Bridgehampton, N.Y. – Past champion Kevin Marsh shot a 3-under-par 69 at The Bridge Saturday for a one-stroke lead after the wind-swept first day of stroke play at the 2010 U.S. Mid-Amateur Championship.
I’m kind of surprised that I had the lowest score but I’m certainly not disappointed, said Marsh, 37, of Henderson, Nev., of his round that included five birdies and two bogeys.
With a 7:50 a.m. starting time, the 2005 Mid-Amateur champion faced difficult wind conditions for most of the round.
I would have taken even par when I teed off this morning. Marsh said.The first hole was brutal, and I hit a great third shot for a tap-in birdie on the first hole, which was kind of nice, and then I made a couple of good putts. I was a little squirrely on the back nine but I held it together.
Todd Burgan, 41, a pharmacist from Knoxville, Tenn. and a quarterfinalist in 2009, trailed Marsh after a 2-under-par 70 at Atlantic Golf Club, the best of the day at that course.
You just want to get in the top 64, Burgan said, acknowledging the windy conditions. The better you can shoot the first day, the less pressure the second. It’s one of the better rounds I’ve played in a while considering the difficulty out there.
Two strokes behind Marsh at 1-under 71 were Chris Hall, of Kennesaw, Ga., Brian Grossman of Mansfield, Texas, Scott Harvey of Greensboro, N.C., and 2008 runner-up Todd Mitchell of Bloomington, Ill., at The Bridge and Los Angeles County deputy sheriff Dick Engel, of Quartz Valley, Calif., at Atlantic Golf Club. Only seven players bettered par on the day.
Marsh, in six previous Mid-Amateurs, has advanced to at least the quarterfinals three times (quarterfinalist in 2004, semifinalist in 2007 and winner in 2005).
In addition to his good play, he employed the knowledge of his caddie to score well.
Fortunately, my caddie is a Bridge caddie, so that helped a lot, Marsh added. He helped me keep it in the right spots on the greens and stay off trouble off the tee.
Marsh was one of just three players in the morning wave of starting times who broke par, and he did so with a more aggressive approach to the stroke-play portion of the championship.
The last few years I felt like I get a little bit too protective, thinking I have to shoot a 74 or 75, and you just can’t play golf like that. Marsh said. You have to play your game and hopefully you play well. Tomorrow, it’ll be nice to have a little cushion, and just be able to go play. Sometimes when you shoot 75 or 76, you start thinking about the numbers. Now, I can just go play. We’ll see what the scores are like. It would be nice to be medalist.
A real estate professional, Marsh tailors his competitive schedule to prepare for this championship.
I feel like I’m in the prime of my golf career and it’s the highlight of the year for me, Marsh said.
Defending champion Nathan Smith, 32, of Pittsburgh, Pa., who played at Atlantic, led a group of eight players who shot even-par 72.
I needed a good score over here and I feel like I got it, said Smith, the 2003 and 2009 champion, who recorded four birdies and four bogeys. At least it might hold me in there to have a chance to make match play.
After a second day of stroke play Sunday, the U.S. Mid-Amateur field will be reduced to 64 players for match play, which will be played at Atlantic Golf Club. The first round of match play is scheduled for Monday, the second and third rounds will be played Tuesday, the quarterfinal and semifinal matches are on Wednesday, and the 36-hole championship final will be played Thursday.
The U.S. Mid- Amateur, which is open to golfers age 25 and older, is one of 13 championships conducted annually by the United States Golf Association, 10 of which are strictly for amateurs.
Bridgehampton, N.Y. -- Results of Saturday’s first round of stroke play at the 2010 U.S. Mid-Amateur Championship, played at 7,044-yard, par-72 Atlantic Golf Club and 7,352-yard, par-72 The Bridge. (tb=The Bridge; agc=Atlantic Golf Club).
