2026 NYS Men's Amateur Championship Program by NYSGA

GLENS FALLS COUNTRY CLUB, JULY 7-9, 2026

Welcome From the NYSGA President

Welcome to the 103rd NYS Men's Amateur Championship, and congratulations to every player who earned a place in this week's field.

At the New York State Golf Association, our vision is clear: to engage, embrace, and enhance the New York State golf community. Every championship we conduct, every member we serve, and every partner club we work alongside is in service of that vision.

This Championship is where that vision is most visible. Since 1923, the NYS Men's Amateur has stood as the NYSGA's flagship event, and it carries a responsibility we do not take for granted. Elevating our championships is a key priority, and this week reflects that commitment, from the strength of the field, to the quality of the venue, to the experience we work to deliver for every player in the field.

That work continues to pay off. Since 2024, four of our state amateur championships - Men, Women, and Junior Boys & Girls - have served as USGA Exemption Events, sending New York's Champion Golfers directly into their corresponding USGA championship. The standard continues to rise, and so does our commitment to meet it.

The 103rd edition returns to Glens Falls Country Club for the first time since 1962. GFCC is a Donald Ross design that has hosted championship golf throughout its history, including the inaugural NYS Men's Mid-Amateur in 1984. In recent years it has drawn growing national recognition, earning a place among Golf Magazine's top 100 courses in the country. The course's full story is best told in the pages that follow.

We offer our sincere thanks to the GFCC membership, leadership, staff, and volunteers, whose tireless efforts have brought this Championship to life. Hosting an event of this caliber takes months of preparation and the commitment of dozens of people who will never appear on a leaderboard. Their work is what makes this week possible.

Most importantly, I want to recognize the players. You have secured this opportunity through hard work, persistence, and a love for this game that reaches further than you may know. Thank you for showing us what is possible.

NYSGA

Officers, Committee and Staff

NYSGA Officers

President Shawn Baker, Oak Hill CC

1st Vice President Brian Williams, Winged Foot GC

2nd Vice President Lawrence Lessing, Meadow Brook Club

Secretary Jamie Miller, Crag Burn GC

Treasurer Robert Smith, Highland Park GC

NYSGA Executive Committee

John Burns, Niagara Falls CC

Robert Clark, Yahnundasis GC

Brett Cooper, The Seawane Club

Karen Feldman, Columbia Golf & CC

Ryan Foster, Schuyler Meadows Club

Henry Fust, Onondaga Golf & CC

Jim Gifford, Mohawk GC

Megan Grehan, Hudson National GC

Brent Herlihy, Glens Falls CC

Brian Kumiega, CC of Buffalo

Tom Owen, Corning CC

Doug Vergith, Chautauqua GC

Rich Weber, Brookfield CC

NYSGA Staff

Bill Moore, Executive Director

Andrew Hickey, Director, Operations

Deb Spilman, Manager, Special Events & Volunteer Operations

Dan Thompson, Director, Marketing & Communications

Jack Margaros, Manager, Media

Jack Travers, Director, Rules & Competitions

Mike Dirkes, Director, Rules & Competitions

Jack Corcoran, Manager, Regional Associations & Junior Golf

Luke Lynch, Manager, Member Events

Michael Donnelly, Tournament Director, Western NY

Peter Stoj, Tournament Director, Eastern NY

Mark Ackley, Manager, Course Rating

Will Adkins, USGA P.J. Boatwright, Jr. Intern

Allison Lyons, USGA P.J. Boatwright, Jr. Intern

Riker Schiff, USGA P.J. Boatwright, Jr. Intern

David Toplitsky, USGA P.J. Boatwright, Jr. Intern

Aidan Tseng, USGA P.J. Boatwright, Jr. Intern

Porter Matt, USGA P.J. Boatwright, Jr. Intern

NYSGA Course Rating & Tournament Committee

Andy Abler

Mark Ackley

Norm Amyot

Michael Aquino

Fletch Baltz

Al Belair

Vic Bergsten

David Blakelock

Vincent Bonvino

Chris Boynton

Dave Braunscheidel

Gene Bullis

Jeffrey Bullis

John Bullis

Frank Delsignore

Joy Denzak

Ralph Desiderio

Gordon Dewey

Patric Donaghue

Tom Eason

Karen Feldman

Michael Fitzgerald

Georgette Folley

Adrian Forzani

Bill Gilbert

Tom Hahn

Joe Hazard

John Henry

Stephen Holmes

Frank Jagoda

Robert Kawa

Ken Kopra

Robert Lindstrom

Janis Luce

Kevin Luzak

Tim Mahar

Susan Marsh

Ron Mason

Pat Mayne

James McKillip

Rick Meath

Jim Meyers

Gene Meyle

Bill Moreland

Arthur Munson

Jack Mulvey

Jim Murrett

Rocco Palmieri

Bob Raimo

John Raunick

William Rausch

John Reagan

Steve Rentz

William Robertson

Sean Rotella

Tom Russell

Anthony Scarpello

Richard Silverstein

David Smith

Don Sommerville

Jami Sorrento

Michel Trudeau

Jerry Vereeke

Cindy Walkanowski

Gale Warren

Howard Williams

Warren Winslow

Valerie Wood

William Barret

Marci Bevilacqua

Michael Burgess

John Burns

Joseph Calabrese

Ted Casey

Sue Chambers

Cory Ciambella

Brian Clark

Daval Coleman

Jim Collins

Andrew Conway

John Cooney

Brett Cooper

Thomas Cotter

William Curtin

John Davis

Bob Dillon

Michael Donnelly

Georgia Dusckas

Tom Eckert

Sue Edson

Jen England

Joe Enright

John Ernst

Vie Evans

Karen Feldman

Mary Beth Fiore

Tim Frank

Ryan Gabel

Conor Gillis

Paul Goetz Jr.

