The state’s top amateurs will gather at the Country Club of Waterbury on May 21-22 for the 9th playing of the Russell C. Palmer Cup presented by Johnson Brunetti. 2011 Champion, Branden Chicorka, a junior at the University of Rhode Island and resident of Enfield, will be seeking to become the first player to win the event twice.
Along with Chicorka, two other players can also become the first player to win the Palmer Cup more than once. Tom McCarthy, the 2011 Dick Tettelbach Player of the Year, won the event at Hop Meadow Country Club in 2009 and Phil Perry from the Black Hall Club was the winner in 2008. Perry, who won his Palmer Cup title at the Country Club of Waterbury, is the last winner prior to the format change in 2009 when the Championship was extended from 36 to 54 holes.
Other notables in the field include Dave Szewczul, the 2011 Dick Siderowf Senior Player of the Year and Tommy McDonagh, the winner of the 2011 Connecticut Amateur. A victory at the Palmer Cup would make Szewczul, a member of Tunxis Plantation Golf Club, the only player in CSGA history to win the Connecticut Amateur, Mid-Amateur, Senior Amateur, Public Links and Palmer Cup titles. McDonagh, from Shorehaven Golf Club, is looking to add another title to his illustrious amateur career that includes two Connecticut Amateurs, two Metropolitan Amateurs, and an IKE Championship (conducted by the Metropolitan Golf Association).
Country Club of Waterbury, founded in 1899, is a founding member of the League of Connecticut Golf Clubs which would later become the Connecticut State Golf Association. Due to its outstanding support and commitment to the game of golf the Country Club of Waterbury was honored by the CSGA in 2005 with the Distinguished Club of the Year Award. The Donald Ross designed par 69 golf course has hosted numerous CSGA and USGA events throughout its history having most recently hosted the 2010 Connecticut Amateur Championship.
“The CSGA is thrilled to partner with the Country Club of Waterbury for the Russell C. Palmer Cup,” said CSGA Executive Director Mike Moraghan. “Waterbury is rich with history and we are happy to be adding to that history with the Palmer Cup for many years to come.”
Named for Connecticut Golf Hall of Fame member (1997) and former CSGA Executive Director (1986-1995) who bears the same name, the Russell C. Palmer Cup is the Connecticut stroke play championship. A few of Palmer’s numerous accomplishments include establishing the use of GHIN throughout CSGA member clubs and initiating the construction of the Conn. Golf House which houses the CSGA and Conn. Section PGA.
Full coverage of the Championship including live scoring will available both days via the CSGA website at www.csgalinks.org.