Kevin Marsh, Henderson, Nev., 36-33--69tb
Todd Burgan, Knoxville, Tenn., 36-34--70agc
Dick Engel, Quartz Hill, Calif., 34-37--71agc
Chris Hall, Kennesaw, Ga., 35-36--71tb
Brian Grossman, Mansfield, Texas, 36-35--71tb
Scott Harvey, Greensboro, N.C., 36-35--71tb
Todd Mitchell, Bloomington, Ill., 37-34--71tb
Nathan Smith, Pittsburgh, Pa., 37-35--72agc
R.J. Nakashian, Palm Beach Gardens, Fla., 35-37--72agc
Sean Knapp, Oakmont, Pa., 38-34--72tb
Robbe Trout, Fort Worth, Texas, 38-34--72tb
Dan Emrick, St Peters, Mo., 36-36--72tb
Brad Wilder, Fort Wright, Ky., 33-39--72tb
Robert Leopold, England, 37-35--72tb
Alan Coshatt, Birmingham, Ala., 34-38--72tb
Raymond Floyd, Old Greenwich, Conn., 36-37--73agc
Patrick Carter, Huntington, W.Va., 36-37--73agc
Brian Harris, Kokomo, Ind., 35-38--73agc
Mike McCoy, West Des Moines, Iowa, 36-37--73agc
Tim Spitz, Rochester, N.Y., 36-37--73tb
Ryan Abbate, Weston, Fla., 41-32--73tb
Robert F Gerwin II, Cincinnati, Ohio, 33-40--73tb
Michael Brown, Cheltenham, Pa., 39-34--73tb
Jamison Friedman, Southampton, N.Y., 39-34--73tb
Dan Dunkelberg, Fort Worth, Texas, 36-37--73tb
Tim Hogarth, Northridge, Calif., 37-36--73tb
Tripp Davis, Norman, Okla., 38-35--73tb
Kris Mikkelsen, Atlanta, Ga., 39-35--74agc
Scott Almquist, Coto De Caza, Calif., 36-38--74agc
Joe Jaspers, Huntersville, N.C., 35-39--74agc
Keith Humerickhouse, New Castle, Colo., 36-38--74agc
Jordan Hawkinson, Grant, Minn., 34-40--74agc
Ryan Sloane, Campbell, Calif., 37-37--74agc
Tom Werkmeister, Grand Rapids, Mich., 35-39--74agc
Erik Bertrand, Pittsburgh, Pa., 39-35--74agc
Joseph Saladino, Huntington, N.Y., 37-37--74agc
Michael Cooper, Austin, Texas, 35-39--74agc
David Noll Jr, Dalton, Ga., 38-36--74tb
Danny Simmerman, Nashville, Tenn., 39-35--74tb
Dave Womack, Mcdonough, Ga., 39-35--74tb
Gene Williams, Beeville, Texas, 37-37--74tb
Casey Cusack, Anchorage, Alaska, 39-35--74tb
Robby McWilliams, Bossier City, La., 38-36--74tb
Serge Hogg, Baltimore, Md., 36-39--75agc
George J Zahringer III, New York, N.Y., 37-38--75agc
Richard Berkmeyer, St Louis, Mo., 38-37--75agc
Jonathan Valuck, Edmond, Okla., 39-36--75agc
Rick Cloninger, Fort Mill, S.C., 38-37--75agc
Joe Sanders, Incline Village, Nev., 38-37--75agc
Kevin Pomarleau, E Wenatchee, Wash., 35-40--75agc
Dan Horner, Sandy, Utah, 37-38--75agc
Scott Osler, Cutchogue, N.Y., 35-40--75tb
Tony Vincelli, Rosemount, Minn., 35-40--75tb
Anthony Barrera, San Jose, Calif., 36-39--75tb
Mike Calef, West Bridgewater, Mass., 38-37--75tb
Bill Jeremiah, West Grove, Pa., 38-37--75tb
John Engler, Augusta, Ga., 36-39--75tb
Nolan Mills, Charlotte, N.C., 40-35--75tb
David Ujihara, Brea, Calif., 39-36--75tb
John Wright, Aurora, Ill., 37-39--76agc
Nathan Colson, Milwaukee, Wis., 36-40--76agc
David Stewart, New York, N.Y., 37-39--76agc
Herbie Sargent, Pelzer, S.C., 39-37--76agc
Lance Goodson, Birmingham, Ala., 36-40--76agc
Jordan Nasser, Irvine, Calif., 36-40--76agc
Jay Dempsey, Glencoe, Ill., 38-38--76agc
