Results of the 2023 U.S. Mid-Amateur Championship Qualifier held at Pelican Point Golf Club in Gonzales, Louisiana on Monday, August 21st, 2023.
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48 players competed in the 2023 U.S. Mid-Amateur Championship Qualifier held at Pelican Point Golf Club. There were three qualifying spots and two alternate spots being played for. Tee times began at 7:30 AM off the 1st tee. The final group finished right on time at 3:30 PM. The course played to a par 71 at 6,899 yards for the qualifier.
Jonathan Fricke, from Destin, Florida, and Andrew Noto, from Metairie, Louisiana, secured their spots in the U.S. Mid-Amateur Championship by each carding a two-under par, 69 during today’s round. Fricke recorded birdies on his first two holes, as well as on holes 4, 7, and 9, accumulating a score of 33 on the inward nine. He rounded off his scorecard with just one bogey on the back nine, while maintaining par for the rest of the holes. Noto, on the other hand, initiated his round with a strong start, achieving four birdies on the front nine (holes 1, 5, 6, and 9), and later adding another on hole 13. He impressively managed to keep his setbacks limited to three bogeys throughout his entire round.
When asked about his preparation for today’s qualifier, Noto said, “Prep is playing golf every moment I can. I try to squeeze a round in when I can, and luckily we had our State Mid-Amateur last week, so I was able to knock a little bit of rust off there but playing in that allowed me to progressively get better each day and gain some momentum going into today’s round.”
The identical score of 69 achieved by Fricke and Noto earned them the prestigious title of low medalists in today’s U.S. Mid-Amateur Sectional Qualifier.
Jordan Elsen, from Kenosha, Wisconsin, claimed the third qualifying spot with a score of one-under par, 70. Elsen’s performance was marked by four birdies on holes 5, 6, 15, and 16, along with three bogeys over the course of his round. Notably, he also secured a birdie on the renowned island green hole #16 at Pelican Point.
Fricke, Noto, and Elsen now advance to the esteemed U.S. Mid-Amateur Championship, set to unfold at Sleepy Hollow Country Club and Fenway Golf Club in Westchester, New York on September 9th-14th.
A playoff was held to see who would claim the alternate spots between Todd McPherson of New Orleans, Louisiana and Alex Balog of Elmore, Alabama. The two players went into the three hole playoff before Todd McPherson was named 1st Alternate and Alex Balog was named 2nd Alternate.
The USGA accepted a record number of entries for the second year in a row (6,060) and 264 players will compete in the 2023 U.S. Mid-Amateur Championship. For more facts about the championship, visit: 2023 U.S. Mid-Amateur Fast Facts (usga.org)
This championship was conducted by the Louisiana Golf Association.
Media Contact:
Maili Bartz
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