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CVS Health Charity Classic
New England native and former PGA Champion Keegan Bradley is playing in the CVS Health Charity Classic for the first time. He will be partnered with his Hopkinton High teammate Jon Curran.
Sunday, June 28 Pepsi Pro-Am
Rhode Island Country Club, Barrington, RI
7:00 a.m. AM Shotgun Start
1:00 p.m. PM Shotgun Start
Monday, June 29 CVS Health Charity Classic First Round
Rhode Island Country Club, Barrington, RI
9:15 a.m. Opening Ceremonies hosted by Dan Hicks (18th Green)
10:30 a.m. First Round tee-times begin (including Pepsi MAX Shootout)
11:45 a.m. All Kids Can 3-Hole Challenge presented by Kimberly Clark (16th tee)
Tuesday, June 30 CVS Health Charity Classic Final Round
Rhode Island Country Club, Barrington, RI
8:00 a.m. Final round tee-times begin 18th Green Awards Ceremony (approx. 2 p.m.)
BENRUS Open at the Preserve – Wrap Up
June 19, 2015
WYOMING, RI _ Brad Valois did not earn the big prize he was looking for Thursday in the Benrus Open at The Preserve. He settled for a nice consolation prize instead.
Valois, a four-time Rhode Island Amateur champion, began the day focused only on trying to win $1 million, which was the prize for any hole-in-one made by an amateur in the one-day tournament. It was not until he was nearly finished with his day that Valois gave any consideration to perhaps winning the unique new event held on the par-3 course at the new four-season sporting resort in southern Rhode Island.
And winning is what he did.
Valois used what he called one of the best putting rounds of his life to record a 5-under-par 49 to top the 160-player field that included pros from the PGA Tour, Champions Tour and numerous mini tours.
As an amateur, Valois did not qualify for the 5,000 first-place check in the $100,000 event. Instead, he earned a $750 gift certificate. The winners’ check was split by Champions Tour player Guy Boros and veteran Connecticut native Kyle Gallo. They both posted 51s, two behind Valois.
The event, thought to be the first of its kind in the nation, was a rousing success. Much of the focus was on the offer of $1 million to any of the 37 amateurs who took part for any hole in one.
Valois was like most of the field in that he had never seen the new club before teeing it up. He made no secret of the fact that he was excited to have 18 chances to win a million dollars with one swing of the club. In a strange way, that helped him win the tournament. Valois reported that he did not even think about his score most of the day.
“There’s definitely more strategy involved when you play for score, but when you play for a shot at a million bucks, especially when it’s only once a year, you want to go after it. I was more aggressive. I never wanted to be short. It’s like a putt. If you’re not long enough it’s never going to go in,’’ he pointed out.
He ended up going past the hole much of the time.
“I’d knock it 30 feet past the hole trying to make it, then make the putt coming back,’’ he said. Because of his focus on the $1 million prize, he did not agonize over his putts nearly as much as he would do in other events. His lack of attention on the greens led to two missed putts inside five feet. But he made almost everything else.
“I made one on the third hole that had to have been 35 feet. On eight I made one from 25 feet. On nine form about 30 feet,’’ he related. “On 10 it was 30 or 35 feet. On 11 I missed one from four feet straight in, but then made a 20-footer on the next hole.
“I almost chipped in on one hole, then made a 25-foot curler on the next hole,’’ he said.
On 17, he was told he had the tournament lead. Suddenly, he began thinking about winning. He said he changed strategy a bit and focused on the last two holes on just getting the ball close, not on making a hole in one. He birdied both of them. His only disappointment was never threatening to win the $1 million.
“I never came within 10 feet,’’ he said.
Brett Melton of Indiana, a four-time Indiana section champion, did make an ace on the 156-yard fifth hole.
“It took me 31 years. I finally got one,’’ said Melton, a four-time Indiana PGA section champion and the director of golf at the Country Club of Old Vincennes. “I’ve had an albatross, any number of twos on par 4s, but I’ve never had a one. I finally got one after 31 years.’’