James Scorse, Rochester, N.Y., 39-37--76agc
Duke Delcher, Bluffton, S.C., 39-37--76agc
Richie Taylor, Snellville, Ga., 37-39--76agc
Brian Higgins, Bellingham, Mass., 39-37--76agc
Derek Meinhart, Mattoon, Ill., 37-39--76agc
Harry Roberts, Saint Joseph, Mo., 42-34--76agc
Tim Jackson, Germantown, Tenn., 40-36--76tb
Dave Vaclav, Grosse Ile, Mich., 37-39--76tb
Nick Ushijima, Japan, 39-37--76tb
T.J. Brudzinski, Columbus, Ohio, 39-37--76tb
Steve Harwell, Mooresville, N.C., 37-39--76tb
Robert Chalanick, Victor, N.Y., 38-38--76tb
Geoffrey Cooper, Philadelphia, Pa., 36-40--76tb
Daniel Belden, Akron, Ohio, 37-39--76tb
Erik Hanson, Kirkland, Wash., 39-37--76tb
Jeff Marr, Wesley Chapel, Fla., 37-39--76tb
Robert Gregorski, Appleton, Wis., 39-38--77agc
Scott Kammann, Baneberry, Tenn., 38-39--77agc
Ryan McCarty, Voorhees, N.J., 38-39--77agc
Tyler Sharpe, Greensburg, Ky., 40-37--77agc
Jeffrey Fortson, Palm Desert, Calif., 36-41--77tb
Brian Atkinson, Chicago, Ill., 38-39--77tb
Joey Gullion, Humble, Texas, 39-38--77tb
Mike Hyland, Toledo, Ohio, 41-36--77tb
Michael Stamberger, Plainfield, N.J., 41-36--77tb
Roger Newsom, Virginia Beach, Va., 37-40--77tb
Jordan Mitchell, Atlanta, Ga., 41-36--77tb
Sam Hogan, Valdosta, Ga., 39-38--77tb
Jesse Larson, Minneota, Minn., 37-40--77tb
Ryan Zamorano, Dallas, Texas, 38-39--77tb
Brent Landry, Charlotte, N.C., 41-36--77tb
Ryan Leahey, Orange, Conn., 36-42--78agc
Ben Hayes, Scottsdale, Ariz., 41-37--78agc
Ryan Parnell, Atlanta, Ga., 38-40--78agc
Eric Spencer, Bloomfield Village, Mich., 35-43--78agc
Frank Ford III, Charleston, S.C., 40-38--78agc
Michael McCarthy, San Francisco, Calif., 39-39--78agc
Patrick Duffy, Omaha, Neb., 38-40--78agc
Bill Hodges, Thomasville, Ga., 37-41--78tb
Andy McCabe, Dallas, Texas, 40-38--78tb
Tim Mickelson, San Diego, Calif., 35-43--78tb
Stephen Anderson, Hobe Sound, Fla., 38-40--78tb
Kevin Boscamp, Dallas, Texas, 39-39--78tb
Eric Williams, Honesdale, Pa., 39-39--78tb
Brett Egge, Sioux Falls, S.D., 40-38--78tb
Andrew Gabelman, Barrington, Ill., 40-38--78tb
Austin Eaton III, North Sutton, N.H., 41-37--78tb
Samuel O'Dell, Hurricane, W.Va., 42-36--78tb
Peter Samborsky II, Dayton, Ohio, 41-37--78tb
Walter Gieselman, Commerce Township, Mich., 38-40--78tb
Sandy Pierce, Houston, Texas, 39-39--78tb
Brian Whitman, Bloomfield, N.J., 38-40--78tb
Matthew Fields, Los Angeles, Calif., 40-38--78tb
Todd Humrichouser, Westerville, Ohio, 39-39--78tb
James Doidge, Pueblo, Colo., 42-36--78tb
Mark Ewing, Newport Beach, Calif., 38-41--79agc
Joshua Rhodes, Paducah, Ky., 36-43--79agc
Miles McConnell, Madison, Wis., 38-41--79agc
Raymond Sheedy, Mount Airy, Md., 39-40--79agc
Tim Hamm, Chicago, Ill., 38-41--79agc
Jeff Duncan, Carson City, Nev., 41-38--79agc
Jonathan Carlson, Lake County, Calif., 39-40--79agc
Christopher Hudson, Portland, Ore., 39-40--79agc
Kevin Wentworth, Arnold, Calif., 43-36--79tb
Douglas Snoap, Apopka, Fla., 40-39--79tb
Grady Brame, Hammond, La., 38-41--79tb
