By Dalton Balthaser
PAWTUCKET, R.I. - Tyler Cooke’s golf game has been traveling well of late. His form is strong and his confidence is high.
On May 6, he advanced through to sectional qualifying for the U.S. Open after being in the Top 4 at a local qualifier at Ledgemont Country Club.
Cooke, of Wannamoisett Country Club, survived a brutally cold and windy day to secure the Round 1 lead in the Championship Division of the 21st John P. Burke Memorial (Gross) at Pawtucket Country Club (par 69, 6,420 yards) Tuesday. Cooke used a 3-under-par 31 on the back nine to post 68, the only red number of the day.
The final round will be played Wednesday at Shelter Harbor Golf Club.
The spark was ignited on No. 11 (par 4, 308 yards). After playing conservatively off the tee with a 4-iron, Cooke hit a poor wedge to 40 feet. But would drain an unexpected bomb to move to 1 over on his round. He would then add birdies on Nos. 14 (par 4, 375 yards) and 18 (par 4, 379 yards) as a result of 58-degree wedges to 20 and eight feet, respectively.
“After being 2 over through three, I wasn’t sure where the round was going to go,” said Cooke. “I focused on my process of picking good targets and lines, especially in the beginning when I wasn’t warmed up yet. But since I didn’t hit many warm-up shots, I was easing into my driver to begin the round.
“Three putting the first hole was not a good start. But once I got to No. 3 (par 4, 379 yards) I was able to swing more fluidly with the driver. My driver was awesome today.”
Cooke, the defending Burke (Gross) champion and reigning Rhode Island Golf Association Player of the Year, hit 17 of 18 greens in regulation.
On a day where the high temperature was in the mid-40s, the wind was consistently howling and it misted rain most of the day, only having to chip once is a great testament to his prolific ball-striking round.
“If you hit 17 greens, you should probably be shooting more than 1 under,” said Cooke, 27, of Warwick, R.I. “When I drive it in play, I give myself a great chance to score. The par 3s here are really difficult and if you miss the green you will have a tough time making par. I was bearing down on those.”
Cooke’s game will travel to Bandon, Ore. and Bandon Dunes Golf Resort next week for the U.S. Amateur Four-Ball with fellow Wannamoisett member and partner Bobby Leopold.
The duo lost to champions Frankie Capan and Shuai Ming Wong in the Round of 32 of the U.S. Four-Ball at Pinehurst Golf Resort in 2017.
But before Cooke can get on a plane to go out West, he’s got some business to take care of. He’s looking to become the fourth golfer to successfully defend his Burke title. Wannamoisett’s Charlie Blanchard (2000-2002) and Leopold (2009-10, 2012-13), as well as Metacomet Golf Club’s Brad Valois (2016-17), have completed the feat.
“The fairways are quite wide at Shelter Harbor, which is nice,” said Cooke. “I have to take advantage of the par 5s and keep the ball in front of me. The biggest key for me is to get off to a good start tomorrow so I don’t have to work my way back and grind the whole round.”
Lurking are Metacomet’s Jamie Lukowicz and Pawtucket’s Michael Philipp. Both carded rounds of even-par 69 to sit one shot back of Cooke.
“I knew where Tyler [Cooke] was the whole time since we were in the same group,” said Lukowicz, 45, of Providence, R.I. “I was keeping an eye on him when he started to make a run on the back nine. Shelter Harbor is my favorite golf course and I tend to play well there. It’s been good to me over the years hopefully tomorrow is no different.”
Lukowicz’s highlights came as the result of his 7-iron. Two well-struck approaches on Nos. 1 (par 4, 389 yards) and 7 (par 3, 173 yards) led to converted birdies from 20 feet and 18 feet, respectively.
Philipp, who will also be making the trip to Bandon Dunes next week with fellow Pawtucket member Ryan Pelletier, credits a huge par save on No. 10 (par 4, 435 yards) as a reason he kept his round together.
After blocking his drive right, he had to pitch out after being close to a fence. No problems, however, as he stuffed a pitching wedge from 130 yards to 10 feet and avoided a disaster.
“Being a member helped me out today,” said Philipp, 33, of Mansfield, Mass. “I knew where I had to miss it and how to think on the greens. I did a good job of keeping the ball in front of me and planning my way around the golf course.
“All today’s round was about was giving myself a chance to win tomorrow. I have never been to Shelter Harbor but it’ll be a good chance for me to get in a practice round before the Rhode Island Amateur. I tend to play well at golf courses that I haven’t seen before.”
Metacomet’s Bruce Heterick and Pawtucket’s Chris O’Neill share the Senior Division lead after carding matching rounds of 3-over-par 72.