Melton hit a nine iron.
“It landed about six or eight feet short and a little to the left, took one bounce and went right in,’’ he related.
The bad news is that the only boost Melton received was on the scorecard. The $1 million prize for an ace was only for amateurs. There were four holes where a pro could win a BMW with an ace. But those holes were on 11, 12, 13 and 17, not 5.
The ace did help Melton to tie for fourth at 2-under 52.
The two players who tied for low pro honors won $18,750 each. They did not have a playoff because playoffs are only for a championship, and that belonged to Valois. Gallo is a veteran of the New England circuit from Connecticut.
Boros, the son of Golf Hall of Famer Julius Boros, had birds at 3, 6, 12 and 16, while making only one bogey, at 15.
“It was beautiful out there,’’ said Boros, who last week was among the leaders in the Constellation Senior Players Championship held in Belmont, Mass.
“I’ve been playing pretty well. My back held up pretty good,’’ he said. “I like par-3 courses where irons are all you have to hit.’’
Boros is one of a half dozen Champions Tour players taking part in the new $100,000 one-day event. His family has strong New England ties. His dad grew up in Connecticut and was a school teacher before turning pro and winning 18 PGA Tour events, including the U.S. Open and the PGA Championship.
Guy Boros has spent most of his life in Fort Lauderdale, Fla., and in fact went back home after completing play in the Senior Players Championship in Belmont, Mass., on Sunday.
“My daughter had a volleyball tournament and I don’t get a chance to see her play a lot because of all my traveling,’’ he related. “It was important for me to watch her play. She won her tournament and qualified for the Junior Olympics in New Orleans.’’
Boros flew back to Rhode Island to play in the Benrus Open and will be on to the Senior Open and the Senior British Open in coming weeks.
The BENRUS Open at The Preserve:
Less than 24 Hours to Multi-Million Dollar Tee-Offs
[WYOMING, RI] The BENRUS Open at The Preserve is less than 24 hours away – as is the introduction to a new way to think about, play, and watch golf. Noted sports writer Paul Kenyon is excited about the Greatest Day in Golf:
With a one million dollar prize riding on one swing of the golf club, it is understandable that most of the focus on Thursday’s BENRUS Open at The Preserve is on what might happen to the 35 amateurs taking part.
The event at The Preserve, the exclusive, four-season sportsman’s retreat in southern Rhode Island truly is a first of its kind. No one knows exactly what to expect and how the players will react to having so much money on the line. With 35 amateurs taking part, it means there will be 630 opportunities for a million dollar hole in one on the 18-hole par-three course.
The amateur field includes numerous strong players, from a Rhode Island golf Hall of Famer, 70-year-old Paul Quigley, to teenage sensations Megan Khang and Patrick Welch, to Boston College player Brian Butler, who already has experienced what can happen with just one swing of the club.
Butler aced the 158-yard 18th hole in qualifying play for the tournament, which carried with it a $10,000 prize. But the senior-to-be at Boston College turned it down. It would have required him becoming a pro. Amateur rules dictate players can accept only up to $750 in vouchers or merchandise at The Sporting Shoppe at The Preserve..
“I’m not going to give up my last year of college golf for $10,000,’’ Butler said. However, it likely would be a different story if he can duplicate the shot in the tournament proper on Thursday
“For a million dollars it might be different,’’ he said As it is, the amateurs will have their own prize pool with payoffs to the top 10 finishers, topped by a $750 voucher to the winner.
Still, as special as the event is for the amateurs, it is a big day for the 72 PGA pros and 49 mini tour pros taking part. The $100,000 purse, plus perks, makes it a huge day for them. The number of chances for professional golfers to compete in the New England area has shrunk considerably in recent years. The BENRUS Open fills a huge void and does it with a great prize list for the pros, bigger than any event outside of the major tours.