Dan Gottesman

Megan Grehan

Brad Griffin

Gary Hackett

David Hayes

Ross Hoham

John Hudacs

Chris Hufnagel

Scott Johnson

Pete Jones

Dennis Kardach

Tim Kayes

Mary Ann Keeler

Stephen Keeler

Edward Koslick

JL Krouse

Diane Kullmann

Brian Kumiega

Sandra Kunz

Bill Lelbach

Bill Loehr

Patrick MacRae

Angela Marathakis

Theresa McGibbon

Tom McGibbon

Lisa McMorrow

Martin McMurtrie

Sean McPhee

Jamie Miller

Louis Miller

John Monahan

James Murray

Tom Owen

Brandon Payne

John Quijano

Nick Raasch

Ricky Reilly

Joseph Riccio

David Schalekamp

Chris Schmidt

Tim Schum

Robert Simms

John Sniezyk

Edward Stanek

Iris Stanek

Peter Stoj

Joe Strykowski

Frank Suits

John Sullivan

Thelma Taylor

Marco Tomakin

Jay Tucker

Chris Van Tuyl

Douglas Vergith

Mona Wasserman

Warren Winslow

Bryan Whooten

Loretta Whooten

Jeff Wilson

Douglas Young

Jon Zucarelli

HISTORY OF THE MEN'S AMATEUR

When the New York State Golf Association formed in 1923, its first order of business was to conduct the NYS Men's Amateur Championship. New York had been, by one account, the only state in the then‑48 without a governing body to administer a state amateur championship.

At the association's inaugural meeting at the Yahnundasis Golf Club, Sherrill Sherman of Utica was elected the NYSGA's first president. He quickly approved Garden City Golf Club's request to host the first championship, where Eddie Driggs Jr. of Cherry Valley Country Club defeated Garden City's Clifton Mabon, 8 and 7, in a 36‑hole final to become the inaugural champion.

The championship's format has changed three times since. Match play decided the title from 1923 through 1969. The event moved to 72 holes of stroke play in 1970, returned to match play in 1992, and switched back to 72-hole stroke play in 2009, where it remains today.

The field has grown with the game. The 1923 championship drew 61 entries at Garden City; by 1992, a record 726 golfers registered to qualify at Drumlins Country Club. Over the decades, the NYSGA has watched many fine amateurs become champions — and, in some cases, go on to lasting careers in the game. A few of them:

Ray Billows won in 1935 in his championship debut at Winged Foot Golf Club's West Course. His was a true rags-to-riches story: 21 years old and earning $17 a week as a printing clerk, he drove to Winged Foot in a $7 car and slept on the clubhouse porch to save caddie money — then beat one of the strongest fields in state golf history. Billows captured a record seven NYS Men's Amateur titles, reached the U.S. Amateur final three times, and represented the United States in the Walker Cup at St. Andrews (1938) and Winged Foot (1949).

Don Allen of Rochester, a former Colgate University captain, defeated defending champion John Konsek in 1961 at Onondaga Golf & Country Club for the first of his six titles — a meaningful win, as Allen considered Konsek the most talented golfer he had ever seen. Allen later played in two Walker Cup Matches, at Baltimore Country Club (1965) and Royal St. George's Golf Club (1967).

Most champions remained amateurs throughout their careers, but a few turned professional with success. Sam Urzetta, another Rochester golfer, won the 1948 championship at Buffalo's Brookfield Country Club, then claimed the 1950 U.S. Amateur, defeating renowned amateur Frank Stranahan in 39 holes at Minneapolis Golf Club. Uninterested in tour golf, Urzetta became an assistant professional in 1954 and, in 1956, head professional at the Country Club of Rochester, where he stayed 37 years.

Jeff Sluman won the 1978 state amateur by four strokes over Radford Yaun at Moon Brook Country Club in Jamestown. He turned pro in 1980 after Florida State University and, though slow to break through on the PGA Tour, won his first event at age 30 — the 1988 PGA Championship at Oak Tree Golf Club in Edmond, Oklahoma. He added several more PGA Tour titles through 2001 and went on to a successful career on the PGA Tour Champions.

Joey Sindelar etched his name on the Ganson Depew Cup in 1980 with a record‑setting performance at Vestal Hills Country Club in Binghamton. The Ohio State All-American posted a four-round 280 (8-under) to beat Sluman by seven. He turned pro that year and won the first of his seven PGA Tour titles at the 1985 Greater Greensboro Open. Sindelar's championship scoring mark stood until Dominic Bozzelli fired 277 (11‑under) to claim his second straight title in 2012 at Elmira Country Club — and fell again in 2022, when 19‑year‑old Charlie Berridge shot 14‑under over 72 holes at Onondaga Golf & Country Club in his championship debut.

In 2023, the NYSGA celebrated its centennial and the 100th playing of its flagship championship, hosted by Wykagyl Country Club in New Rochelle.

Past Champions

& Records of the NYS Men's Amateur

1923 | GARDEN CITY GC

Edmund Driggs, Jr., Garden City

1924 | ORCHARD PARK CC

Lee Chase, Buffalo

1925 | LIDO CC

Jack Mackie, Jr., Inwood

1926 | MCGREGOR LINKS CC

Al Brodbeck, Bronxville

1927 | OAK HILL CC (EAST)

Arthur Yates, Rochester

1928 | WESTCHESTER CC (WEST)

George Dawson, Harrison

1929 | MOHAWK GC

Maurice McCarthy, Mt. Vernon

1930 | FRESH MEADOWS CC

Jack Mackie, Jr., Inwood

1931 | OAK HILL CC (EAST)

Phil Perkins, Fox Hills

1932 | NIAGARA FALLS CC

Tommy Goodwin, Rye

1933 | GARDEN CITY GC

Edmund Driggs, Jr., Garden City

1934 | SAGAMORE GC

Edmund Driggs, Jr., Garden City

1935 | WINGED FOOT GC (WEST)

Ray Billows, Poughkeepsie

1936 | BELLEVUE CC

Tommy Goodwin, Rye

1937 | OAK HILL CC (EAST)

Ray Billows, Poughkeepsie

1938 | QUAKER RIDGE GC

Willie Turnesa, Elmsford

1939 | SIWANOY CC

Richard Chapman, Larchmont

1940 | ONONDAGA G&CC

Ray Billows, Poughkeepsie

Championship Records

Format

Match Play: 1923-1969, 1992-2008

Stroke Play: 1970-1991, 2009-Current

Most Times Hosted

7 | Yahnundasis Golf Club (1946, 1953, 1958, 1968, 1988, 2007, 2025)

6 | Oak Hill Country Club (1927, 1931, 1937, 1945, 1987, 2011)

