Swampscott native Steven DiLisio secured his first professional victory — the 115th Massachusetts Open Championship no less — and in the process became only the eighth player to win both the Open and the Mass Amateur Championship.
At Sacconnesset Golf Club in Falmouth, June 10 – 12, DiLisio emerged victorious, thanks in part to a suddenly red-hot putter in the final holes on the last day.
On the 16th hole in the final round, DiLisio sank a 50-foot putt to take the lead and never looked back. The 26 year old shot
5-under-par over the three-day tournament, opening with a 69, followed by a 73 and another 69 to clinch the title.
After taking the lead, DiLisio had little margin for error with Xavier Marcoux (Nashawtuc Country Club), who finished at 4-under, staying close. Marcoux, who held a 5-shot lead over DiLisio entering the final round, parred the last 13 holes, but it wasn’t enough as DiLisio hoisted the trophy. Marcoux had a chance to force a playoff with a 12-foot birdie bid breaking right to left on the 18th, it just missed.
“I hit a lot of good putts that just missed,” DiLisio said. “But I feel like I had a really good sense of speed … I kind of kept telling myself they were going to fall. Then they did.”
Players battled challenging weather throughout the tournament, including high winds and rain.
“I think the difference (on day three) for me was just putting,” DiLisio said. “I think it’s just a few putts went my way. And 54 holes with all this weather — it very easily could have gone Xavier [Marcoux]’s way too. It’s one shot, and I’ve had it go that way for me, too.”
Six years ago, DiLisio won the Mass Amateur at The Country Club in Brookline. The only other players who have won both the Mass Amateur and Mass Open championships are Francis Ouimet, Jesse Guilford, Charles Volpone, Jim Hallet, Kevin Johnson, Fran Quinn and Andover native Rob Oppenheim.
DiLisio had great success as an amateur. The Salem Country Club member played high school golf at both St. John’s Prep and Phillips Academy and then at Duke University.
Swampscott was well represented at the Mass Open. Aidan Emmerich (Kernwood Country Club) placed 10th overall — the second-lowest score among all amateurs – and finished 2-over-par after rounds of 69, 74 and 75.
“It felt good to be in the hunt for the tournament,” Emmerich said. “Especially after the Hornblower, coming in second this year, I’ve felt very good about my game and the work I’ve been putting in on and off the golf course.”
Emmerich, who said his favorite club is his 60-degree wedge, added that he’s “always happy with top-10” finishes.
“Especially in that field — there were some very good pros and amateurs — so it made me happy to get into the top 10. I’ve been very happy with my mental game and just trying to be as positive as I can be,” Emmerich said.
With the difficult weather, Emmerich credited his mindset for getting him through each round.
“My mindset throughout the tournament was to stay in the moment and be positive,” he said. “I’m known for getting negative and giving up sometimes, so I was most proud of myself for just living in the moment and not letting past shots or holes affect the whole round. I had a good first round and then the conditions got tough, and my ball striking started lacking a bit.”
Despite that, Emmerich said his putting remained consistent.
“My putter was very solid, and the greens were so good that if you got your ball started on the line, then it had a good chance of going in,” Emerich said.
Lastly, Emmerich reflected on competing against a high-level field.
“The experience from all these tournaments is great, because at this point of the game everybody is so good,” Emmerich said. “So if you’re getting top 20s and better in these events, then you’re obviously doing something right.”
Chris Francoeur of Amesbury finished at +7 and Christian Emmerich of Kernwood finished at +8.