The winner will receive $25,000 and players will be paid up through 40th place, which will be worth $1,000. Three-time national club pro champion Mike Small of Illinois, members of the Champions Tour and the Latin American Tour and Warwick’s Jeff Martin, runner-up in last week’s Mass Open are among those in the field.
Other prizes include up to four BMW automobiles for aces on specific holes for the pros, trips to Bermuda for both pros and amateurs for aces on other holes courtesy of Goslings Rum, a luxury sports enthusiast package, closest to the pin challenges and an optional skins game.
The event will be taped for later telecast on both NESN and WLNE-TV. Updates on scoring during the tournament will be available through the New England PGA website.
The following pros will compete in The BENRUS Open at The Preserve for a $100,000 purse:
Mike Capone – RI Local whose played on the PGA Tour, European Tour and Asian Tour, playing in over 57 countries. RI Amateur and RI State Open champion.
Brad Adamonis – RI Local whose played on the PGA Tour and the Web.com Tour
PH Horgan – RI Local whose played on the PGA Tour and Web.com Tour, as well as the Champions Tour
Danny Balin – Met Section player who just won a South American PGA Tour event
Guy Boros – Current Champions Tour player and past PGA Tour player
Grant Waite – Current Champions Tour player and past PGA Tour player
Mike Small – 3 Time PGA Professional National Champion, arguably the best club professional in the country
Bob Sowards – Won the PGA Professional Nation Championship, Won Player of the year in Ohio more than 10 times
Geoffrey Sisk – Local New England player who has won every state open. Has played on the PGA Tour and the web.com tour as well.
Jim Renner – Current PGA Tour player
Giovanni Feroce – CEO of Benrus
Susie Cavanagh – Current RI State Women’s Amateur Champion
Bobby Leopold – Has won every event in RI, including the State Amateur and Player of the Year
Brad Valois – Has won every event in RI, including the State Amateur and Player of the Year, multiple times
Charlie Blanchard – Multiple player of the year and state amateur champion
Megan Khang – One of the top women junior players in the world. Future LPGA star.
Patrick Welch – Local RI junior ranked nationally who plays cross handed. Won the inaugural Drive, Chip and Putt at Augusta National in 2014.
George Pirie – Won every event in the state as an amateur
Paul Quigley – RI Local amateur who defies age by winning events in more than 5 different decades
Jeff Martin – 3 time NEPGA Player of the year who has played in 2 PGA Championships
Shawn Warren – Long hitting NEGPA professional and the current two time defending player of the year
John “Jumbo” Elliot – Local professional who has won events all over New England
Jason Parajeckas – Son of NEPGA Hall of Fame member Paul Parajeckas, who has won multiple events in New England
Kevin Johnson & Chip Johnson – Two brothers who have long competed against each other on the local scene and on the Nike tour.
Fran Quinn – MA professional who has plays on the web.com and has played on the PGA Tour.
Nancy Diemoz – One of the best women amateur players in the state, she is the only woman that got through the qualifier to make it to the finals.
The BENRUS Open at the Preserve – The Greatest Day in Golf
1 Day Stroke Play Event on Thursday June 18th, 2015
https://www.thepreserveopen.com/
The BENRUS Open – “Greatest Day In Golf” – features $20 million in cash and prizes. Each tee shot on the 18-hole par 3 course configuration comes with one breathtaking opportunity after another for golfers to win $1 million for scoring a hole-in-one. A New England PGA conducted event to be televised by NESN, the tournament will be held on June 18 at The Preserve at Boulder Hills, 87 Kingstown Road, Wyoming, RI, 02898.
Registration:
Group registration encouraged. Create your own foursome with your closest friends for the qualifying rounds to truly make this the GREATEST DAY IN GOLF!
Qualifying Dates – Choose 1
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Monday, May 18th, 2015
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Wednesday, May 20th, 2015
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Tuesday, May 26th, 2015
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Thursday, May 28th, 2015
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Sunday, May 31st, 2015