4 | Country Club of Troy (1941, 1959, 1984, 2006)

4 | Elmira Country Club (1957, 1969, 1983, 2012)

3 | Albany Country Club (1977, 1990, 2010)

3 | Bellevue Country Club (1936, 1975, 2014)

3 | Dutchess Golf & CC (1956, 1972, 1997)

3 | Knollwood Country Club (1951, 1963, 1986)

3 | Moon Brook Country Club (1955, 1978, 1995)

3 | Onondaga Golf & CC (1940, 1961, 2022)

3 | Wanakah Country Club (1981, 1999, 2024)

7 | Ray Billows (1935, 1937, 1940, 1941, 1943, 1945, 1949)

6 | Don Allen (1961, 1963, 1964, 1970, 1972, 1973)

4 | Tommy Goodwin (1932, 1936, 1946, 1953)

3 | Edmund Driggs, Jr. (1923, 1933, 1934)

3 | John Konsek (1958, 1959, 1960)

3 | Billy Shields (1951, 1952, 1955)

3 | William Tryon (1962, 1965, 1968)

Most Runner-Up Finishes

4 | Ray Billows (1936, 1942, 1946, 1952)

3 | Don Allen (1962, 1965, 1974)

3 | Tommy Goodwin (1937, 1938, 1955)

3 | Robert Hughes (1982, 1985, 2000)

Consecutive Victories

3 | John Konsek (1958, 1959, 1960)

2 | Don Allen (1963, 1964)

2 | Don Allen (1972, 1973)

2 | Ray Billows (1940, 1941)

2 | Dominic Bozzelli (2011, 2012)

2 | Edmund Driggs, Jr. (1933, 1934)

2 | Kyle Hess (2002, 2003)

2 | Billy Shields (1951, 1952)

2 | Tim Straub (1987, 1988)

Champion of Both NYS Men's & Junior 18U Amateur

Mark Balen (1973 Junior; 1979 Men's Amateur)

Dominic Bozzelli (2007 Junior; 2011, 2012 Men's Amateur)

Anthony Delisanti (2021 Junior; 2025 Men's Amateur)

1941 | CC

Ray Billows, Poughkeepsie

1942 | NIAGARA FALLS CC

Alex Stevenson, Niagara Falls

1943 | LAKE PLACID CLUB

Ray Billows, Poughkeepsie

1944 | LAKE PLACID CLUB

Joe Ruszas, Albany

1945 | OAK HILL CC (EAST)

Ray Billows, Poughkeepsie

1946 | YAHNUNDASIS GC

Tommy Goodwin, Rye

1947 | WESTCHESTER CC (WEST)

Richard Meyer, White Plains

1948 | BROOKFIELD CC (WEST)

Sam Urzetta, Rochester

1949 | LAKE SHORE YACHT & CC

Ray Billows, Poughkeepsie

1950 | BINGHAMTON CC

Mike Dudik, Endicott

1951 | KNOLLWOOD CC

Billy Shields, Albany

1952 | WOLFERTS ROOST CC

Billy Shields, Albany

1953 | YAHNUNDASIS GC

Tommy Goodwin, Rye

1954 | FAIRVIEW CC

Robert Monk, White Plains

1955 | MOON BROOK CC

Billy Shields, Albany

1956 | DUTCHESS GOLF & CC

Joe Gagliardi, Larchmont

1957 | ELMIRA CC

Jack Veghte, Gloversville

1958 | YAHNUNDASIS GC

John Konsek, Buffalo

1959 | CC OF TROY

John Konsek, Buffalo

1960 | LOCUST HILL CC

John Konsek, Buffalo

1961 | ONONDAGA G&CC

Don Allen, Rochester

1962 | GLENS FALLS CC

Bill Tryon, Elmira

From left: Tommy Goodwin, Peter McRae, and Ray Billows

John Konsek, 3x Winner (1958-1960)

1963 | KNOLLWOOD CC

Don Allen, Rochester

1964 | LEATHERSTOCKING GC

Don Allen, Rochester

1965 | LANCASTER CC

Bill Tryon, Elmira

1966 | THE MONSTER GC

Nick Raasch, Syracuse

1967 | NASSAU CC

John Baldwin, Plandome

1968 | YAHNUNDASIS GC

Bill Tryon, Elmira

1969 | ELMIRA CC

Terry Diehl, Rochester

1970 | LOCUST HILL CC

Don Allen, Rochester

1971 | CAVALRY CLUB

Mike Slipko, Niagara Falls

1972 | DUTCHESS G&CC

Don Allen, Rochester

1973 | THE MONSTER GC

Don Allen, Rochester

1974 | WAYNE HILLS CC

George Burns III, Jericho

1975 | BELLEVUE CC

Alan Foster, Syracuse

1976 | GROSSINGERS GC

Radford Yaun, Jamestown

1977 | ALBANY CC

Rich Serian, Troy

1978 | MOON BROOK CC

Jeff Sluman, Rochester

1979 | DRUMLINS CC (EAST)

Mark Balen, East Aurora

1980 | VESTAL HILLS CC

Joey Sindelar, Horseheads

1981 | WANAKAH CC

James Roy, Syracuse

1982 | MCGREGOR LINKS CC

David Boeff, Ontario

1983 | ELMIRA CC

William Boland, Jr., Troy

1984 | CC OF TROY

George Zahringer, Sands Point

Terry Diehl (1966 Junior; 1969 Men's Amateur)

Tommy Goodwin* (1932, 1933 Junior; 1932, 1936, 1946, 1953 Men's Amateur)

John Konsek (1957 Junior; 1958, 1959, 1960 Men's Amateur)

Leonard Lasinsky (1983 Junior; 1991 Men's Amateur)

Yaroslav Merkulov* (2008 & 2009 Junior; 2009 Men's Amateur)

Nick Raasch (1965 Junior; 1966 Men's Amateur)

Ben Reichert (2015 Junior; 2019 Men's Amateur)

Matthew Stasiak (2005 Junior; 2013 Men's Amateur)

Radford Yaun (1972 Junior; 1976 Men's Amateur)

Youngest Champion

17 (4m0, 18d) | Nick Raasch (1966)

17 (5m0, 8d) | Yaroslav Merkulov (2009)

17 (10m0, 10d)| Will Thomson (2018)

