CT Amateur gets started Monday

Youth could be served at the 117th Connecticut Amateur beginning Monday at Fox Hopyard Golf Club.

A number of golfers who tasted success this spring for their respective high school teams will try to succeed Ben Conroy as the champion. That includes the reigning CIAC State Open champion, Darien’s Alex Gu, who won the event last Saturday at the Black Hall Club.

Billy Nail, who helped lead Greenwich High to its second consecutive Division I state championship, is also in the field, along with: Matt Doyle from Madison, who was the Division II state tournament medalist and helped Hand win the team title; Michael Hanratty, who starred at Avon and qualified for the State Open; Tom Rosati Jr., who played at Notre Dame-West Haven and qualified for the State Open; and Jackson Roman from Hamden Hall Country Day.

Other notables teeing it up includes 2017 Amateur champion Rick Dowling, 2018 State Junior Amateur winner Connor Belcastro and 2015 Palmer Cup winner Ben Day, who qualified for the U.S. Mid-Amateur last year.

Two rounds of stroke play Monday and Tuesday will reduce the field to 32 to begin match play Wednesday on the 6,900-yard Fox Hopyard layout. There will be two rounds of match play on Wednesday and Thursday before the 36hole final on Friday.

Conroy, who won at CC of Waterbury, will not be defending his title. He was invited to play in the Northeast Amateur being held Tuesday through Saturday at Wannamoissett CC in East Providence, R.I. Also in the field: Tony Romo, the former Dallas Cowboys quarterback, now a NFL TV announcer for CBS.

TRAVELERS QUALIFIER

There were 27 combined golfers who made it through a pair of Travelers Championship pre-qualifiers held last week at Ellington Ridge CC. They have advanced to Monday’s final stage.

The top four from Monday’s 18-hole qualifier, also being held at Ellington Ridge CC, will advance to play in the Travelers Championship at TPC River Highlands in Cromwell beginning Thursday. There are a number of former full-time PGA Tour players in the field.

They include: SangMoon Bae (8:27 a.m., 1st tee), who tied for 27th at last week’s Canadian Open; Robert Garrigus (8:36, 1st tee); Tyrone van Aswegen (8:45, 1st); D.J. Trahan (8:50, 10th); Brian Davis (9:03, 1st tee); Arjun Atwal (9:08, 10th tee) and Ben Crane (9:12, 1st tee).

Cheshire’s Eric Dietrich, the only state player to qualify for this week’s U.S. Open, tees off in the same group with Davis at 9:03. joseph.morelli @hearstmediact.com; @nhrJoeMorelli