Gaffney, Naylor top Middle-Amateur Qualifier at French CreekELVERSON, Pa. — Little Mill Country Club’s Matthew Gaffney and Applebrook Golf Club’s William Naylor carded respective 1-under-par 70s to share medalist honors in a Middle-Amateur Championship Qualifier at a cool French Creek Golf Club (par 71, 6,389 yards) Monday. Both players led a field of 135 hoping to earn one of 39 qualifying spots and ties available for the Championship proper, set for May 22-23 at Fieldstone Golf Club. Sharing the medalist seat isn’t foreign to Gaffney, 32, of Washington Township, N.J. He did so twice in 2009: at a Middle-Amateur and Amateur Championship qualifier, respectively. “I drove the ball really long and straight today,” Gaffney, a transportation manager for Cisco Foods, said. “I took advantage of some really good tee shots and made some crucial putts for par to keep the round going. The golf course is in great shape. The fairways are nice and tight. It was just overall a good performance.” Also contributing to that performance was Harry Lore, a good friend and clubmate who served as Gaffney’s forecaddie. “He’s played here a number of times, and I had never seen the golf course,” Gaffney said. “It was nice to have someone to guide my round and tell me where to hit it.” Gaffney opened with a three-putt from 60 feet for bogey on No. 1 (par 4, 349 yards). He lost another stroke on the par 5, 485-yard No. 4 after a 6-iron shot from 205 yards landed in fescue. Gaffney responded nicely with a birdie on No. 5 (par 3, 115 yards) after sticking a 9-iron to a foot. He posted six straight pars before finding a birdie on the par 4, 445-yard 12th hole. Gaffney hit a 7-iron 155 yards to nine feet and converted the right-to-left breaker. “It broke a little more than I thought,” he said. “I didn’t hit it hard enough to hold the line, but it luckily caught the left lip and rolled in.” Gaffney moved to 1 under with a birdie on No. 17 (par 3, 202 yards) after stopping a 4-iron at six feet. Gaffney’s represented his home course throughout its charge into the GAP Team Matches Playoff. It’s kept his game fresh and sharp thus far. Monday provided further re-assurance that Gaffney’s trending in a positive direction. He is dipping back into the competitive circuit following a short hiatus. Gaffney and his wife Dorthea had a baby, Mark Benjamin, last year. “I’m looking forward to getting back out there this year,” he said. “With the way I’m driving the golf ball, I definitely feel that I can contend at Fieldstone. I’m looking forward to the challenge.” Like Gaffney, Naylor, 39, of Willistown Township, Pa., attributed his medalist effort to consistent ball-striking. He hit 13 fairways and 15 greens in regulation. He, too, bogeyed No. 1 following a three-putt from 30 feet. Naylor carded a 4 on the par 3, 182-yard No. 8 after missing the green left with a 7-iron. He attempted to hit a high 60-degree wedge out of thick rough, but his golf ball caught the down-slope and left Naylor 12 feet from the jar. A 3 under on his inward tour boosted Naylor, an insurance consultant, onto the medalist platform. “I started to get a feel for the greens,” he said. Naylor knocked a 56-degree wedge 70 yards to four feet for birdie on No. 11 (par 5, 502 yards). Naylor posted back-to-back red figures on Nos. 16 (par 5, 518 yards) and 17 (par 3, 202 yards). He hammered a 3-wood 236 yards to 20-feet and two-putted for birdie on the first, and hit a 4-iron to six feet. During the winter, Naylor spent time in Naples, Fla. and joined Calusa Pines Golf Club. Doing so allowed Naylor to improve his golf game. “The course is so hard. It kind of taught me what good scores mean,” he said. “I’ve become a lot more relaxed playing golf. I’m starting to enjoy it a lot more.” Monday’s qualifier was the last of three; Downingtown Country Club and Greate Bay Country Club hosted events last month. At the end of the day, the cut line stopped at 80. The GAP Middle-Amateur started in 1984, three years after the USGA created the U.S. Mid-Am as a formal championship for post-college amateurs. The Association followed suit with the USGA in creating a Mid-Am, but initially differed in its administration of the tournament in a couple of respects. The most obvious difference was the age requirement. Prior to 2001, the GAP Mid-Am was for players 30 years of age and older. The Association’s Executive Committee reviewed and revised that age requirement in 2001 to match the USGA's guidelines of 25 years of age or older for eligible players. Also at that point, the Committee changed the format of the event to a two-day stroke play tournament (instead of a one-day medal play event) with a cut to the low 70 players and ties after the first round. The field begins with 144 players, an increase of 12 from years past. Players must have a GAP/USGA Handicap Index of 7.0 or lower. Founded in 1897, the Golf Association of Philadelphia (GAP) is the oldest regional golf association in the United States and serves as the principal ruling body of amateur golf in its region. Its 143 Member Clubs and 57,000 individual members are spread across parts of Pennsylvania, New Jersey, Delaware and Maryland. As Philadelphia’s Most Trusted Source of Golf Information, the Golf Association of Philadelphia’s mission is to promote, preserve and protect the game of golf.
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A Walk Through Time
GAP is the oldest state or regional golf association in the country. It started courtesy of a friendly competition – the Team Matches – and has grown into the preeminent golf association in the country. Along the way, golf history has been made.
