LIKE FATHER, LIKE SON
O’Learys had summer to remember on state golf courses
“It’s going to be one of those summers we’re never going to forget, no question about that.”
— Pawtucket Country Club’s Brian O’Leary
PAWTUCKET – According to those who know them best, if anyone was trying to track down Brian or Andrew O’Leary at any time the past few months, the best bet would’ve been to look on or around the putting green at Pawtucket Country Club.
Folks state the O’Leary fatherand-son tandem takes their golf rather seriously, and it all begins with practice, practice and more practice.
That devotion to hard work more than showed in June and July. In fact, call it their Spectacular Summer of 2019.
First, in late June, Andrew – a Norfolk, Mass. resident, PCC member and University of Notre Dame sophomore – decided to lace up his spikes and take a shot at playing his first RIGA State Am, at Charlestown’s Shelter Harbor Golf Club.
The 19-year-old coasted through the stroke version of the tourney with solid rounds of 6769 (six-under 136), then captured five straight match-play victories before earning a 3-and-1 triumph over Coventry gentleman Bobby Leopold in the 36-hole final on Saturday, June 29.
Then, over the brief span of four weeks, Brian, 51, rolled to not only the PCC senior club title but also the open club championship.
The family that golfs together wins together?
“It’s going to be one of those summers we’re never going to forget, no question about that,” Brian explained while – what else? – working on his putting at the PCC practice green. “The thing I’ll remember most is Andrew winning the state am. I think Bob Ward (the R.I. Golf Association Executive Director) said it best.
“He pulled Andrew aside when we were leaving Shelter Harbor, and he said, ‘You know, you’re going to be playing in a lot of prestigious college invitationals
throughout your career, and you’ll have a lot of great memories, but what you just did here is historic,’” Ward stated. “’You just won the R.I. Amateur, and your name will be etched on that trophy for years, decades to come. When people read it, they’ll see your name as the champion in 2019. That’s something no one can ever take away from you.’
“I think that sunk in for Andrew,” he added.
What made the victory all the more special was that his summer didn’t begin the way he had hoped. He accepted his invitation to the heralded Northeast Amateur at Wannamoisett Country Club earlier in June, but fired rounds of 74-76-73 (16-over par) to miss the cut.
“That was my first Northeast, and I really wanted to play well,” Andrew sighed. “I finished there on a Friday, didn’t play Saturday or Sunday but practiced, and then started the amateur on Monday.
“At the Northeast, I had a really tough week with my driver; the rough at Wannamoisett was brutal, and I was in it much more than I wanted. I worked on hitting it straighter, and I obviously was on the putting green working not only the putts but chips. I was trying to get more in tune with my short game.”
As stated, Andrew tamed the Shelter Harbor links in stroke play, then in match play. His dad, who also registered for the State Am, did the same, but suffered a first-round, dmatch loss to Coventry’s Seamus Fennelly, 3-and-1.
With Brian’s ouster, he asked his son if he wanted a caddy for the rest of his event, and Andrew eagerly accepted.
“He was all in, but – of course – when you’re younger, what kid wants Dad around bugging him?” he laughed. “But winning the thing? That was as much a thrill for me as it was for him. That week, he played unbelievable. He won quite a few matches by significant amounts, and once you make match play, the guys in charge really make the course difficult.
“They push the tees back and give you really difficult pin placements; the greens get hard and fast, and it’s tough,” he continued. “You’ve really got to be on top of your game, and Andrew was that week. Did he surprise me? Well, yes and no. I knew he could play, he was talented, but what impressed me most was probably his semifinal against Kolby Simmons (of Crestwood).
“At one point, he had been down three holes, but he ended up coming back and winning that, 1-up.”
Andrew’s first memory after final stroke?
“The second
I
won,
my
his
dad
Photo courtesy of Dalton Balthaser
/ RIGA hugged me and said, ‘I’m so proud of you,’” the younger O’Leary said while – what else? – working on his short game at Notre Dame’s Warren Golf Course. “My mom (Traci) said the same thing. She was so happy, I think she was crying.
“When I actually started thinking about it, it blew my mind,” he added. “It was the first major win of my career, and it gave me confidence in other events I played. I played a bunch of tournaments afterward, the most significant being the Massachusetts Amateur at The Country Club in Brookline.
“I shot 75-68 for 3-over in stroke play, but then I lost in the round of 16. Still, I feel very good about how I did this summer; it broadens the scope of events I can play, meaning I qualify for more prestigious tournaments.”
**
As for the elder O’Leary, he nailed down the senior club crown at Pawtucket on Sunday, July 13, that courtesy of a 19-hole triumph over Chris O’Neill. Exactly 13 days later, he played perennial PCC titleist Ryan Pelletier in the 36-hole final and snared a 1-up verdict.
“It came down to the 18th hole, and we both birdied, but I had held the lead,” he said. “Against Chris, I had been down two holes with two to play, but I went par-birdie to force extra holes, then won it with a par on the first.”
What makes sense for this family, they more or less live for not only golf but sports in general. Brian grew up playing golf at the behest of his dad, later represented Catholic Memorial in West Roxbury, Mass. in both golf and hockey (graduating in 1986) and then moved on to play at Boston College.
When he and Traci met, then married, they had two boys, and both were pulled toward sports like magnets. Not surprisingly, both eventually played at their dad’s high school alma mater.
“Andrew was one of those kids who, when he was 4, he had his own set of clubs and was at the driving range,” Brian chuckled. “He has an older brother, Patrick, who was and is a very good athlete, and the two were always battling. But I think Andrew discovered rather early on that, if he worked hard enough, golf would be one sport he could beat his brother.
“Honestly, I remember times when they were 10-11-12-13, there would be fist fights on the golf course because Patrick didn’t like losing to his kid brother,” he continued. “They both played hockey; in fact, Patrick is now a senior wing at Holy Cross.
“The thing about Andrew, he wasn’t one of those golf prodigies where all he did was play golf. I wanted them to discover other sports and see which ones he liked, which one he wanted to pursue, and that’s golf. He became successful, as a result got more competitive fire and that’s what drives him.”
For Andrew, this whirlwind summer didn’t end as he had hoped it would. In the U.S. Amateur qualifying event at Longmeadow (Mass.) Country Club, he played extremely well, though had to settle for third place overall.
Only the top two received the nod to attend the U.S. Am at Pinehurst No. 2 in North Carolina.
“As good as the R.I. Amateur was, the qualifier was the complete opposite of the spectrum,” Brian noted. “He had to come home really disappointed at having come so close.”
Andrew indicated he managed a first-round 72 before scorching the Longmeadow links for a 65 the next day for a medal-play, three-under aggregate of 143.
“I ended up being the first alternate; if I had made it, it would have made my whole summer,” he sighed. “I came so close, but it’s still great because I played so much and did so well. What happened this summer will help me this fall here (at Notre Dame). Practice has already started, and we have our first tournament in two weeks (at the) Badger Invitational in Madison, Wisc.
“I’m pretty confident going into this year because I know I’ve improved, and that’s increased my confidence. Hopefully, that will come through in my college events.”
Ironically, his teammate is Bishop Feehan graduate and Attleboro native Davis Chatfield, who he said will play the top spot this fall, while Alex Jamieson is the No. 2 in the lineup of five.
“My goal this year is to win the national college team championship, but it’s been a while; the last one came in 1944,” he stated. “As for me personally, I’d like to improve from last year, and this summer, and play my way into the No. 1 position.
“I think I will. After all, you only get better playing against that quality competition.”