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EAST PROVIDENCE — Wednesday felt more like normal for Miles Russell and his father, Joe.
A morning in the sunshine at Wannamoisett Country Club to start this 64th Northeast Amateur wasn’t all that different from a casual round near their Florida home. Russell fired a 3-under 66 with his father serving as his caddie, closing comfortably on the first page of the early leaderboard.
A few more eyes were on them over the weekend at the U.S. Open, with Russell making the cut and playing his final round on Father’s Day. Joe was summoned from outside the ropes at Shinnecock Hills to make a treasured walk up the final hole alongside his son, the current top junior player in the world as a 17-year-old.
“I don’t think it had totally sunk in yet,” Russell said. “I think it was really cool for both of us — just as cool for me as it was for him. Pretty special.”
More to come is likely in the near future for Russell, a gifted left-hander who finished runner-up here last year. His notable achievements to date include the Junior PGA Championship in 2023, a pair of Junior Players Championship crowns and a selection to the Junior Presidents Cup team with the United States in 2024. Sharing a few moments with his dad on such a stage was something different.
“It was something a buddy recommended at the start of the week since I made it there,” Russell said. “I told him I had to make the cut first.
"Once I made the cut, it was there for sure. I was like, ‘Oh, this would be something cool.’ ”
Russell’s advanced game has put him in position to access the top of the sport at his level. He’s committed to Florida State and doesn’t look a bit out of place against one of the toughest fields in amateur golf. Russell carded four birdies against a lone bogey in his opening round, including on the par-3 third and the par-3 eighth.
“It was good,” Russell said. “I played kind of solid on my front nine and not quite as solid on my back nine. Kind of grinded well.”
Russell shot an even-par 70 on Sunday to finish tied for 39th in New York, one of five amateurs to make the cut. Jackson Koivun and Ryder Cowan both closed two shots ahead of him at 5-over — Koivun will turn professional this week after blitzing his way through three college seasons at Auburn. He leaves the Tigers a three-time SEC individual champion and two-time team national champion.
“That type of golf exposes everything — every part of your game,” Russell said. “If something’s not quite sharp, it will definitely expose it.
“I learned some things for sure. Kind of taking those things into this week and taking them into pretty much every tournament I’ll play from now on.”
Carson Bertagnole matched course and tournament records here to take the early lead, firing an 8-under 61. He racked up nine birdies against a lone bogey while following up a strong college season at North Carolina. Bertagnole won the Fighting Irish Classic and was named to the All-America Second Team by Ping.
“Just kind of kept it rolling,” Bertagnole said. “Hit the driver really well and hit a lot of really nice iron shots in there to give myself a lot of looks.”
Luke Guthrie (2011), Karl Vilups (2019) and Preston Stout (2025) previously finished at that number, with Stout carding his piece of history in the second round last year. He closed the tournament at 9-under, winning by eight shots on his way to an eventual PGA Tour card. Bertagnole shot a 5-under 30 on his back nine, including a birdie at the par-5 17th after his drive caromed off the trees on the left side and back into play.
“It definitely helps to have some course knowledge for some tee shots,” Bertagnole said. “And then a couple greens are blind when you’re hitting into them. Being able to know how they react and what it looks like up there definitely helps a lot.”
Mateo Pulcini shot a 5-under 64 to sit behind Bertagnole in second place through the morning wave. Gabriel Palacios Morataya was one shot back of Pulcini at 4-under 65. Reed Lotter, Tyler Watts, Billy Davis, Russell and Connor Doyal were all within range tied for fifth.
[email protected]
On X: @BillKoch25
This article originally appeared on The Providence Journal: Miles Russell competes in the Northeast Amateur in Rhode Island
Continue reading...
A morning in the sunshine at Wannamoisett Country Club to start this 64th Northeast Amateur wasn’t all that different from a casual round near their Florida home. Russell fired a 3-under 66 with his father serving as his caddie, closing comfortably on the first page of the early leaderboard.
Russell, dad make headlines on Father's Day
A few more eyes were on them over the weekend at the U.S. Open, with Russell making the cut and playing his final round on Father’s Day. Joe was summoned from outside the ropes at Shinnecock Hills to make a treasured walk up the final hole alongside his son, the current top junior player in the world as a 17-year-old.
“I don’t think it had totally sunk in yet,” Russell said. “I think it was really cool for both of us — just as cool for me as it was for him. Pretty special.”
More to come is likely in the near future for Russell, a gifted left-hander who finished runner-up here last year. His notable achievements to date include the Junior PGA Championship in 2023, a pair of Junior Players Championship crowns and a selection to the Junior Presidents Cup team with the United States in 2024. Sharing a few moments with his dad on such a stage was something different.
“It was something a buddy recommended at the start of the week since I made it there,” Russell said. “I told him I had to make the cut first.
"Once I made the cut, it was there for sure. I was like, ‘Oh, this would be something cool.’ ”
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Russell ready for next step
Russell’s advanced game has put him in position to access the top of the sport at his level. He’s committed to Florida State and doesn’t look a bit out of place against one of the toughest fields in amateur golf. Russell carded four birdies against a lone bogey in his opening round, including on the par-3 third and the par-3 eighth.
“It was good,” Russell said. “I played kind of solid on my front nine and not quite as solid on my back nine. Kind of grinded well.”
Russell shot an even-par 70 on Sunday to finish tied for 39th in New York, one of five amateurs to make the cut. Jackson Koivun and Ryder Cowan both closed two shots ahead of him at 5-over — Koivun will turn professional this week after blitzing his way through three college seasons at Auburn. He leaves the Tigers a three-time SEC individual champion and two-time team national champion.
“That type of golf exposes everything — every part of your game,” Russell said. “If something’s not quite sharp, it will definitely expose it.
“I learned some things for sure. Kind of taking those things into this week and taking them into pretty much every tournament I’ll play from now on.”
Who's leading the Northeast Amateur?
Carson Bertagnole matched course and tournament records here to take the early lead, firing an 8-under 61. He racked up nine birdies against a lone bogey while following up a strong college season at North Carolina. Bertagnole won the Fighting Irish Classic and was named to the All-America Second Team by Ping.
“Just kind of kept it rolling,” Bertagnole said. “Hit the driver really well and hit a lot of really nice iron shots in there to give myself a lot of looks.”
Luke Guthrie (2011), Karl Vilups (2019) and Preston Stout (2025) previously finished at that number, with Stout carding his piece of history in the second round last year. He closed the tournament at 9-under, winning by eight shots on his way to an eventual PGA Tour card. Bertagnole shot a 5-under 30 on his back nine, including a birdie at the par-5 17th after his drive caromed off the trees on the left side and back into play.
“It definitely helps to have some course knowledge for some tee shots,” Bertagnole said. “And then a couple greens are blind when you’re hitting into them. Being able to know how they react and what it looks like up there definitely helps a lot.”
Mateo Pulcini shot a 5-under 64 to sit behind Bertagnole in second place through the morning wave. Gabriel Palacios Morataya was one shot back of Pulcini at 4-under 65. Reed Lotter, Tyler Watts, Billy Davis, Russell and Connor Doyal were all within range tied for fifth.
[email protected]
On X: @BillKoch25
This article originally appeared on The Providence Journal: Miles Russell competes in the Northeast Amateur in Rhode Island
Continue reading...