Oldest Champion

44 | Joe Gagliardi (1956)

Lowest Winning Total to Par (72 Holes)

270 (-14) | Charlie Berridge (2022, Onondaga Golf & CC)

277 (-11) | Dominic Bozzelli (2012, Elmira Country Club)

275 (-9) | Anthony Delisanti (2025, Yahnundasis Golf Club)

280 (-8) | Joey Sindelar (1980, Vestal Hills Country Club)

280 (-8) | James Allen (2021, Schuyler Meadows Club)

Lowest Final Round by the Champion

66 (-6) | Dominic Bozzelli (2012, Elmira Country Club)

66 (-6) | James Allen (2021, Schuyler Meadows Club)

67 (-5) | Will Thomson (2018, Irondequoit Country Club)

67 (-5) | Kyle Downey (2023, Wykagyl Country Club)

Charlie Berridge after his record-setting performance at Onondaga in 2022

67 (-4) | Mark Balen (1979, Drumlins Country Club East)

68 (-3) | Charlie Berridge (2022, Onondaga Golf & CC)

69 (-3) | Matthew Stasiak (2013, Schuyler Meadows Club)

69 (-3) | Joey Sindelar (1980, Vestal Hills Country Club)

69 (-3) | Leonard Lasinsky (1991, Brook-Lea Country Club)

Longest Stroke Play Playoff

4 Holes | Anthony Delisanti def. John Hiller (2025)

Anthony Delisanti (right) and John Hiller after a four-hole playoff at Yahnundasis in 2025

Match Play

Widest Margin of Victory

13 & 12 | Kevin Haefner def. Dan Ricci (2001)

13 & 11 | Joe Ruszas def. Steve Doctor (1944)

11 & 10 | Dirk Ayers def. Jason Piurkowski (1995)

Longest Championship Match

39 Holes | Ray Billows def. John Ward (1949)

On The National Stage

Most Masters Appearances as an Amateur

19 | Richard Chapman (1939, 1941, 1946 1962)

3 | Don Allen (1965, 1966, 1967)

2 | Ray Billows (1939, 1940)

Most Walker Cup Appearances

3 | Richard Chapman (1947, 1951, 1953)

2 | Don Allen (1965, 1967)

2 | Ray Billows (1938, 1949)

2 | Sam Urzetta (1951, 1953)

1 | George Zahringer (2003)

1985 | RIDGEMONT CC

Christopher Lane, Binghamton

1986 | KNOLLWOOD CC

Jay Gunning, Colonie

1987 | OAK HILL CC (EAST)

Tim Straub, East Aurora

1988 | YAHNUNDASIS GC

Tim Straub, East Aurora

1989 | VESTAL HILLS CC

Tim Marsh, Endicott

1990 | ALBANY CC

Joe Wilson, Rochester

1991 | BROOK-LEA CC

Leonard Lasinsky, Syracuse

1992 | DRUMLINS CC (EAST)

Todd Dischinger, Syracuse

1993 | SEVEN OAKS GC

Jeffrey Peck, Clifton Springs 1994 | COBBLESTONE CREEK CC

David Bonacchi, Rochester 1995 | MOON BROOK CC

Dirk Ayers, Jamestown

1996 | LINKS AT HIAWATHA

Michael Valicenti, Elmira

1997 | DUTCHESS G&CC

Greg Rohlf, New Rochelle

1998 | PINEHAVEN CC

Bryan Smith, Kingston

1999 | WANAKAH CC

John Gaffney, Buffalo 2000 | MONROE GC

Michael Valicenti, Elmira 2001 | SEVEN OAKS GC

Kevin Haefner, Rochester

Kyle Hess, Buffalo

| RAVENWOOD

Kyle Hess, Buffalo

| WILTWYCK

Matt Thomas, Blasdell

| ONTARIO CC

James Scorse, Churchville

2006 | CC OF TROY

Andrew DiBitetto, Rochester

2007 | YAHNUNDASIS GC

John Duthie, Lansing

2008 | PINEHAVEN CC

Jeff Wolniewicz, West Seneca

2009 | RAVENWOOD GC

Yaroslav Merkulov, Penfield

2010 | ALBANY CC

Doug Kleeschulte, Kingston

2011 | OAK HILL CC (WEST)

Dominic Bozzelli, Pittsford

2012 | ELMIRA CC

Dominic Bozzelli, Pittsford

2013 | SCHUYLER MEADOWS CLUB

Matt Stasiak, Clarence

2014 | BELLEVUE CC

Luke Feehan, Carmel

2015 | KALUHYAT GC

Trevor Sluman, Rochester

2016 | MOHAWK GC

Tyler McArdell, Baldwinsville

2017 | BETHPAGE BLACK

Adam Condello, Fairport

2018 | IRONDEQUOIT CC

Will Thomson, Pittsford

2019 | CRAG BURN GC

Ben Reichert, East Amherst

2020

Suspended for COVID 19 pandemic

2021 | SCHUYLER MEADOWS CLUB

James Allen, Scarsdale

2022 | ONONDAGA G&CC

Charlie Berridge, Scarsdale

2023 | WYKAGYL CC

Kyle Downey, Webster

2024 | WANAKAH CC

Aiden Spampinato, Victor

2025 | YAHNUNDASIS GC

Anthony Delisanti, Sanborn

USGA Victories

2 | Willie Turnesa (1938, 1948 U.S. Amateur)

1 | Richard Chapman (1940 U.S. Amateur)

1 | Tim Straub (1983 U.S. Junior Amateur)

1 | Sam Urzetta (1950 U.S. Amateur)

1 | George Zahringer (2002 U.S. Mid-Amateur)

Tim Straub accepts the gold medal for winning the 1983 U.S. Junior Amateur

Conditions

and Schedule of Play

COMPETITION WILL BE IN TWO STAGES:

1. Qualifying: 18 holes stroke play for all except exempt players.

Albany Qualifier, Colonie Golf & CC, June 22

Binghamton Qualifier, Binghamton CC, June 25

Buffalo Qualifier, Lancaster CC, June 22

Long Island Qualifier, Bethpage Red, June 11

Mid Hudson Qualifier, Philip J. Rotella GC, June 11

Rochester Qualifier, Mendon GC, June 15

Syracuse Qualifier, Lake Shore Yacht & CC, June 17

Utica Qualifier, Yahnundasis GC, June 10

2. Championship: 156 players, including exempt players, 72 holes of stroke play. There is a cut after 36 holes to the low 40 players and ties.

