'it Would Mean Everything': Shrewsbury's Kelly Eyes U.s. Amateur

When Ryan Kelley was two years old, his father took him with him to hit balls at the former East Coast Golf Academy in Northborough.

“After a small bucket of balls,” J.T. Kelley said, “he was hitting it 30 yards, in his diaper.”

J.T. bought another bucket of balls and 15-20 people watched in amazement as Ryan hit them.

At age three, he began playing a few holes at Worcester Country Club. At seven, he started playing in U.S. Kids Golf events.

Golf has always been important to Ryan and on June 8 he took the first step toward playing in the prestigious U.S. Amateur.

The 18-year-old Shrewsbury resident shot a 3-under 67 at Wanumetonomy Golf & Country Club in Middletown, R.I., to earn medalist honors in a local U.S. Amateur qualifier. Ryan was one of eight golfers to advance and he is scheduled to take part in the final stage of qualifying July 20 at Boston Golf Club in Hingham. If he fares well then, he’ll compete in the 126th U.S. Amateur Aug. 10-16 at Philadelphia CC in Gladwyne, Pa., and Merion Golf Club in Ardmore, Pa.

Ryan carded an eagle, three birdies and two bogeys in the local qualifier. On the par-5 16th, he pushed his drive into the fescue on the right and was left with 230 yards to the pin. With the wind at his back, he smashed a 7 iron to within 35 feet of the cup and made the eagle putt. 

Ryan sank a 15-foot birdie putt on the par-4 first hole. On the par-4 11th, he blocked his tee shot to the right into the 13th fairway, but he hit his 120-yard approach to seven feet and made the birdie putt. On 18, he pulled his drive under a tree, but hit his wedge from 125 yards to a foot and half and made that birdie putt.

Ryan had never played Wanumetonomy before and hadn’t even heard of it until a week before he played it. Nevertheless, he played it well.

“It still hasn’t really sunk it,” he said. “An event like the U.S. Am, it’s the best amateur event in the world. You’ve got guys coming from all over the world. So to get through the local qualifying and win it, it was a little above my expectation.”

Ryan said on a scale of 1 to 10 his expectation of getting through the final stage of qualifying is an 8.5 because of his improved putting. Putting used to be his biggest weakness, but he’s worked hard on it with Worcester CC teaching pro Bob Bruso the past couple of months. Changing to an overlap grip gives him more control of the face of the putter. He also shortened his putting stroke.

So what would it mean to play in the U.S. Amateur?

“It would mean everything,” he said. “It would mean a lot to represent Assumption and represent Worcester (Country Club) in the U.S. Amateur.”

Ryan has committed to attend Assumption University in the fall on a golf scholarship. This spring, he became a caddie at the International Pines Course and he earns about $200 in tips per round.

Ryan ranked earning medalist honors in the U.S. Amateur local qualifier atop his list of golf accomplishments, surpassing carding a 3-under 69 at Kettle Brook GC in Paxton last October to earn medalist honors at the Central Mass. Division 1 Tournament and helping Shrewsbury High finish second as a team.

He became the first Colonials golfer to earn Central Mass. medalist honors since 2012.

Ryan was the No. 1 golfer during all of his four years at Shrewsbury High and he captained the team the last two seasons. A T&G Hometeam All-Star, Ryan averaged 35.0 for nine holes last fall and received the Mid-Wach A MVP award.

At the state tournament on a windy day at The Ridge Club in Sandwich, he was in the hunt until he drove two balls in the water and triple-bogeyed the final hole to finish tied for eighth with a 6-over 77.

“It took me a little bit of time to get over it,” he said.

Ryan had been a victim of bullying at school for a long time and the bullying grew worse the spring of his junior year. So he experienced some tough times and some mental health problems.

“Every day is a mental battle,” he said, “but when I get on the golf course everything kind of shuts off and I get in the golf mode. The sport of golf is kind of my escape from what’s going on in the rest of my life.”

Ryan receives support from his parents J.T. and Erin, and his sister Raegan, 19, who recently finished her freshman year at Sacred Heart University in Fairfield, Conn.

