Mid-Amateur Championship

After dodging Hurricane Matthew and withstanding four rounds of match play, Chip Brooke, of Bartow, and Chris Fabozzi, of Tallahassee, teed up in the Final Match on Monday morning. Brooke defeated the number one seed and defending Champion, T J Shuart, in the Quarterfinals and Matthew Giovannelli, number 12 seed, in the Seminfinals to advance to the final round. Fabozzi, number 11 seed, played a tough match against Joe Alfieri, current Public Links Champion, to face Brooke in the final.

Brooke’s solid play continued as he won every hole from hole three to ten in the Final match.  Four birdies on holes three, five, seven, and nine kept Chip, who started match play as the number nine seed, ahead the entire match. With a par from both Fabozzi and Brooke on the 11th hole, Chip prevailed with a final eight and seven victory! Chip played in the State Four-Ball Championship earlier this year, with teammate Marc Dull, finishing tied for 25th. He now will join his father, Ken Brooke, as a FSGA Champion after his father won the 1980 Four-Ball Championship with partner Hal Slaton. This marks Brooke’s first FSGA Championship win!

Stroke Play Recap

Match Play Bracket  

The 35th playing of the Mid-Amateur Championship is heading to the Quarry Course at Black Diamond Ranch in Lecanto. An estimated 300+ mid-amateurs (25 years of age and older) will attempt to qualify for this premier championship which is ranked by the World Amateur Golf Rankings. Click here to see the results from 2015.

Championship Format

• 84 players in the Championship field
• 36 holes of gross individual stroke play. Low 32 scores advance to match play.
• There will be a hole-by-hole play-off to determine the last qualifier's place in the Championship immediately - All other ties for seeds will be broken randomly
• The match play round of 32 will begin Friday afternoon
• The round of 16 will be played on Saturday morning and the quarter-finals will begin Saturday afternoon
• Semi-finals will be played on Sunday morning and Championship match will be played on Sunday afternoon.

Eligibility 

• Male amateur golfer
• At least 25 years of age as of the first day of the Championship
• Entrant is required to be a member of the FSGA

Entry Fees

• Qualifying Fee: Qualifying Fee includes entry fee and cart fee.
• Championship Fee: Fee paid by those individuals who advance to the Championship through qualifying. Includes tee gifts, course fees, and range balls for each competitive round.
  
• Exempt Fee: Exempt Fee includes Championship Fee and Entry Fee for those individuals eligible for exemption.

Late entries will be accepted subject to a $10 late entry fee should the entrant gain acceptance into the qualifying field. 

Pre-Registration

Those individuals who advance to the Championship through qualifying must pre-register and remit an additional $125 online at www.FSGA.org under the "My Account" section, which can be located in the top right hand corner of the web-page.  Payment must be received by Thursday, September 29th by 3:30 pm, or the individual will be withdrawn from the Championship.

To Pre-Register:

• Log on to the FSGA website at www.fsga.org using your email address and password
• Click on "My Account" in the upper right hand corner of the homepage
• Under "My Tournaments", click on the "Pre-Register" button to the right of the tournament name
• Enter your credit card information and then click the "Charge My Card" button on the bottom right hand corner of the page

Refunds, Notice of Withdrawals

Requests for qualifying entry refunds received prior to entry closing date will be honored (less $20 per entry administrative fee). Requests received after the closing date will be honored (less 50% of entry fee). No requests will be honored within two days of the scheduled start date.

Requests for refunds of Exempt or Championship fees prior to the pre-registration deadline will be honored (less $20 per entry administrative fee). No requests will be honored after the pre-registration deadline.

Course Set-Up

The golf course will be set-up at approximately 6,800-7,100 yards.

Qualifying

Qualifying rounds are 18 holes of gross individual stroke play at seven qualifying sites.  During qualifying, each player must use a golf cart.  Caddies are acceptable, but he/she may not ride in a golf cart or carry the player's clubs.  Players are responsible for cart fees for all practice rounds.

Defending Champions

T J Shuart, of Fort Lauderdale, defeated Brian Armstrong, of Tampa, in the final match after a birdie on the 17th hole to seal his 3&1 victory at Sara Bay Country Club in Sarasota. Shuart and Armstrong played the first nine holes of the final match all-square until Shuart birdied the ninth hole to kick start his great play on the back-nine to become the 34th Match Play Champion.

Championship Practice Rounds and Practice Facilities

Practice rounds are available one week prior to the Championship and after 12:00 PM the weekend prior on a space available basis.  The cost of a practice round is $30 plus tax.  Starting times for your practice round can be arranged by calling the club six days before the day you would like to play. Black Diamond Ranch's telephone number is 352-746-3446.

Exemptions

Players in the following categories will be eligible for exemption provided they meet all entry and eligibility requirements.

NOTE: Blank entries will be filed by the FSGA for players who become exempt after the close of entries

• Last five year's Mid-Amateur Champions
• Last two year's Mid-Amateur Runner-ups
• Last year's Mid-Amateur Championship Semifinalists
• Last year's Amateur Player of the Year
• Last five year's Amateur Champions
• Current year's top five and tied Amateur Championship finishers
• Current year's Mid-Amateur Stroke Play Champion
• Last year's Senior Amateur Player of the Year
• Current year's Senior Amateur Champion
• Current year's Amateur Public Links Champion
• Current year's Amateur Match Play Champion
• Current year's Mid-Senior Champion
• Current year's Florida Open Low Amateur
• Current year's Florida Senior Open Low Amateur
• Current year's final Winter Series Senior (55-64 Age Division) Points Leader
• Players selected to the current year's USGA State Team (even years only)
• Florida residents qualifying for last year's U.S. Amateur Championship
• Florida residents qualifying for the current year's U.S Mid-Amateur Championship

Exemptions Earned from this Tournament

Winner

• Next five Mid-Amateur Championships
• Next three Amateur Championships
• Next three Amateur Match Play Championships
• Next year's Florida Open

Runner-up

• Next two Mid-Amateur Championships
  

Semi-Finalists

• Next year's Mid-Amateur Championship
• Next year's Amateur Championship
• Next year's Amateur Match Play Championship

Players making match play

• Next year's Senior Amateur Championship

Other Policies

• Spectators and Spectator Cart Policy - Click here.
• Caddies - Caddies are allowed in all FSGA Championships except Junior events. However, a player must not use a parent, step-parent or guardian as a caddie. The caddie MUST walk and the player's clubs must remain on the golf cart. 
• Championship Pace of Play Policy - Click here.
• Local Rules and Conditions of Competition - Click here.
• Championship Policies - Click here to read the withdrawal, dress code, and other policies.
• Procedures for Alternates - Click here for information on how alternates may gain entry into this Championship.
• Conditions/ Schedule - The FSGA Championships Committee/on-site Rules Committee reserves the right to alter any of the conditions, provisions and/or schedules. The decision of the Championships Committee/on-site Rules Committee in any matter will be final.

Host Hotel and Accommodations

Holiday Inn Express - Crystal River
1203 NE 5th Street
Crystal River,  Florida  34429
352-563-1111

$109 per night plus tax

Call 352-563-1111 or book online at here using group code FSG. Must mention group code when booking.

Directions

Black Diamond Ranch
3125 West Black Diamond Circle
Lecanto, FL 34461
(352) 746-3446

Click here for directions