SCHEDULE OF PLAY

The starting field of 156 players will play the first 36 holes, with the low 40 scorers (and ties) advancing to the final 36-holes. The schedule is as follows:

Monday, July 6: Practice Rounds

Tuesday, July 7: First Round, 18 holes, stroke play

Wednesday, July 8: Second Round, 18 holes, stroke play

Thursday, July 9: Third & Fourth Rounds, 36 holes, stroke play

2026 U.S. AMATEUR CHAMPIONSHIP EXEMPTION

The 2026 NYS Men's Amateur Champion earns an exemption into the 2026 U.S. Amateur Championship at Merion Golf Club (August 10–16), and the top three finishers gain exemption from local qualifying for the 2027 U.S. Amateur. The Championship is ranked by the World Amateur Golf Ranking (WAGR) and is a signature event on the Team New York points schedule.

LIVE SCORING & MEDIA COVERAGE

Follow every round at nysga.org for live scoring, media coverage, and photo and video galleries. Be sure to follow the NYSGA on social for great content and live updates:

Trophy

The Ganson Depew

First awarded at the inaugural New York State Men's Amateur Championship in October 1923 at the Garden City Golf Club, the Ganson Depew Cup ranks among the oldest prizes in New York golf. The handsome trophy was designed by Tiffany & Co. and donated by Ganson Depew, a Buffalo attorney and sportsman who served as one of the NYSGA's two original vice presidents when the association was founded in 1923. More than a century later, it still goes each year to the state's finest amateur.

Depew (1866–1934) was one of the most influential figures in early American golf administration. A Buffalo native who took up the game in 1896 on the three hole course at the Buffalo Country Club, he founded and led the Buffalo District Golf Association beginning in 1921 and represented New York on the United States Golf Association's Executive Committee from 1928 to 1932, chairing both its Green Section and its Public Links Section. Admired for his generosity and tireless work on behalf of the game — one writer of the day called him "one of the finest fellows in the game" — Depew was also president of the Buffalo Chamber of Commerce at the time of his death in 1934. The cup that bears his name keeps his memory alive at the championship he helped launch.

The Ganson Depew Cup

Ganson Depew, First Vice-President of the NYSGA (1923-24)

We are proud to support the 2026 NYS Men’s Amateur Golf Championship

The Herlihy Family

Dr. Kevin and Anne Herlihy

Hon. Eric Schwenker and Kate Herlihy-Schwenker

Brent and Daphne Herlihy

2025

NYS Men's Amateur Championship Recap

NEW HARTFORD, N.Y. – It took 76 holes to decide the winner of the 2025 New York State Men’s Amateur Championship. 22 year old Anthony Delisanti of Willowbrook Golf Course, ultimately captured the 102nd New York State Amateur championship at Yahnundasis Golf Club.

Delisanti didn’t have the strongest start, not many did. After the first round on Tuesday only four players were in red figures as Kyle Downey and Jackson Saroney shared the lead at two under. Delisanti shot two over, placing him tied for 15th.

He bounced back strongly the following day to shoot seven under 64 to take the solo lead. The former NYS Junior Amateur champion also broke the competitive course record at Yahnundasis Golf Club in the process of getting to five under on the tournament.

“I’m definitely proud of the round, but we’ve got a lot of golf to go,” Delisanti said. “I felt like my course management was really good other than the last hole, where I got a tough break.”

After two solid rounds, Chris Blyth trailed the leader by just one stroke. He started his second round with two bogeys on the opening two holes but bounced back to shoot 68 on the day.

“Coming into the week I had a strategy to just hit fairways and middle of the greens, and I kept to my game plan today,” Blyth said. “I made a few putts, it was a nice, solid round of golf.”

The final day was set up to be a 36 hole grind. In the third round, Delisanti grew his lead to four strokes with a two-under 69 outing. With some of the other candidates faltering, John Hiller and Matthew Lowe posted solid scores and got to three-under for the championship. They entered the final round tied for second.

During the final round, a rain delay paused the action for 90 minutes. Once play resumed, Hill- James Allen

er made consecutive birdies to take a two stroke lead as Delisanti didn’t start nearly as well. Hiller went on to shoot 65, one stroke shy of the competitive course record, in the final round including sinking a 48 foot birdie putt on his 70th hole.

“All day today he didn’t miss,” said Anthony Maglisco, who played with Hiller. “He had one bogey in 36 holes. It was ridiculous, unreal."

With the pressure dialed up, Delisanti made a series of big putts on his final nine. He’d go on to finish at nine under, tied with Hiller, forcing a playoff.

An epic four hole playoff ensued. After both made three straight pars, they moved to the 148 yard seventh hole at 8:47 p.m., with the last rays of twilight almost gone. In what seemed like a scene out of the movie “The Legend of Bagger Vance,” three vans were brought to the green to illuminate it with their headlights. Delisanti put his tee shot to 15 feet and he made par. Hiller missed the green a tad long and then missed a 10 foot putt for par as Delisanti claimed the title.

“I’ve been playing in NYSGA events since I was 10, 11 years old when I was a sub junior,” Delisanti said. “This is the biggest event they host, and I’ve always wanted to etch my name on that trophy. It was pretty cool to be able to finally do that.”

Finishing third at 7-under 277 was 23-year-old James Allen, a Penn State product and member of Scarsdale Golf Club. He tied for second in 2024 and won the NYS Amateur in 2021. Fourth was Long Island’s Matthew Lowe at 5 under 279. Fifth at 3 under 281 was Rochester’s Chris Blyth, a 32 year old former two time runner up.

Anthony Delisanti needing two putts on the 72nd hole to force a playoff with John Hiller

John Hiller

Family Dentistry of New York

PROUD TO SUPPORT OUR COMMUNITY, ON AND OFF THE COURSE

Dear NYS Amateur Tournament participants,

It’s easy to appreciate the strong sense of community that makes events like this tournament so special. It's a privilege to support an organization that brings people together through friendship, sportsmanship, and giving back.

I wish all players a fantastic day on the course and thank the organizers for putting together another outstanding event.

