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Mackesy Leads 97th MGA Senior Amateur

BEDFORD HILLS, N.Y. (May 8, 2024) – Just two players sit under-par following the opening round of the 97th MGA Senior Amateur Championship at GlenArbor, as D. Scott Mackesy of Winged Foot and Nick Desai of Baltusrol posted scores of 2-under 70 and 1-under 71, respectively, on Wednesday.

Related: Round 1 Results | Photos

Overall, the duo leads a packed leaderboard, as the top-40 and ties cut fell at 44 players with scores of 4-over 76 or better.

“I had relatively low expectations, actually, because I haven’t had the pencil in my hand for a real competitive round in a little while,” said Mackesy, who turned 55 late last summer and is competing in his first MGA Senior Amateur. “Sometimes that helps and goes your way and I think that was the case today.”

Mackesy carded four birdies on his opening nine, placing circles on his scorecard on Nos. 1, 4, 7, and 9.

 

 

“I drove it well, found the fairway most of the day and my iron play was pretty good, so I hit a lot of greens,” said Mackesy. “I left a couple out there probably with a couple of putts, but in general made a bunch on the front then kind of guided it around on the back.”

Though he made his first miscue of the day on the par-3 11th, he responded with birdie on the par-5 12th.

“To make that birdie on 12 was great to just keep the round going, keep the momentum up and keep focused,” he said.

Mackesy added a double-bogey on the par-3 17th to finish at 2-under, earning him a one-shot lead heading into Thursday’s final round. Mackesy plans to keep his same game plan over the final 18 holes.

“I played pretty aggressive today,” said Mackesy. “I played to my strengths of hitting driver on most holes, even on the short ones and trying to get myself as close as possible, so I have to do that tomorrow. These guys are good, so you can’t just guide it around and hope to win. You have to go out there and go for it.”

Mackesy will have plenty of challengers to deal with on Tuesday.

Desai, 56, had a steady round, rolling in four birdies to three bogeys to sit in solo second. After starting on No. 10, Desai made early birdies on Nos. 12, 15, and 16, but made bogeys on Nos. 17 and 18 as he made the turn. He added a birdie and a bogey on his final nine for his 71.

Dennis Lynch of Baiting Hollow was one of three past champions to make the cut, carding an even-par 72 alongside Dave Scialabba of Meadow Brook and Jim Craffey of Arcola. Lynch claimed his second of two-straight MGA Mid-Amateur titles at GlenArbor. Host club member and past champion Ned Zachar carded a 1-over 73 to remain within striking distance. Alan Specht of Port Jefferson at Harbor Hill, last weekend’s senior division champion of the LIGA’s Richardson Memorial, is also in the group of 10 players at 1-over.

Despite a period of heavy rain early Wednesday morning, GlenArbor remained in fantastic condition for the round.

“Considering the rain we had this morning, it was solid,” said Mackesy. “We had no mud balls. We played the ball down. The greens rolled really well, so kudos to the whole team here at GlenArbor for putting a good product together.”

GlenArbor is welcoming its third MGA championship, previously hosting the 2018 MGA Father & Son Championship and the 2020 MGA Mid-Amateur claimed by Lynch. It’s Gary Player design that flows across the rolling landscape serves as a true test, demanding accuracy from tee to green.

Thursday’s final round will begin at 8:30 a.m. Pairings will go off both Nos. 1 and 10, with the final pairing of Mackesy and Desai teeing off the first hole at 10:00 a.m.

Additional Coverage
Senior Amateur History | Senior Amateur Records
Past Champions Gallery

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