England's John Kemp sinks his putt on No. 18 at The Honors Course as first-round leader of the Senior division of the John T. Lupton Memorial
photo by Paul Payne
John Kemp had already mapped out his competitive golf schedule for this summer. But everything changed when an unexpected invitation postmarked “Ooltewah, TN” appeared in his mailbox.
The resident of Bedford, England had blocked off this week to compete in the Irish Senior Men’s Amateur Open Championship. In fact, he had already booked his flights. However, the opportunity to return to The Honors Course where he had been co-medalist at last year’s U.S. Senior Amateur before being eliminated in the Round of 16 was simply too tantalizing to ignore.
Kemp accepted the offer to participate in the John T. Lupton Memorial which is celebrating 20 years since its inception, and his deep connection with the Pete Dye design was on full display during Friday’s opening round.
After opening with birdies on the first two holes, Kemp reeled off 13 consecutive pars before notching two more birdies on 16 and 17. A bogey the final hole served as the only blemish to his scorecard, closing the day at 3-under par 69 to hold a one-shot lead over playing partner Bob Royak in the Senior division competition.
“I had already entered the Irish when I saw the invite come in the post,” Kemp said. “I looked at my wife and said, ‘I want to go.’
“She said, ‘Well, you already booked all your flights.’ But I told her ‘I'm going. This is the chance of a lifetime, and I may never get another invite to come back here.’ She saw how much it meant to me to come back, so she decided to come with me.”
When the Kemps made the trip to The Honors Course last summer, it first involved visits to Nashville and Memphis to allow Kemp’s wife, Mandy, to spend a few days immersing herself in country music and to visit Graceland given her fascination with Elvis Presley. This year, a stopover in New Orleans preceded their arrival to the Lupton Memorial.
“We took a swamp boat ride, took a helicopter flight around and enjoyed some of their food. So that was good fun,” Kemp said.
The connection with the challenging layout at The Honors Course is something Kemp finds altogether cathartic.
“I rarely play a golf course where there's not a bad hole, but that’s simply not the case here,” Kemp said. “It's a true golf course. It's not a country club. You don't come here for any other reason than to play golf, and I like that. Even if I played rubbish, I'd still want to come and play here in preference. It's just fantastic.”
Royak, who won this event two years ago, was cruising through his opening round in workmanlike fashion until a late stumble cost him the lead. The Alpharetta, Ga. resident stood at 5-under for the day after birdies at 13 and 14 before surrendering three shots with a bogey at 16 and a double bogey on 18 to finish at 2-under 70.
Jack Hall of Savannah, Ga. is alone in third place after a 1-over 73, one shot ahead of Kevin Vandenberg of Pulaski, N.Y. who signed for a 2-over 74 for fourth place.
Three golfers are tied for fifth at 3-over 75 including Buzz Fly of Memphis, Tenn., Steven Mann of Franklin, Tenn. and Atlanta’s Jack Larkin.
Maccario Sets The Pace In Mid-Amateur Competition
When Nick Maccario relocated from his hometown of Boston to Atlanta six months ago due to his job, one of the benefits was the opportunity to play golf year-round that the New England winters did not allow.
The southbound transition seems to be paying immediate dividends for Maccario based on his opening round performance on Friday. With the Mid-Amateurs starting on No. 10 on the 7,042-yard, par-72 course, Maccario played a flawless loop with four birdies and no bogeys to post 4-under 68 to claim a one-shot advantage.
Maccario registered birdies at 12, 13 and 16 to make the turn in 33, then added one final birdie on the par 5 6th hole to cap his tidy round in his second Lupton Memorial appearance.
“I was over the moon to play last year,” Maccario said. “This year I’ve learned how to find the few spots where you can miss it. I certainly did not hit it perfect by any stretch of the imagination, but I’m developing enough knowledge to know where you can get out of trouble a little bit easier. But it’s still tremendously hard.”
Alone in second place is Brett Patterson of Oxford, Miss. after firing a 3-under 69. Patterson reeled off three early birdies and made the turn in 32, but three bogeys on his final nine plus two more birdies left him one shot behind Maccario.
Occupying a deadlock in third at 2-under 70 are Ty Capps of Palm Coast, Fla. and Keith Guest of Athens, Ga. Guest opened with birdies on his first two holes, then bookended his turn with birdies at 18 and 1. Only a rinsed tee ball on the par 3 16th resulting in a double bogey separated him from a share of the lead.
“I really didn't know what to expect, but I hit my driver and the 3-wood so good today,” said Guest, who played collegiately at Augusta State. “I just never hit it in trouble and didn’t miss very many greens except for No. 16, which freed me up to have a pretty stress-free round.”
The only other golfer in red figures was Nahum Mendoza of Chula Vista, Calif., who sits in fifth place at 1-under 71.
Five golfers finished at 1-over 73 including three-time winner and defending Mid-Amateur champion Joseph Deraney of Belden, Miss. Others are Grady Brame Jr. of Baton Rouge, La., Kendrick Vinar of Dallas, Texas, former champion Whit Turnbow of Murfreesboro, Tenn., and Ben Reeves of Birmingham, Ala.
Competition in both divisions resumes Saturday morning, with the final round scheduled for Sunday.
For complete results, go to John T. Lupton Memorial results.
Paul Payne can be emailed at paulpayne6249@gmail.com