By Dalton Balthaser

 

LINCOLN - The sun didn’t shine for a second during Kevin Silva’s first two rounds of Stroke-Play Qualifying.

 

That didn’t keep Silva from staying hot.

 

Silva used world-class ball-striking and a steady putter to claim medalist honors and the No. 1 seed in the 116th Rhode Island Amateur at Kirkbrae Country Club (par 72, 6,676 yards).

 

Silva backed up a Round One score of 68 with a 66 that included seven birdies. Six of them coming on the inward nine. He finished at 10 under.

 

His two-day total of 10 under is the third-lowest qualifying score to par by a medalist in the history of the event. Garrett Medeiros of Metacomet Golf Club shot 13 under at Crestwood Country Club in 2009. Davis Chatfield of Wannamoisett Country Club shot 11 under at Ledgemont Country Club in 2018.

 

“I felt like there were a few more shots that I could have improved on after yesterday,” said Silva, 37, of Fall River, Mass. “Today, I did a great job on staying focused on my tempo and distance control. I have been grinding hard on my wedges the last few weeks. It has paid off.”

 

2019 champion and back-to-back medalist Andrew O’Leary of Pawtucket Country Club is the No. 2 seed at 8 under.

 

“My first goal at the start of this tournament is to be the No. 1 seed,” said O’Leary, 21, of Norfolk, Mass. “It’s easy to go out there and just want to make match play. Your scores will be higher if you think like that. I’ve been fortunate to have done that twice and give it a run for a third-straight medal. My game plan doesn’t change not being the No. 1 seed. I’m happy with where my game is at.”

 

Had O’Leary claimed medalist honors, he would have been only the second player in the history of the event to be medalist in the Stroke-Play portion for three-straight years.

 

Daniel Fairchild of Wannamoisett was medalist from 1917-19.

 

Defending Champion Jamie Lukowicz of Agawam Hunt shot a round of 64 to vault to the No. 3 seed at 7 under.

 

Silva, the 2015 Amateur Champion at Metacomet, made the turn in even par and then turned it on.

 

He made six birdies on the back nine to shoot 30. It started with an 8-footer on No. 10 (par 4, 324 yards) and once he rolled in a 25-footer on No. 11 (par 4, 411 yards) it snowballed from there.

 

A smooth 55-degree wedge from 104 yards on No. 13 (par 4, 375 yards) to eight feet got him to 3 under on the day and a 25-footer on No. 15 (par 3, 201 yards) got him to 4 under.

 

Then birdies on Nos. 16 (par 4, 326 yards) and 18 (par 4, 456 yards) helped him finish strong.

 

“I am proud with how I played the last two days,” said Silva, of Montaup Country Club. “But frankly, none of that matters anymore because everyone is back on a level playing field. Anyone can win a given match. I have to be ready.”

 

It has been some time since a Montaup member has been the medalist in stroke play. Chuck Wojtowicz was medalist in 1994 at Wannamoisett.

 

The next task for Silva is match play, a completely different animal than stroke play. He will take on either the host club’s Nick Salvatore or Crestwood Country Club’s Kolby Simmons. Salvatore and Simmons will tee off No. 18 at 7:15 a.m. and keep playing the hole until one player emerges. The playoff was eight players for six spots.

 

Last year, Silva reached the semifinals at Pawtucket where he lost to O’Leary. 

 

“I want to continue to keep focusing on my small goals,” said Silva. “Stroke play is over, and I did what I wanted to do, which was qualify for match play. I look forward to trying to better my opponent on each shot and in each match. The only person I have to worry about now is the one who is walking right beside me.”