By Dalton Balthaser

 

NEWPORT – Augie Sottile drove down the Newport Country Club entrance driveway on Harrison Avenue for the first time Wednesday.

 

When he drove his car out of the lot, he left with memories that will last a lifetime.

 

In his first trip around Newport, Sottile carded a bogey-free 67 to seize the Round One lead of the 23rd John P. Burke Memorial at Newport (par 72, 6,577 yards).

 

“I’ve been feeling pretty good about how things have been going with my golf game,” said Sottile, 37, of Warwick. “I had a lesson last week and it helped solidify my game. I feel like I am finally compressing the golf ball. I had a lot of fun today.”

 

Two-time defending champion Jamie Lukowicz of Agawam Hunt sits in a tie for eighth after a round of 74.

 

“I have never been on property here at Newport Country Club,” said Sottile. “So, I wanted to get the true experience of what it would be like to play here and do it right. I hired a caddie and walked. It felt like riding in a cart wouldn’t be the right thing to do the first time I played here. It was as good as I expected.”

 

He started with a birdie on No. 1 (par 5, 480 yards). He reached the green in two after hitting a 7-iron from 180 yards to 30 feet and two-putted from there.

 

He made the turn in 2 under after making a 25-footer on No. 9 (par 4, 422 yards). He then kept the momentum by adding three consecutive birdies on Nos. 10 (par 5, 528 yards), 11 (par 4, 298 yards) and 12 (par 5, 477 yards). He made putts inside of 10 feet on each hole.

 

That string of four consecutive birdies got him to 5 under. He said he could have gone lower but missed some good birdie looks on the closing stretch.

 

“My caddie Jamie helped me confirm what I was thinking,” said Sottile, of the Amateur Golf Tour of New England. “It felt like most of the day, he would tell me where to hit it and I would hit the target. I was pretty locked in.”

 

The original dates for the #BurkeMemorial were scheduled for Oct. 4-5 at Newport and Pawtucket Country Club but both days had to be rescheduled due to rain.

 

Round One of the Burke took place on Oct. 20-21 at Newport and Round Two will be played at Pawtucket on Oct. 26-27.

 

“This is an unusual tournament considering we have to wait for about a week to play the final round at Pawtucket,” said Sottile. “Mother Nature had other plans with weather, and we lucked out with great weather at Newport. I have a couple of rounds lined up in the next week before Oct. 26 to stay sharp. It’s a position I haven’t been in for a bit, but I will be ready.”

 

Sottile spent a lot of his life in Monterey, Calif. He said Newport’s location and views remind him a lot of some of the memorable places he’s played. Including the likes of Monterey Peninsula Country Club, which is an annual host site for the PGA Tour’s Pebble Beach Pro-Am.

 

“It’s a special day and one I will never forget,” said Sottile. “A day like today reinforces that hard work pays off. To be able to come to a place as historic as this and to play like I did on my first time around the course is amazing.”

 

Senior Division

 

Barry Higham of Button Hole Golf Club, Tom Evans of Shelter Harbor Golf Club Jon Fasick of New England Country Club and EJ Wholey of Quinnatisset Country Club share the Senior Division lead after rounds of 74 (par 72, 6,194 yards).