Sincerely,

Dr. Alex Ruckert, D.D.S., Managing Partner

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Glens Falls Country Club Hole By Hole

Club

HOLE 1

PAR 5 | 526 YARDS

The round opens just below the clubhouse, where a wooden footbridge and a long-leaning oak guard a tee set beside the water — the drive must clear a finger of the lake. From there the par 5 works away and upward, reachable in three for most. A scenic, welcoming handshake of an opener, but one that asks for position from the very first swing.

HOLE 2

PAR 4 | 399 YARDS

From a high tee the drive drops into a broad valley — and then the hole does something it does nowhere else on the course: it climbs back up, the approach playing uphill to a green set above you. That second shot ranks among the most demanding of the day. Evergreens once smothered this valley; clearing them in 2011 restored its width and its sweep. The view on the tee is one of the best on the course.

A one-shotter tucked into a corner of the property, defended almost entirely by its green. The surface tilts hard from back-right to frontleft, and a ball above the hole can chase away farther than on any green here. Ross hands you his most severe contour early, a deliberate bit of gamesmanship that plants doubt for the seventeen holes still ahead.

HOLE 3 PAR 3 | 172 YARDS

HOLE 4

PAR 5 | 550 YARDS

Reachable in two on paper, the fourth saves its defense for the green. A swale crosses the front, and beyond it the surface climbs to a backright knob and tumbles to a lower-left bowl where the kinder hole locations hide.

HOLE 5

PAR

4 | 341 YARDS

Set on the quietest ground on the property, the fifth proves Ross trusted his greens above all. Rather than force drama tee to green, he crowned the hole with one of his finest putting surfaces — raised, firm, and quietly deceptive, repelling any approach that isn’t precisely struck and judged. Distance buys nothing here; only a well-flighted, well-placed shot does.

One of several holes that climb up and over the ridge running through the property — and the pick of them. A solid drive reveals a green far wider than it is deep, its surface a sequence of rolls and hollows most players will never have faced. With the flag tucked in the gathering hollow on the right, it plays as fun as it is firm; anywhere else, par is well earned.

HOLE 6

PAR 4 | 420 YARDS

A drivable par 4 built on temptation. Three bunkers are cut diagonally into the far slope, and how much of that carry a player takes on is his own private gamble. The bold line — long and to the right — leaves only a short pitch to an open green at the same level; a pull or an overcooked draw drops into sand or below the surface, the next shot blind.

HOLE 7 PAR 4 | 292 YARDS

HOLE 8

PAR 4 | 362 YARDS

The most divisive green on the course, and the most memorable. The putting surface pitches so steeply that only a handful of hole locations truly work, and pace becomes everything — a putt or chip judged even slightly wrong can get away in a hurry. It is a green that asks for an unconventional par and rewards the player with the patience to accept one.

Donald Ross's signature "volcano" green — and one of the largest green complexes on the course. The green sits high on a pedestal, and a tee shot that leaks left or right can tumble a dozen feet below the surface — with no bunker to catch it and an awkward lie waiting on firm ground. The sensible play ignores the flag and aims for the heart of the green. Watching a group sort it out is half the fun.

HOLE 9 PAR 3 | 150 YARDS

HOLE 10

PAR 4 | 403 YARDS

The back nine opens with a blind drive over a rising hill to a hidden landing zone that cants right to left — favor the higher right side, or the slope feeds you into the left rough. From there, this short-ish par 4 plays to one of the smallest greens on the course, a surface that runs away and won't hold a careless shot. Short and below the hole is the play.

HOLE 11

PAR 4 | 436 YARDS

A longer, stiffer cousin to the sixth, with the crest of the hill sitting squarely in the middle of the hole. A weak drive leaves a long, half-blind second; a good one opens a green that, mercifully, welcomes a shot run in along the ground. Bouncing the approach off the contours is both the pleasure of the hole and the heart of its defense.

A spectacular long one-shotter and the centerpiece of the course’s toughest stretch. Ross benched both the tee and an enormous green pad into the hillside, and the shot plays noticeably more uphill than you think. A subtle rise at the back of the green can feed balls toward right-side hole locations, but make no mistake: a single loose swing here can undo a strong round.

HOLE 12 PAR 3 | 223 YARDS

HOLE 13

PAR 4 | 454 YARDS

Another hole that crests the ridge before rewarding the climb. A ring of bunkers guard the front, but carry them and the ground tips the ball down the slope and onto an open green that falls gently away. From well back in the fairway you get a clear view of the whole shot unfolding — the kind of running approach that has all but vanished from the modern game.

Short, straight, only slightly uphill — and quietly the cleverest hole on the course. Bunkers stagger left and right off the tee, and challenging the bolder one on the left opens the preferred angle into a wide, gently rolling green framed against open sky. The front is inviting, but a steep falloff behind turns any greedy approach into a tense recovery. Simple to find; genuinely hard to attack.

HOLE 14 PAR 4 | 368 YARDS

Discipline off the tee is everything here: a long ribbon of bunkers runs the entire left side — shared with the 11th and squarely in play — so the drive is all about staying out of trouble there. The reward is another small, subtly tilted Ross green, contoured off the back-right, where approaches like to release toward the back. Stay below the hole and par is there; chase it long and the green hands it right back.

HOLE 15 PAR 4 |

394 YARDS

HOLE 16

PAR 5 | 534 YARDS

The course's one modern chapter: reachable in two, it bends left around a short valley to a green perched on higher ground, guarded by bunkers. It's the lone green here not drawn by Ross — when the bordering road grew too busy, the club shifted the fairway left and built a new green, leaving the original across the road as today's short-game area.

HOLE 17

PAR 4 | 401 YARDS

One glance from this tee explains the course's reputation: tumbling ground, mountains beyond, and a two-shotter many consider the finest on the property. Restraint pays — a tee ball held back leaves a level stance and an approach to a green at the same height. Beware the false front, which turns a fraction short into a long way back. The tee view alone lingers long after the round.

HOLE 18

PAR 3 | 149 YARDS

The tee sits almost on the clubhouse patio, the shot played back across the same arm of the lake crossed at the first to an angled green stacked on a distinct rise. Find the correct tier for the day’s hole location, under the members’ watchful eyes, and you finish in style; miss into the water, and consolation is only a short walk away.

