Golf tourney spotlights local trio of rising stars
The conditions at Tedesco Country Club in Marblehead bordered on the oppressive, temperature-wise. And while summer is certainly the season for golf in New England, some days just aren't fit for the game, even when the sun is shining.
Unless you're playing in a prestigious national tournament.
Kevin Benstead, John Harris, and Michael Mullavey, three high school students who either reside or attend school in the area, were among the field of the recent Fidelity Investments Junior Classic conducted by the American Junior Golf Association. To this trio, the conditions hardly matter. They live to play the game.
"It was pretty hot, but it was an honor just to be invited to play," said Harris, 17, who lives in Manchester-by-the-Sea and attends St. George's School in Newport, R.I.
"The AJGA is the top level of junior golf and getting to play in one of their tournaments and the exposure that it brings is huge. Golf is my main passion, and it's really important for me to get as many opportunities to play as I can."
Harris, by his own admission, didn't play as well as he would have liked at Tedesco. He carded a 24-over-par 234 in the three-day tournament, with his low round a 76 on the final day, finishing in a tie for 43d place with Mullavey.
But he was not deterred, choosing to shorten his memory and prepare for his next challenge, the Massachusetts State Junior Championship, played last week at Crumpin-Fox Club in Bernardston. Harris wants to play as much as he can to achieve his goal of playing in a Division 1 college program.
"I played football and squash this past year but golf is my favorite sport," said Harris, who estimated that he started doing some chipping and putting with his father at Essex Country Club at age 4.
"I think I can play in a couple of more AJGA tournaments next summer and try out for the Mass. Amateur, the Mass. Open, and the US Amateur. That can only help me as far as being able to play Division 1 after high school."
Like Harris, Mullavey has been around golf from a very early age. His father, Michael Sr., has been the club manager and head PGA professional at Mount Pleasant Golf Course in Lowell for 36 years. Michael Jr., who lives in Dunstable and will be a senior at St. John's Prep in the fall, resisted the game somewhat, not playing in his first tournament until he was 12. Now 18, he readily admits that the game has become a part of him.
"At the beginning of the season, in the spring, I sit down and try to come up with a schedule for myself," said Mullavey, who sports a lofty 4.0 grade-point average at the Prep and wants to study English and journalism in college. "I always have a lot of fun playing, and it's good to be able to keep testing myself."
While continuing his golf career in college is important to Mullavey, his primary focus is more immediate.
Last week, his focus was on the US Amateur qualifier held Thursday at Ferncroft Country Club in Danvers, as well as the impending golf season at the Prep. Working at his dad's course can't hurt his preparation, and he said that being at Mount Pleasant so much allows him pretty much unlimited access and few restrictions on when he can play and keep sharp.
"I want to finish the season strong and play the best I can this season for St. John's," said Mullavey, who will be playing his third varsity season this year.
Harris and Mullavey do what they can during the off-season to keep sharp, swinging at indoor ranges and playing while on family vacations in tropical climates.
Said Harris, "I get my fix of golf. By the fall, I'm pretty golfed out. Well, for a week or so, anyway."
Benstead just moves. A resident of Boxford in the summer and a student at St. John's Prep for his freshman year, Benstead now attends Windermere Preparatory School in Windermere, Fla., just outside Orlando.
He said that while the decision to move to Florida with his father for the school year was difficult and that he hated to leave his friends from home and the Prep behind, it all came down to golf.
"I loved it at St. John's but I wanted to pursue my game," said Benstead, 17, who carries a 1 handicap despite only starting three years ago. "I think in order to devote the right amount of time you have to play year-round, and I couldn't do that up here."
Benstead didn't score as well as he would have liked at Tedesco, but it wasn't for lack of effort. He works on his swing every day at the Sun 'N Air Golf Center in Danvers while playing in as many tournaments as he can during his summers in Boxford. He plays for the Windermere varsity team in the fall and when the season ends, he tees it up in national tournaments throughout Florida every couple of weeks and practices at the Grand Cypress Resort in Orlando.
"Ever since I started, I haven't been able to imagine not playing this game for more than a couple of days at a time," said Benstead, who cited Rollins College in Florida and Pepperdine University in California as his top college choices. "It's incredibly competitive, but I can see myself trying to play professionally. And if that doesn't work out, I'd love to teach the game, too." 