Watertown, Connecticut (July 10, 2024) – After a hot and humid few days at the 83rd Connecticut Junior Amateur hosted by Watertown Golf Club, a long week of golf comes down to 18 holes of match play between North Chery (Great River GC) and Luke Stennett (Tallwood CC).
The first semifinal match featured Chery and Luke Kowalchik (Race Brook CC). Chery started the day with a 4&2 quarterfinal win over Maximilian Moschini (EClub of Connecticut) and ended the day with a strong 5&4 victory over Kowalchik, advancing himself to the championship match.
“This is my first year playing in the Connecticut Junior Amateur so being able to come here for the first time and reach the finals is awesome. It’s huge,” North Chery said. “In (the championship match) I just want to try to play how I did today. I’m going to try and hit some fairways, make good pars when I need to, and hopefully drain a few putts.”
Chery birdied Nos. 1 and 8 during his semifinal match against Kowalchik as he steadily built his lead.
“On the first hole, I pulled my drive way left, and then I had to hit a five iron from 222 yards downwind, and it rolled up just short of the green. I chipped it to a few feet and then I made the putt,” Chery remarked of his opening hole birdie that gave him a lead he would never relinquish.
The second semifinal match featured Stennett and Zach Munno (The Stanwich Club). Stennett, the 2023 New England Junior Amateur winner, started his day with a 2-up win over Will Lord (Suffield CC) in the quarterfinals.
In a heavy-weight semifinal match, Stennett was able to escape a back-and-forth affair that saw neither player lead by more than 1 up. Although Stennett never trailed by more than 1 down in the match he didn’t take a lead until his par won the par-3 14th. However, that lead would be short-lived as Munno answered right back tying the match on No. 15 and setting the stage for a crucial final three-hole stretch.
After matching pars, the duel came down to the final hole and it wasn’t until Stennett, a University of Rhode Island commit, rolled in a four-foot birdie putt on the par-4 18th hole that the outcome was decided.
“We just kept going back and forth all day,” Luke Stennett said. “It was a great semifinal match. The birdie putt to win on the last was a nerve-wracking putt, that’s for sure.”
The 83rd Connecticut Junior Amateur will conclude on Thursday morning at 8 a.m. with the 18-hole championship match between North Chery and Luke Stennett.
About the Connecticut State Golf Association
The Connecticut Junior Amateur is one of 20 championships conducted by the Connecticut State Golf Association. The CSGA functions as an extension of the USGA and provides stewardship for amateur golf in Connecticut. Founded in 1899, it is the country’s oldest state golf association and conducts over 60 Championships, Qualifiers, and One Day Tournaments throughout the year.