Ryan won Worcester CC junior club championship when he was 12 and 13, and began playing in the men’s club championship at age 15. He has been the low qualifier each year since and he finished in the semifinals at age 16.

He’s only 5-foot-7, 150 pounds, but he regularly drives the ball more than 300 yards.

“I’ve had the privilege of knowing Ryan for at least five or six years,” Worcester CC head pro Andy Lane said, “and it seems that each year he’s working harder and harder on his game. I don’t think there’s a day this season where I haven’t seen him out practicing. The results are showing.”

Ryan said he usually practices three to four hours seven days a week. He spends two to two and half hours on his putting alone.

“This place is like my playground,” he said. 

J.T. said his son’s game has improved since he decided to concentrate on golf instead of hockey. Nevertheless as a senior, Ryan was a captain of the Shrewsbury High hockey team and he led the team in scoring. 

To prepare for hockey, Ryan used to shoot 500 pucks into a tarp in the basement on his own. He broke a basement window once, but kept on shooting.

On Tuesday, he shot an even-par 71 at the Country Club of Wilbraham to grab one of the 13 qualifying spots in the New England Amateur. The New England Amateur will be held July 14-16 at GreatHorse in Hampden. On Thursday, he shot a 2-over 74 at Framingham CC to share seventh place with Brandon Parker of Worcester CC and qualify for the Mass. Amateur. Winchester CC will host the Mass. Amateur July 6-10.

He’s exempt into the Mass. Junior Amateur on Aug. 4-7 at Wyantenuck CC in Great Barrington. 

Ryan plans to enter the PGA Golf Management University Program after college to learn to become a club pro. 

Worcester CC members have taken Ryan under their wing.

“I don’t think I’d be the golfer I am today,” Ryan said, “without the help of the professionals and beautiful facilities we have here and all the support from all the members.”

Top amateur tournament close to home

The 64th Northeast Amateur Invitational golf tournament will be played Wednesday through Saturday, June 27, at Wannamoisett Country Club in Rumford, R.I.

Among those scheduled to tee off is Miles Russell, a 17-year-old Floridian who finished second last year and who is ranked as the top junior in the world. Russell qualified to compete in the U.S. Open.

Charlie Woods, Tiger’s son, caddied for him during the qualifier, but Russell decided to have swing coach Ramon Bescansa carry his bag in the U.S. Open. Russell will be a senior in the fall at the Providence School in Jacksonville Beach, Fla., and he has committed to play golf at Florida State.

Northeast co-chair Ben Tuthill caddied for Notah Begay when he won the Northeast in 1996 and late last year Begay asked him if Charlie Woods could play in the tournament this year. There was some discussion about it, but Tuthill said Woods was not invited, but would likely be in the field at some point in the future and joked “probably not as a caddie.”

The Northeast is the second of seven tournaments in the Elite Amateur Golf Series. Players earn points that can earn them exemptions into PGA Tour and USGA events. The Northeast champion also earns an exemption into the U.S. Amateur.

Because of that, many of the top amateurs come to Wannamoisett to play. Tuthill said the tournament’s stellar reputation also draws the top players.

“We do zero recruiting,” he said. “I don’t beg, we don’t pay, we don’t do anything to incentivize them to come here. We send an invitation and we see the responses. We know the players want to come here. We’re very fortunate.”

Josiah Gilbert, Logan Reilly, Jake Albert and Cayden Pope of NCAA champion Auburn are scheduled to play. So are Josh Kim, Baylor Larrabee and Tyler Loree of NCAA runner-up UCLA.

Reigning U.S. Amateur champion Mason Howell and U.S. Junior Amateur champ Hamilton Coleman are also scheduled to take part.

None of them may be household names yet, but they could be once they turn pro. Past champions include Ben Crenshaw, Jay Sigel, Luke Donald, Dustin Johnson and Collin Morikawa. 

Matt Parziale, the 2008 and 2015 Worcester County Amateur champion who plays out of Thorny Lea in Brockton, is also in the field.

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This article originally appeared on Telegram & Gazette: Ryan Kelly reflects on road from Shrewsbury High to eying U.S. Amateur