Charlie Stevens, Wichita, Kan., 40-39--79tb
Ben Leestma, Boise, Idaho, 43-36--79tb
Jeffrey L Ryan, Valparaiso, Ind., 41-38--79tb
Aaron Bragg, Little Rock, Ark., 40-39--79tb
Jimmy Henderson, Lebanon, Ohio, 41-39--80agc
Jamie Jones, Montgomery, Ala., 42-38--80agc
Scott Hovis, Jefferson City, Mo., 37-43--80agc
Richard Balla, St Charles, Ill., 37-43--80agc
Dan Gabel, Poughkeepsie, N.Y., 41-39--80agc
Trevor Hyde, Kerrville, Texas, 36-44--80agc
Jeff Coffman, Oklahoma City, Okla., 37-43--80agc
Michael Caprio, Rumford, R.I., 40-40--80agc
David Field, Kiawah Island, S.C., 39-41--80agc
Martin Rifkin, Ft. Wayne, Ind., 36-44--80agc
Stan Payne, Little Rock, Ark., 37-43--80agc
Joey Davis, Huntersville, N.C., 40-40--80agc
Mark C Miller, West Covina, Calif., 37-43--80agc
Chris Igawa, Hilo, Hawaii, 38-42--80agc
Chester Musselman, Louisville, Ky., 38-42--80agc
Jason Robertson, Virginia Beach, Va., 39-41--80agc
Paul Murphy, Arlington, Mass., 40-40--80agc
T J Shuart, Coral Springs, Fla., 41-39--80tb
Hunter Nelson, Houston, Texas, 40-40--80tb
Brian Gillespie, Wayne, Pa., 41-39--80tb
Kevin Noto, Las Vegas, Nev., 40-40--80tb
Jay Blumenfeld, Parsippany, N.J., 40-40--80tb
Kevin Watford, Franklin, Tenn., 40-40--80tb
Brett Martin, Phoenix, Ariz., 41-39--80tb
Y.J. Yang, Korea, 42-38--80tb
Jim Perry, Canfield, Ohio, 43-37--80tb
Brent Shaw, Tampa, Fla., 44-36--80tb
Robert Morris, Great Falls, Va., 39-41--80tb
Arnold Cunningham, Nashville, Tenn., 42-38--80tb
Steven Tarulli, Rockville Center, N.Y., 39-41--80tb
George Marucci Jr, Villanova, Pa., 37-43--80tb
Kyle Marcolla, Chillicothe, Mo., 44-36--80tb
Kenneth Doerrer, Mitchellville, Md., 39-41--80tb
Paul Balatti, Santa Rosa, Calif., 37-43--80tb
Michael Minicucci, Austin, Texas, 41-40--81agc
David McDaniel, Tucson, Ariz., 42-39--81agc
Victor Galvani, Hopkinton, Mass., 41-40--81agc
Bjorn Bjorke, Port Orchard, Wash., 40-41--81agc
James Sullivan Jr, New Kensington, Pa., 42-39--81agc
Christopher Lee, Edmond, Okla., 42-39--81tb
Adam Walicki, Scottsdale, Ariz., 40-41--81tb
Nick Vondrak, Omaha, Neb., 41-40--81tb
John Jones, San Francisco, Calif., 41-40--81tb
Adam White, Ann Arbor, Mich., 39-42--81tb
Mark Manwaring, Long Beach, Calif., 40-41--81tb
Scott Derogatis, East Hanover, N.J., 42-39--81tb
Ty Comerford, O Fallon, Ill., 44-37--81tb
Greg Kramer, Urbandale, Iowa, 40-41--81tb
Tom Krystyn, Denver, Colo., 39-42--81tb
Freeman Fite, Anniston, Ala., 44-37--81tb
Vance Antoniou, North Barrington, Ill., 36-46--82agc
Roc Irey, Furlong, Pa., 40-42--82agc
Lloyd Fisher, Grand Rapids, Mich., 38-44--82agc
William Lundeen, Cincinnati, Ohio, 37-45--82agc
John Crowley, Greenwich, Conn., 39-43--82agc
Tobin Scott, Lincoln, Calif., 40-42--82agc
Chad Hanson, Graham, Texas, 42-40--82agc
Sergio Reyes, Lakeside, Calif., 39-43--82agc
Josh Williamowsky, Rockville, Md., 42-40--82agc
Mark Scheibach, Bermuda Dunes, Calif., 42-40--82agc
Shawn Hodge, Perry, Ga., 42-40--82tb
Brad Shaw, Los Angeles, Calif., 42-40--82tb