History of Glens Falls Country Club

In the early years of the twentieth century, golf was sweeping across America. A small group of Glens Falls men — among them F. F. Pruyn Sr., Edward Reed, Judge Raley, and the attorney Harry Howard — laid out a rough nine holes and “puttered” around Crandall Park. The game’s growing popularity soon convinced civic leaders that the area deserved a club of its own. In January 1912, with the support of men such as Maurice Hoopes, Louis F. Hyde, and E. W. West, the Glens Falls Country Club was founded. The plan was simple — a nine-hole golf course, tennis courts, and a clubhouse — and the community answered at once, with 190 members signing on.

Several sites were considered, including the Bentley Farm on Ridge Road and the land surrounding Round Pond. To decide between them, the club turned to the most celebrated golf architect of the age, Donald Ross, then at work on a course in Rochester. Ross walked both properties. He dismissed the Bentley Farm as flat, treeless, and destined to yield a dull and commonplace course — the site is today the Warren County Airport. Round Pond was another matter entirely. In all his long experience, Ross said, he had never seen a more ideal site for a golf course.

Ross laid his holes across a dramatic piece of ground between Bay Road and Route 9, taking advantage of a natural ridge that runs through the property rather than bulldozing it away. The routing draws five holes across that central ridge on both the front and back nines, full of hills, valleys, and greens set where the land naturally falls away.

The original nine opened on June 2, 1914. Ross had already sketched a second nine on his first visit, and with the membership eager for a full eighteen from the start, he returned on June 3, 1921, to complete the design, promising to transform the unused ground into a links “equal to many of the best in the country.”

The second nine opened in the spring of 1922 — Ross told the board it would make Glens Falls the only city of its size in the country with a full eighteen hole course. From the high ground of the course, the 13th tee especially, the holes open onto a sweeping panorama of West Mountain and the distant Green Mountains of Vermont.

The Rediscovery

For most of the past century, Glens Falls remained one of golf’s best kept secrets — a superb Ross

design without the television exposure that makes courses famous. That began to change when the architect and writer Tom Doak, playing the course on a friend’s recommendation, walked off the 18th green and put a single question to the head professional:

“Why didn’t I know about this course before?” — Tom Doak

Doak went on to praise Glens Falls in his Confidential Guide to Golf Courses, and the wider golf world followed. Golf Magazine has since ranked the course among the very best in New York State and, in 2020, placed it 86th among the top 100 courses in the United States. The recognition has reshaped the club’s profile: golfers from outside the region have joined specifically to play it, and in a single recent year some forty course “raters” made the trip to Round Pond.

What sets Glens Falls apart is how little it has changed. Where many championship venues are lengthened and toughened every few years, this course remains essentially as Ross laid it out — no added ponds, no wholesale redesign. The only substantive changes to his routing came for practical reasons: the upper 18th green was built and the fairway raised in 1978, and in 1983 the 16th was reconstructed into the dogleg it is today, removing a shot that had crossed increasingly busy Round Pond Road. The club’s recent work has been restorative rather than reconstructive — recovering original fairway widths, reintroducing lost playing angles, and clearing decades of tree growth that had narrowed the holes and hidden the surrounding mountains, with guidance from consulting architects including Gil Hanse and, most recently, Brian Schneider. The course still measures under 6,500 yards, and the membership has wisely kept it that way, trusting Ross’s greens and contours — rather than raw length — to defend par.

The Clubhouse and Club Life

The original clubhouse was built in 1913 and opened that December, with the tennis courts already in play earlier the same year. The building served the membership for a decade until disaster struck on April 14, 1923 — opening day of the season — when an early morning chimney fire tore through the structure and left it a near-total loss. Work had already begun on a new locker room beside the clubhouse; it was finished that year, and a new clubhouse was designed and completed by midJune 1924. That building still serves the club today. One cherished detail survives from the original: the benches in the locker room are made from the 1913 clubhouse floorboards and still carry the spike marks of the club’s founding members.

Round Pond has always been central to club life. The original beach and bathhouse stood beside the first tee and were replaced by the present beach house in 1961. Four new tennis courts were added in 1978, wooden paddle courts arrived in 1973 with more added over the years, and in 2025 six new pickleball courts came into play — the latest chapter in a club that has always looked after its families as well as its golfers.

Ben Lord, "The Little Pro"

No figure looms larger in the club’s early history than Ben Lord. Small in stature and large in talent, Lord arrived as head professional in 1917 and stayed for thirty-nine years, until ill health forced his retirement at the close of the 1956 season. In the summer of 1925 he set the course record of 64 — a mark that still stood when the club hosted the State Amateur in 1962.

Lord was a charter member of the PGA of America at its founding in 1916 and served as president of the Northeastern New York PGA Section for nine years. He played in four U.S. Opens and four PGA Championships, and

Children enjoying Round Pond with a water slide in 1916

he was a beloved teacher: the club counted 64 members when he arrived in 1917 and more than 700 when he left. Offered his pick of jobs at larger clubs throughout his career, he saw no reason to leave Glens Falls. In 2016 he was inducted into the Northeastern New York PGA Hall of Fame. His most lasting contribution to the club’s national reputation, though, was a tournament he built from nothing — the Glens Falls Open.

Tom Haggerty

If Ben Lord defined the club’s first era, Tom Haggerty defined its modern one. Haggerty served as head golf professional at Glens Falls from 1981 to 2022 — the club’s longest-serving professional, and one whose four decades left a lasting mark on the membership. Born in Rexford and a golfer at Niskayuna High School, he grew up in the game helping his father at the Edison Club, part of a family whose name became synonymous with golf in the region: Tom, his father, the late Bob Haggerty Sr., and his brother, the late Bob Haggerty Jr., are all members of the Northeastern New York PGA Hall of Fame. Tom himself was inducted in 2005 and named the Section’s Golf Professional of the Year in 2006. Across forty-one seasons at Round Pond, his dedication and service earned the lasting appreciation of the Glens Falls Country Club membership.

Present Day

The Glens Falls Country Club has grown from its founding 190 members to more than 450 today. It celebrated its centennial in 2012 and continues to thrive — a Donald Ross course rediscovered and celebrated, set on a piece of ground its architect prized above nearly any he had ever seen.

