
The Cumberland native, who has traveled the country for more than two decades playing professional golf, put himself in position to win the 86th Rhode Island Open Championship on Tuesday when he fired a second-round 66 at Ledgemont. That gave him a 36-hole total of 9-under 133 and a tie for the lead with Michael Carbone, a URI grad and the 2009 champion in this tournament.
Those two led another great day for scoring, with not only plentiful sunshine also low winds. Amateur Davis Chatfield, the 2016 RIGA Amateur champion, is within one stroke of the lead after a 68 and so is Matt Campbell, a pro from upstate New York. Campbell had a 67 for his 134.
Three more, including four-time Amateur champion Brad Valois, are only two back at 135. Valois added a 67 to his opening 68. New Hampshire’s Jack Whelan (68) and Easton Renwick of (68) also are in at 135.
As it does every year, the tournament has brought in a host of pros seeking a place to compete. Adamonis is a bit different than most in that he is not a kid any more.
``I’m 44,’’ he said with a sly smile. ``I’ve been doing this a long time now.’’
Adamonis has played on the PGA Tour, spent a long time on the Web.com Tour, but has had health issues that have slowed his career. He lives in Florida and spends much of his time there, but he is without status now on the major tours, so he has go to anywhere and everywhere to find places to compete.
``I’ll be in Springfield (Missouri) next week,’’ he said of competing in a Monday qualifier on the Web.com Tour. ``I’ll be doing Web qualifiers the next two weeks. He’s been to Utah, Nebraska and numerous other states. The easy-going Adamonis just shrugged and said, ``It’s what I do. I still want to get back on tour.’’
Adamonis had six birdies Tuesday, to give him 11 in the first two rounds. The guy he is tied with, Carbone, has had a more adventurous event. He was still buying free drinks Tuesday after making his third career hole-in-one on Monday. The 15th was memorable again in the second round, although not positively. The pin on that severely sloped green was on the back right, where the slope is most severe. It was the toughest pin of the day. Carbone struggled with it.
``I hit a putt and thought it was pretty good,’’ Carbone related. ``It almost stopped about a foot and a half form the hole, but then it kept going.’’ It ended up six or seven feet away. He missed it for his only bogey of the day.
Chatfield and Valois both put themselves in position to do something not seen in 27 years in this event _ win. Marc St. Martin, now in the RIGA Hall of Fame, was the last amateur to win in 1990.
Chatfield is competing for the first time since injuring his ribs the day before the State Amateur last month. Since he lives in Attleboro, he could be playing in the Mass Juniors, which are being held this week. He said it was not a tough decision.
``I’d rather play here,’’ he said of the course 10 minutes from home. He had members of his family following him on Tuesday.
The cut fell at 146.
Round 1 Recap
By: Paul Kenyon
SEEKONK _ Davis Chatfield did his damage over the entire front nine. Michael Carbone did the bulk of his damage on one hole on the back nine. And the two ended up Monday in the same spot _ tied for the lead in the 86th RIGA Open Championship at Ledgemont.
Chatfield, the 2016 RIGA Amateur champion, went out in a sparking 6-under 30 on the way to a 5-under 66. Carbone had a hole-in-one on the 171-yard 15h hole, in which he tore apart the grass around the cup, carrying him to his 66.
The two needed all the strong play they could muster since scoring was outstanding on an absolutely gorgeous day.
Five others, including New England Amateur champion Bobby Leopold and former PGA Tour pro Brad Adamonis of Cumberland, posted 67. Jack Whalen of New Hampshire, Matt Campbell of New York and Easton Renwick of Pennsylvania also had 67.
Four-time Rhode Island Amateur champion Brad Valois led the group at 68. In all, 25 players broke par in the $18,000 tournament.
Chatfield might be the biggest surprise among the leaders, not because the Notre Dame-bound star is the youngest, but because he is coming off a rib injury. He returned to RIGA competition and picked up right where he left off last summer.
The Wannamoisett member who created a sensation last July when he became the youngest player ever to win the State Amateur at 17, was dazzling with his 30 on the front nine.
Chatfield had yet to play this year because of a rib injury suffered the night before the State Amateur began. He had to withdraw both from that event and the New England Amateur the following week at Metacomet. He certainly looked healthy on Monday.
He began his round birdie-birdie-birdie. The 18-year-old with an almost perfect swing rattled off four straight pars, then eagled the par-5 eighth and birdied the ninth for 30 on the front. He had a bird on 13 to get to 7-under before suffering a double bogey on the par-3 15th.
Carbone was having a good, steady day when he reached the tee on the 15th. The URI grad, who won this tournament I 2009, was 3-under thanks to four birdies and only one bogey. On 15, which normally plays 187 yards, the pin was up front, setting the hole at 171 yards, so Carbone hit seven iron.
``It went right in. It tore up the hole, ripped it apart,’’ was the way Carbone described the ace, the third of his career.
The ball went in on the fly, but not before tearing apart the turf on the left edge of the hole. A piece of turf, as well as some dirt, were in the bottom of the cup.
``I thought I did a good job of putting everything back together again,’’ Carbone said. ``The cup was round again when I left.’’ Just to be sure, the RIGA sent an official out to repair the cup even more.
Carbone signed his scorecard, then did what guys who make aces are supposed to do. He bought his playing partners, Leopold and RIGA Hall of Famer Charlie Blanchard, a drink and offered everyone in the scoring area a drink, as well.
Leopold had almost as good a day himself, with five birdies and only one bogey. He is on a run, having won the New England Amateur and finished second in the Ouimet Memorial in his last two starts. Leopold did not have a single five on his card.
``I’m just trying to keep it going as long as I can,’’ he said.
Valois also was in good position with a 68, although it was not one that made him happy. Valois went out in 5-under 31 with an eagle on the par-5 eighth, then birdied 10 to get to 6-under. But three bogeys on the way in made him settle for 68.
