By Dalton Balthaser

 

WARWICK – A pair of Four-Ball stalwarts as well as a young tandem with local knowledge find themselves on the top of the leaderboard after Day One of the 72nd Rhode Island Golf Association Four-Ball Championship at Valley Country Club (par 72, 6,458 yards) Wednesday.

 

The Wannamoisett Country Club duo of Bobby Leopold and Tyler Cooke as well as Alex Parente of Warwick Country Club and Joe Tucker of the host club fired rounds of 65 to seize the top spots on the leaderboard.

 

Kirkbrae Country Club’s Tom McCormick and Larry Lafauci, Jr., Austin Cilley (Winnapaug Country Club) and Dan Weinman (Button Hole Golf Club) as well as Augie Sottile (Amateur Golf Tour New England) and Matt Phillips (Alpine CC) sit a shot back after 66s.

 

“We haven’t really played together much at all this year,” said Leopold, 36, of Coventry. “We just haven’t had the time and our schedules haven’t matched up. We played one 18-hole round at Wannamoisett in their Four-Ball qualifying but that’s it. It was our first team round in forever.”

 

The 2019 U.S. Four-Ball quarterfinalists and 2015-16 #RIGAFourBall champions didn’t start quickly.

 

They made the turn in 2 under thanks to birdies by Leopold on Nos. 5 (par 5, 494 yards) and 9 (par 4, 387 yards).

 

“We got off to a slow start,” said Leopold. “It’s not that we weren’t playing well we just couldn’t get anything to fall.”

 

Then they made the turn and returned to the form that has created the reputation they have in this format. 

 

After a birdie on No. 13 (par 4, 387 yards) by Leopold, Cooke added a birdie on No. 15 (par 4, 331 yards) after he buried an 8-footer.

 

Then Leopold birdied the last three holes to get the team to 7 under. Leopold shot 66 on his own ball.

 

His birdie on No. 18 (par 5, 544 yards) was world-class. After leaving himself short-sided with five feet of green to work with in the left greenside rough, Leopold hit a flop shot Phil Mickelson would have been proud of. 

 

A saucy touch that left him 15 feet, which was about the best he could do outside of a backboard attempt off the flagstick.

 

“I picked my spot on that shot and tried to get a feel for the distance,” said Leopold. “You have to trust that the ball comes out correctly. Sometimes it does and sometimes it doesn’t. This time it did and making that putt was huge.”

 

“Having two birdie putts on each hole is our goal,” said Cooke, 29, of Boston, Mass. “If the both of us have our games together at the right moments we will be there in the end.”

 

Parente and Tucker met at a Challenge Cup event at Cranston Country Club in 2014. The Junior Golf Program at Potowomut Golf Club gave them the spark to a friendship that has lasted since. 

 

Parente, a former member of Valley, and Tucker, a current one, used that local knowledge to help them soar to the top of the leaderboard.

 

“I haven’t been feeling good about my game at all,” said Parente, 23, of East Greenwich. “I haven’t been practicing, I haven’t been playing so I was lucky to have a good horse to ride in Joe today.”

 

“I have been playing some good golf the last few weeks,” said Tucker, 22, of Warwick. “I have been feeling confident in my ability to make birdies. I thought we would do well because we are a good team and we have a good track record in these events.”

 

They finished in a tie for fourth last year at Potowomut.

 

Tucker, a redshirt junior at the College of Coastal Georgia, got things going with a 32 (4 under) on the front nine on his own ball.

 

Parente hit a beautiful 6-iron to two feet on No. 12 (par 3, 187 yards) for an easy birdie and Tucker made a 10-footer of his own for birdie on No. 16 (par 4, 458 yards).

 

They had a chance to take the outright lead on No. 18 but the duo each couldn’t get up-and-down from around the green. 

 

“There’s nothing but positive energy before we hit each shot,” said Parente. “That is a huge focus of ours making sure we are comfortable before we pull the trigger. That formula has worked well for us. We are looking forward to tomorrow.”