By Dalton Balthaser

 

WARWICK – The city of Warwick is ingrained in the life of Dr. George Pirie.

 

He has been a well-respected periodontist in Warwick for more than 33 years.

 

The club he belongs to, Valley Country Club, is in Warwick.

 

He even went to Warwick Veterans Memorial High School, which was 10 minutes from Warwick Country Club before it closed in 2016.

 

“I played my high school golf at Warwick,” said Pirie. “It is a completely different golf course now. They have lost thousands of trees. It used to be a bowling alley on each hole. You could barely see the water.”

 

Pirie, embracing a home game, took the Day One lead of the 63rd Rhode Island Senior Amateur at Warwick (par 69, 6,183 yards) Tuesday with a round of 1-over-par 70.

 

On a day where the wind gusted and the rough proved to be detrimental, Pirie’s round was the closest to par. He and a couple others got to red figures but were unable to remain there.

 

“I am not surprised at all that no one was able to shoot even par or better,” said Pirie. “The golf course was in fabulous shape. It was firm and fast with healthy rough. If you couldn’t keep the ball in the fairway, you were going to make bogey.”

 

Defending Champion Rob Grossguth of West Warwick Country Club shot a round of 75.

 

“I did shoot better than my age,” said Pirie, 71, of Warwick. “That is a cool thing to do. Especially considering how tough it was out there today. Anytime you can break your age, that’s a good thing.”

 

Pirie kept a bogey off his card for the first 15 holes of his round. He made a birdie on No. 9 (par 3, 165 yards) after stuffing a 5-iron to six feet. For a moment it had a chance to go in. He was able to convert the tricky downhill slider.

 

He wasn’t pleased with his finish. Bogeys on Nos. 16 (par 4, 440 yards) and 18 (par 4, 410 yards) left him wanting more but he said he was happy with where he stands.

 

“I am not so sure which George Pirie will show up tomorrow,” said Pirie. “I am putting well but the secret for me is to continue to put the ball in the fairway. I am not anywhere near as long as I used to be.”

 

The Rhode Island Golf Hall of Famer and two-time #RISrAm champion (2006, 2014) has been battling vertigo since 2018. When he was on his road to recovery, he couldn’t even hit the golf ball. Then he progressed to hitting chips. Now he’s able to continue playing the game he loves.

 

“I have permanent vertigo,” said Pirie. “The thing about having vertigo is that you never swing the same way twice. I have fought my way back to being able to play golf. You just never know. Sometimes it feels like the ground shoots up in my face and then I will flinch. Fortunately, it is tolerable.”

 

Pirie has a one-shot lead over a contingent of five players at 2 over. That group is led by seven-time Senior Amateur champion Paul Quigley of Green Valley Country Club (2001, 2003-05, 2009, 2012, 2016). Pirie’s last victory came in 2019 when he won the Senior Division of the Rhode Island Mid-Amateur at Pawtucket Country Club.

 

“I look forward to playing tomorrow,” said Pirie. “I love this golf course and am excited for another chance to win a RIGA event.”