Dully's roll hasn't stopped at NEPGA Championship
As in so many previous summers, the playoffs have been plentiful for Frank Dully Jr. Unlike before, the payoffs have been victorious.
``I've gotten there before in a lot of tournaments, gotten into the hunt, but I haven't been able to close the deal," said Dully. ``But this year, for some reason, I think I've learned how to win."
This golf season has been one triumph after another for the popular head pro at Kernwood Country Club in Salem. The stellar stretch began in the spring with a stirring 72-hole victory in the national Club Car Pro-Am at the vaunted Ocean Course at Kiawah Island, S.C., continued with a couple of pro-am triumphs locally, spread into Connecticut at a strong pro-am, and peaked at TPC Boston last month when Dully fired a 4-under-par 68 to snare medalist honors in a New England PGA section qualifier for the
That earned Dully his first berth in a PGA Tour event, and for sure he has circled the Labor Day weekend event on his calendar.
``As a kid growing up, like all of us, I dreamed of playing on the PGA Tour," said Dully. ``I have no illusions about making a living out there, but for one week, I'll get to live the PGA Tour life."
Dully is currently focused on the NEPGA Championship, which to local club pros is the Masters and US Open rolled into one. The 54-hole affair at Turner Hill in Ipswich got underway Tuesday and Dully came out strong with a 3-under 69, one shot behind Jay Wick of Old Sandwich. Yesterday, Dully fired a 70 and Wick a 71, both earning a spot in today's final pairing at 5 under and three shots ahead of four players.
``I don't want to look past [the NEPGA Championship]," he said. ``Before the season began, it was my goal to win that one and nothing that has happened has made me change that."
But as solid as things have been on the course, they've been somewhat unsettled off of it. Even months after Dully began feeling discomfort in his chest, he is still learning to live with the pain.
``I've got something on my lung, but they're still not sure what it is," said Dully, who has had a few MRIs. ``It's like a deep muscle pull. It's not anything life-threatening, but there's a discomfort."
Obviously, it hasn't affected Dully's play, which has been rock-solid and consistent. It began in April when he shot 8-under over the demanding Ocean Course, his closing rounds of 68-66 giving him a dominating seven-stroke triumph. The next successful step came in the NEPGA Pro-Pro Match Play when Dully made a key birdie in a playoff to propel himself and Gary Young into the championship match, though rain put a halt to that match and a makeup date has yet to be determined.
He beat a deep pro-am field earlier this summer, then got through local qualifying for the US Open. That earned him a spot at a sectional qualifier, where Dully played two groups ahead of Michelle Wie.
``I shot 73-73, but was 31 over my last nine and it was a great experience," said Dully.
His win in a pro-am at Sankaty Head on Nantucket made up for the couple of times he's lost in a playoff in that tournament, then Dully followed up his success in the Deutsche Bank qualifier by winning the NEPGA Pro-Assistant Championship at Wachusett CC in Boylston.
