New Course Record
A
fter an opening round of 77, a realistic expectation for Mike Gilmore of Bethel, Conn. was to
make the cut, which fell at 146. Gilmore fired a round of 69 on Tuesday to make the cut on
the number, and then went on to fire a final round of eight under-par 62. His day began with
five straight birdies, and even with a pair of bogey’s on #8 and 10, his ten birdies propelled him to a
tie for seventh at two under-par overall.
“The putter has been in the abyss the last ten years or so and its finally come alive, so I couldn’t
be happier,” said Gilmore. “I was walking down #18 thinking about the course record and just tried
to calm myself down. I had to remember I still had shots to hit and just to go about my business and
do what I had to do. I had my son on the bag today and he’s been great with me so that was a real
treat.”
Gilmore’s round of 62 set the new competitive course record at Rolling Hills Country Club. The
record was previously set by Frank Bensel in 2008 and matched by Adam Rainaud in the second round
of this year’s Connecticut Open.
A True Honor
With the help of Host Professional Ray
Ford and the Folds of Honor Foundation,
an active member of the United States
military was on-site throughout the
week to tend the American Flag on the
18th green. Ford was honored by the
Metropolitan PGA with the Patriot Award
in 2013 for his work raising funds for The
Folds of Honor Foundation through two
successful Pro-Ams. The Folds of Honor
Foundation is dedicated to providing
scholarships to the spouses and children
of soldiers killed or disabled in service to
our county.
Low Amateur Honors
David Pastore of Eclub of Fairfield was the
leader heading into the final round, and
although he wasn’t able to hold off Bensel’s
charge up the leaderboard, his third place
finish was good enough to claim low amateur
honors. Pastore fired rounds of 71-65-70—206
(-4), and was able edge out John Jackopsic
of Gillette Ridge Golf Club and Peter Ballo of
Woodway Country Club by a single shot. A
total of seven amateurs finished inside the
top fifteen, compared with only two amateurs
inside the top fifteen in 2013.
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Connecticut State Golf Association