Joshua Rackley, an assistant professional at Gulph Mills Golf Club, chips onto the No. 13 (par 3, 177 yards) green.

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Five share medalist honors in Open Qualifier at Greate Bay

  SOMERS POINT, N.J. — Five players finished at 1-over-par 71 to share medalist honors in a Golf Association of Philadelphia Open Championship Qualifier at a challenging Greate Bay Country Club (par 70, 6,633 yards) Wednesday. Professionals Jeffrey Bonicky, Michael Paukovits and Joshua Rackley, along with amateurs Christopher Crawford and Matthew Gaffney, collectively led a field of 86 players hoping to earn one of 18 qualifying positions available. The 110th Open Championship will take place July 23 at Applebrook Golf Club.

  The cut line fell to 75 by day’s end.

  Gaffney, who plays out of Little Mill Country Club, birdied three of his first four holes to launch up the leaderboard. That red figure run included a kick-in on the par 3, 122-yard No. 3 following a crisp wedge.

  “I took advantage of good scoring opportunities, and I capitalized with the putter,” Gaffney, 33, of Sewell, N.J., said.

  The round’s conclusion reflected its opening. Gaffney fired back-to-back birdies on Nos. 17 (par 4, 418 yards) and 18 (par 4, 400 yards) to share medalist status. He smacked a sand wedge 115 yards to 20 feet on the first, and a 9-iron to three feet on the latter. Gaffney, who posted a Top 15 finish in the GAP Middle-Amateur Championship last month, is no stranger to success in qualifying events. He shared the top seat in a pair of 2009 qualifiers and earned co-runner-up status at North Hills Country Club earlier this year.

  “I come into these events with a lot of confidence,” Gaffney said. “I’ve been playing really solid. I’ve been hitting the ball on tight lines.”

  Rackley, too, cited a fast start as a key. He knocked a pitching wedge to eight feet on No. 3 and drained a 15-footer for birdie on No. 4 (par 4, 390 yards). He also carded a birdie on the par 5, 548-yard No. 6 before an unfortunate stretch of three straight bogeys. Rackley, an assistant professional at Gulph Mills Golf Club, steadied the ship coming in. His lone misstep occurred on No. 13 (par 3, 177 yards), where he flew his tee shot over the green, ran a chip 12 feet past and missed the comebacker.

  “For the most part, I was just center of the green and two-putt on the back,” Rackley, 24, of King of Prussia, Pa., said. “It was either downwind or you’re against the wind. It was tough out there.”

  Rackley hails from Wilmington, N.C. Upon graduating from North Carolina State University, he connected with Tom Gilbert, Gulph Mills’ head professional, through a friend and relocated a year ago. He looks forward to learning more about Applebrook firsthand.

Michael Paukovits

  “I heard it’s a great track,” Rackley said. “To win [Golf Association of Philadelphia] Open, you have to go low and beat a lot of great players in the area. I’m excited to have the opportunity to compete.”

  Paukovits, a teaching professional at St. Davids Golf Club, carded two birdies against two bogeys to turn in even. On No. 2 (par 4, 420 yards), he hammered a 4-hybrid 190 yards to six feet. The par 4, 426-yard No. 7 displayed a similar scenario, with Paukovits crushing a 3-hybrid 205 yards to five feet. On No. 10 (par 4, 423 yards), he knocked a 9-iron 140 yards to 20 feet and drained the downhill birdie putt.

  “I hit almost every fairway and had good distance control on my approach shots,” Paukovits, 33, of Strafford, Pa., said.

  Consecutive bogeys coming in prevented outright medalist honors. A heavy 8-iron on the par 3, 150-yard 16th hole left Paukovits 15 yards below the hole location. He sent a chip five feet past and missed the comebacker. Paukovits then left a 9-iron from 125 yards short on No. 17 (par 4, 418 yards), rolled his birdie attempt from the front fringe 10 feet past and failed to save par.

  Paukovits last qualified for the Open Championship in 2010. He’s excited to be back in the field for Applebrook.

  “I really like the course. It’s another one where you have to drive it straight,” Paukovits said. “I think it fits my game pretty well.”

  Bonicky, 46, of Little Egg Harbor Township, N.J., is the Director of Golf at Sea Oaks Golf Club. Crawford, 20, of Bensalem, Pa., is an incoming junior at Drexel University. The Spring Mill Country Club member qualified for match play in last week’s Amateur Championship at White Manor.

  On the other end of the qualifying spectrum, Mariano Medico, an amateur out of Fox Hill Country Club, drained a downhill 30-footer for birdie on No. 1 (par 4, 382 yards), the first playoff hole in a four-for-three frenzy, to advance into his first GAP Open.

  “I had a good line on it. I knew it was going to go a little left and I just knocked it in,” Medico, 18, of Shavertown, Pa., said. “I was struggling all day. I made 15-footers for birdies on the last two holes, and then I make that one, so it’s pretty cool.”

Golf Association of Philadelphia
  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 150 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.