HYDE PARK, Mass. – The New England PGA Section concluded the final round of the 2024 NEPGA Section Senior Championship on Tuesday, July 23rd at George Wright Golf Course. The day brought cloudier skies and cooler temperatures than round 1 on Monday. The 2013 NEPGA Section Senior Champion, Ed Kirby, PGA (The Aquidneck Club) led the way through round 1, starting the day at the top of the leaderboard at 2-under, 68. He held the lead through round 2, posting an impressive 3-under to finish 5-under overall, earning the 2024 NEPGA Senior Championship Title for a second time.
Seven qualifying spots at the 36th Senior PGA Professional Championship were up for grabs today. Kirk Hanefeld, PGA (LM) the 2008 and 2011 Senior PNC Champion, is exempt from qualifying.
Kirby wasted no time improving his lead, posting birdies on holes 2 and 3, making the turn at 2-under through 9 and 4-under overall. He moved to 6-under with birdies on the par-4 11th hole and par-3 14th hole before a bogey on the 18th put him at 5-under overall, which was an incredible 8-stroke lead from the second-place spot.
“It has been 11 years since I won this event,” said Kirby. “I’ve gone through a lot in that time,” he continued. “The opportunity was here today, and all I thought was – I am going to go out and play a solid round of golf… I had a lot of support from my club, The Aquidneck Club… that support carries you forward. I have a great family and I’m a blessed guy”.
Dave Tiedemann, PGA (Shelter Harbor GC) was just behind Kirby at 1-under, 69 heading into the final round. He shot 4-over today to finish in a five-way tie for second place at 3-over, overall. Greg Farland, PGA (Marlborough CC) shot 3-over in round 1 and even today to join him in the second-place spot on the leaderboard. David Dionne, PGA (Beverly G&T Club), Rick Karbowski, PGA (Auburn Driving Range), and Jeff Martin, PGA (Wollaston GC) rounded out the five-way tie for second, all finishing at 3-over through 36 holes.
Jeff Seavey, PGA (Goose River GC) and John Hickson, PGA (Northport GC) rounded out the top eight, shooting 4-over through the two rounds for a share of seventh place on the leaderboard.
For the first time, the NEPGA implemented a Forward Tee option for players 65 years and older. The Forward Tee Division is not eligible for the overall Championship or PPC Qualifying.
Vince Molesky, PGA (Apple Hill GC) took first place in the newly implemented Forward Tee Division, shooting a 2-over, 142 over the two rounds. He finished round 1 at 7-over before posting a stellar 5-under round 2 with 5 birdies on his scorecard to climb the leaderboard.
Seven qualifying spots at the 36th Senior PGA Professional Championship were up for grabs today. Hanefeld, the 2008 and 2011 Senior PNC Champion, is exempt from qualifying. Today’s round determined the six qualifiers as well as five alternates for the senior PNC to be held from September 24-29 at Sunriver Resort in Sunriver, Oregon.
Congratulations to the following NEPGA Golf Professionals on qualifying:
Ed Kirby (The Aquidneck Club)
Greg Farland (Marlborough Country Club
David Dionne (Beverly Golf & Tennis Club)
Dave Tiedemann (Shelter Harbor Golf Club)
Jeff Martin (Wollaston Golf Club)
Jeff Seavey (Goose River Golf Course)
John Hickson (Northport Golf Club)
Congratulations to our alternates:
Tom Tobey (Sandwich Hollows GC)
Frank Leja (The Club at New Seabury)
Todd Cook (Haverhill CC)
James Burke (Ponkapoag GC)
Cory Mansfield (Derryfield CC)
The NEPGA would like to thank George Wright Golf Course Head Professional, Scott Allen, and the entire George Wright GC staff for hosting the two-day Championship.
The 2024 NEPGA Senior Championship is supported by the Golf Channel, RJ Shepherd, Avidia Bank, Mohegan Sun, and the PGA Tour.