GREENFIELD — Although rain proved to be a minor nuisance during the opening day of the 72nd Invitational Four-Ball at the Country Club of Greenfield, it did little to deter the efforts of pre-tournament favorites KC Finley and Cody Booska.
The CCG tandem came charging out of the gates Thursday, firing a round of 10-under 62 to capture medalist honors during the qualifying portion of the annual event.
Brodie Conant and Max Major shot 65, and as defending champions they’ll be the No. 1 seeds in the Championship Flight bracket today when match-play begins with the Round of 16. Conant and Major will tee off against 16th-seeded Jeff Houle and Wayne Wright, who shot a 68, at 1:12 p.m.
Finley and Booska’s 62 put them as the No. 2 seeds, and they’ll meet 15th-seeded Jason Kelton and Jamie Crocker (69) at 12:27 p.m.
“We were pretty solid today,” offered Finley of the tandem’s opening-round 62. “We got through the first few holes with a couple birdies and that makes the rest of the round more manageable.”
The pair birdied the second and third holes, then added birdies on No. 5, 8 and 9 to take the turn at 5-under. They also birdied No. 10 for three in a row, and added four more (13, 16, 17, 18) to finish at 10-under.
“Getting off to a good start is huge, so to be under par through three holes, we felt good and were in a comfortable spot,” Booska said. “I thought we birdied a few holes we maybe shouldn’t have, and didn’t birdie a few that we could’ve. So it evened out in the end.”
While the 2014 champs and last year’s runners-up to Conant and Major have their sights set on getting back to Sunday’s title match, they noted the importance of not looking ahead in this format.
“You still have to get by Thursday to get into contention for the weekend. So mission accomplished there,” Finley explained. “We’ll just go out there and try and keep it going (Friday).”
The last non-local team to win the Four-Ball came in 2008, when teenagers Jake Skole (Longmeadow) and Dan Fanion (Westfield) took home the top spot. Another Hampden County team put itself in strong position after qualifying on Thursday to make a run at breaking that trend. Derek Yvon of GreatHorse in Hampden and Brian Foley of Springfield Country Club carded an 8-under 64, just two shots back of Booska and Finley. The pair will enter today’s Round of 16 as the No. 3 seeds, playing against No. 14 Dave Donoghue and Tim Rice (69) at 12:09 p.m.
“We really got it going on the back 9,” offered Yvon of his team’s qualifying round. “We were 2-under at the turn but went on a bit of a run.”
Yvon and Foley, playing in the Four-Ball at CCG for the first time, eagled No. 12 and added birdies on No. 13 and 14 to jump up the leaderboard.
“This course sets up well for us and you can really score well if you put your driver in play,” said Yvon. “(Foley) puts it in the fairway and then that gives me the chance to try and hit it a ton.”
Foley, the long-time hockey coach at Springfield Cathedral High School, now Pope Francis High School, said he played the course during the qualifier for the New England Amateur Championship on June 29 and almost immediately made the decision to try and get into the Invitational.
“I called (Yvon) on the ride home and told him we have to get out and play here,” Foley explained.
Yvon said the pair usually aims for a six or seven-under par round in this format, and they’ll continue to try and shoot low when match-play begins today.
“We’ll take it one shot at a time but if we get to that six or seven-under number, usually you have a good chance to win,” he said. “And if you do that and someone still beats you… tip your hat to them.”
Joe Wilson and Chris Ferriter turned in an impressive 66 after teeing off as one of the early groups out on Thursday morning. Wilson and Ferriter earned the No. 4 seed, and they’ll square off against 13th-seeded Jake Willis and Dave Cote (68) at 12:54 p.m.
Conant and Major highlight the top portion of the bracket as No. 1 seeds. Other matchups in that section of the draw today include No. 5 Jeremiah Bayer and Jay Spofford (67) vs. No. 12 Jake Simpson and Norm Burns (68) at 12:45 and No. 8 Chris Varilly and Gary Hunt (67) vs. No. 9 Bruce White and Lee Craig (68) at 1:03.
In the Finley-Booska section of the draw, matchups also include No. 7 Pat McGuire and Bob Rainville (67) vs. No. 10 Dave Kennedy and Nate Burdick (68), the 2015 and 2013 champions, at 12:18. Sixth-seeded Chris Bourbeau and Garrett Cousineau (67) round things out with a noon tee time against No. 11 Paul Denofrio and Matt Grayson (68).
The cut line to get into the Championship Flight bracket was 69, with four teams shooting the number for three spots. Last year’s cut line was 68.
Quarterfinals and semifinals will be played on Saturday, with the championship set for Sunday.