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Rich Berberian Jr. garners his first Pro-Am Championship

By Paul Miller
Published on
Rich Berberian Jr. garners his first Pro-Am Championship

At Plymouth, Mass., Rich Berberian Jr. and amateur partner Chris Ruggerio of Vesper Country Club shot 14-under par through 36 holes at the Pro-Am Championship at Pinehills Golf Club on Tuesday. The pair combined for 13 birdies, one bogey, and one eagle on the day.

Starting on the tougher 18, the Jones Course, they made back-to-back birdies on one, two, and nine. After making a birdie on 12, they added a successful string of four more, from 15 through 18.

On the Nicklaus Course, they had their only slip-up of the day, making a bogey on the third hole. They quickly corrected and birdied both the seventh and ninth. On the back nine, they built on their lead with a birdie on the 10th and an eagle on the 11th. The duo followed with two more birdies before they were finished.

"Teamwork really helped us out today, when I birdied four holes, he birdied four more holes," Berberian said. "We helped each other out a lot and it really helped us to be successful and go really low."

Ruggerio is Berberian's longtime caddy and has helped him win both NEPGA Section Championships and last year's Professional National Championship.

In the latter event, Berberian, the one-time Pinkerton Academy standout, sank a 35-foot birdie putt on the 18th hole at Turning Stone Casino and Resort in Verona, N.Y.

With that win, Berberian earned $75,000 and became the second New England PGA Section Member to win the Walter Hagen Cup since Bob Lendzion in 1986.

Shawn Warren and amateur Shawn Mccurdy of Falmouth CC carded 12 birdies, one eagle and two bogeys. They finished second, at 12-under.

Former Keene Country Club head pro Sean Edmonds, now at Oyster Harbors Club, teamed with amateur Robert M. Currey to tie for 17th, at 6-under. ___

This article is written by Paul Miller from The Keene Sentinel, N.H. and was legally licensed via the Tribune Content Agency through the NewsCred publisher network. Please direct all licensing questions to legal@newscred.com.