Paul Welle, Scottsdale, Ariz., 41-41--82tb
Mike Kirby, Virginia Beach, Va., 39-43--82tb
Philip Kalivas, Green River, Wyo., 41-41--82tb
Jason Coffin, Denver, Colo., 43-40--83agc
Jason Goldsworthy, Australia, 42-41--83agc
Jason Wood, Portland, Ore., 42-41--83agc
Mark O'Sullivan, Ireland, 42-41--83agc
Eric Peterson, Nampa, Idaho, 43-40--83agc
Scott Lamond, Chevy Chase, Md., 41-42--83agc
Scott Petty, Peoria, Ill., 39-44--83agc
Rob Stover, Durham, N.C., 41-42--83agc
Peter Smetek, Houston, Texas, 42-41--83agc
Joseph Alvarez, Hampden, Maine, 38-45--83agc
Joey Hord, Portland, Ore., 43-40--83agc
Eddie Hargett, Blythewood, S.C., 41-42--83agc
Chuck Del Priore, New Rochelle, N.Y., 40-43--83tb
Jeffrey Lorio, New Orleans, La., 43-41--84agc
Stephen Marland, Houston, Texas, 42-42--84agc
Michael Slaven, Chicago, Ill., 43-41--84agc
Cass Traub, Long Beach, Calif., 41-43--84agc
Matthew Elliott, Columbus, Ohio, 38-46--84agc
Geoff Klein, Mankato, Minn., 41-43--84agc
Jose Maruri, New Orleans, La., 39-45--84agc
Luis Romero, Huntington Beach, Calif., 42-42--84agc
Jimmy Burke, Houston, Texas, 44-40--84tb
Richard Woolworth, Greenwich, Conn., 43-41--84tb
Louis Seguin, Canada, 44-40--84tb
Tad Leistico, Omaha, Neb., 45-39--84tb
John Ehrgott, Peoria, Ill., 47-37--84tb
Thomas McConnell, Holliston, Mass., 42-42--84tb
Nick Lambos, Massillon, Ohio, 40-45--85agc
Larry Vaughan, Naperville, Ill., 41-44--85agc
Robert Funk, Canyon Lake, Calif., 42-43--85agc
Kevin Blaser, Somerset, Mass., 40-45--85agc
Dan Chappelle, Santee, Calif., 43-42--85agc
Richard Sexton, Birmingham, Ala., 39-46--85agc
Curtis Woodworth, New York, N.Y., 40-45--85tb
Scott Stratton, Rancho Santa Fe, Calif., 44-41--85tb
John Pate, Santa Barbara, Calif., 43-43--86agc
James Donley, Phoenix, Ariz., 40-46--86agc
Charles Anderson, Ada, Mich., 43-43--86agc
Steven Carter, Jacksonville, Fla., 46-40--86tb
Jeff Johnston, Agoura Hills, Calif., 46-40--86tb
Arthur Starrs, Dallas, Texas, 46-40--86tb
Peter Keller, Rye, N.Y., 42-44--86tb
James Saivar, San Diego, Calif., 44-43--87agc
Patrick Kelly, Albuquerque, N.M., 39-48--87agc
Jim D'Addio, West Haven, Conn., 41-46--87agc
Christian Petersen, Fair Oaks, Calif., 43-44--87agc
Tim Tucker, Coos Bay, Ore., 44-43--87tb
Matthew Clarke, Loudonville, N.Y., 47-40--87tb
Neil Moore, Redondo Bch, Calif., 45-42--87tb
Jonathan Fall, Milwaukee, Wis., 46-42--88agc
Robert Bechtol, Tallahassee, Fla., 44-44--88agc
Theodore Seagroves III, Chapel Hill, N.C., 42-46--88tb
Curtis Skinner, Lake Bluff, Ill., 41-48--89agc
John Ply, Chicago, Ill., 47-42--89agc
Gary Spector, Woodmere, N.Y., 44-45--89agc
Matt Wilson, Spartanburg, S.C., 45-44--89tb
Dave Honerkamp, Corona Del Mar, Calif., 43-47--90agc
Josh Sellers, Aurora, Ill., 43-47--90tb
Jim Mueller, Altamont, N.Y., 46-45--91agc
Jack Skirkanich, Rumson, N.J., 46-46--92agc
Mark Hamilton, Beverly Hills, Mich., 46-46--92tb
Justin Smith, River Forest, Ill., 52-41--93tb
Tyler Barry, Gering, Neb., 49-49--98agc