Tom Haggerty, GFCC PGA Professional (1981-2022)

Ben Lord (far right) served as GFCC professional from 1917-1956 - pictured with (from left) Walter Hagen, Bobby Cruickshank, and Joe Kirkwood

Alexandra Aarons, M.D. • Gerard F. Abess, M.D.

Thomas B. Coppens, M.D. • David J. Cunningham, M.D.

Anne Evans, D.O. • Paul R. Filion, M.D.

Robert F. Love, M.D. • Anthony Petracca, Jr., M.D.

Robert P. Reeves, M.D. • Marten Peterson, M.D.

William A. Tedesco, M.D.

Glens Falls Open

1929-1939

For eleven years, a small upstate club drew the finest professionals in golf to a tournament of its own making. Conceived by club members and organized by the Glens Falls head professional, Ben Lord, the Glens Falls Open ran from 1929 to 1939 and put the club, for a decade, on the national golf map.

What makes the Open's run all the more remarkable is when it happened. The first championship was played in September 1929, only weeks before the stock market crash, and the tournament went on every year through the depths of the Great Depression. It survived because it was never meant to turn a profit. The director, Henry F. Atherton, described the aim plainly — a tournament "without possibility of profit," staged for the pleasure of the small group of members who underwrote its cost. Behind them stood the Glens Falls Insurance Company and its president, E. W. West, the driving force in founding the Open and the man whose name went on the winner's trophy.

The club kept the event aloft by sharing the load. Members ran the committees and enlisted local businesses; the Queensbury Hotel housed the visiting pros at a dollar a day for a player and his wife. In later years admission was charged at the gate — $1.65 for a day, $3.30 for all three — and the crowds came, more than three thousand following Willie MacFarlane in 1935. The purse grew rather than shrank, reaching $3,500 by that year — modest by today's measure, but real money when many were working for $5 a week. At a time when clubs were closing and professional tournaments came and went, Glens Falls held its Open together for eleven straight years — not as a business, but as a point of civic pride.

Inspired by the exhibition golf that local pros and touring stars had brought to Round Pond, the first Glens Falls Open was played on September 16–17, 1929 — thirty six holes a day over two days, for a total purse of about

Sam Snead Putts on the 10th hole at Glens Falls CC

$1,670 with $500 to the winner, making it one of the largest tournaments in the country at the time.

The Open’s champions included the U.S. Open winners Billy Burke, Tony Manero, Denny Shute, Willie MacFarlane, and Ky Laffoon, alongside the great Jimmy Hines. The fields ran deeper still: Sam Snead, Ben Hogan, Byron Nelson, Walter Hagen, Gene Sarazen, Paul Runyan, and Ralph Guldahl all teed it up at Glens Falls. Remarkably, none of those legends ever captured the Open — but they left their share of stories.

The inaugural 1929 championship ended in a tie at 286 between Billy Burke and “Wild Bill” Mehlhorn, settled by a nine hole playoff that Burke won. Tony Manero set a tournament record of 276 in 1930 — a mark the local press declared would never be broken — only for Willie MacFarlane to shatter it with a 274 in 1935; by then the par four 16th had been lengthened into a par five and the course played to a par of 72. In 1939, the Open’s final year, Horton Smith — one of the era’s great putters — missed a 24 inch putt on the 71st hole, fell into a tie, and lost the ensuing playoff to Denny Shute.

Year Champion

Winning Score Runner-Up

1929 Billy Burke 286 Bill Mehlhorn (*Playoff)

1930 Tony Manero 276 Gene Sarazen & Bob Cruickshank

1931 Billy Burke 284 John Golden & MacDonald Smith

1932 Denny Shute 280 Willie MacFarlane

1933 Jimmy Hines 281 Tom Creavy & Al Houghton

1934 Ky Laffoon 280 Paul Runyan (Playoff)

1935 Willie MacFarlane 274 Tony Manero

1936 Jimmy Hines 277 Paul Runyan

1937 Jimmy Hines 274 Jimmy Thomson

1938 Tony Manero 281 Gene Sarazen & Jimmy Hines

1939 Denny Shute

276 Horton Smith

Sam Snead authored the most enduring tale: in one Open he hit two errant tee shots into an old barn that then stood near the 16th hole, and afterward reportedly demanded the club get rid of it — which, many years later, it did. And a teenaged caddie long remembered the dawn a young, nearly broke Ben Hogan — who had slept in his car in the parking lot — woke him to shag practice balls, striking his irons so precisely that the boy barely had to move to catch them.

Through the Open, a small upstate club became, for a decade, a national name in golf.

Gene Sarazen plays from the bunker on the 5th at Glens Falls CC

1962

NYS Men's Amateur Championship

When the New York State Men's Amateur came to Round Pond in July 1962, the 40th playing of the championship, it produced one of the most dramatic finals in its history. Bill Tryon, a 31 year old insurance man and former Princeton football back from Elmira, won seven matches to reach the final, beating both Allen brothers along the way: Ray in a 21 hole marathon, and then, in the title match, the defending champion, Don Allen of Rochester, the former Colgate golf captain.

Over the 36 hole final, Tryon tore through the morning round in a four under 68 to seize an early lead, but Allen, a relentless competitor who had come from behind all week, fought back through the afternoon to square the match and edge ahead late. One down and needing a birdie just to survive the 36th, Tryon rolled in a 35 footer to force extra holes — the first extra hole final in the state championship since 1949. The two halved the 37th with matching birdies. Then, on the 38th, in the fading light, Tryon holed from 28 feet for the birdie that won it, 1 up, a closing flourish of birdies on the last three holes that made him the first golfer ever from Elmira to win the title.

Afterward, Tryon spread the credit widely. He pointed to a late night putting session on the eve of the final and to his friend and best ball partner Gerry Dimmick, who had urged him to "slow down, relax and concentrate."

Most of all he praised his 14 year old Glens Falls caddie, Larry Mainville, who read every break on the greens and, when the bag grew heavy over three days, simply padded his own shoulder with towels and kept going. Tryon would win three state titles in his career; Allen, six.

A massive gallery watches the final match on the 17th green, as shown in a blurry newspaper photo from July 23, 1962

Bill Tryon poses for a photo overlooking Round Pond