Two amateur golf tournaments will go head-to-head over four of the state’s best-known courses.
The Falmouth Country Club will be making its debut as a co-partner of the Bunyan with longstanding host the Penobscot Valley Country Club in Orono.
The Falmouth Country Club is replacing the Kebo Valley Golf Club in Bar Harbor with Kebo teaming up with the Bangor Municipal Golf Course to host the Downeast-Metro Amateur.
Deer Isle’s Sam Grindle will return to defend his Bunyan title, which he won on the fourth extra playoff hole over Jack Wyman of South Freeport.
Lincoln’s Lance Bernier also was included in the playoff, and Rockland’s Ricky Jones would have been been the fourth member of the playoff group, but he left after his round and was more than an hour away when the final scores were tabulated.
So tourney officials ruled it would have caused an undue delay and proceeded the playoff with the three golfers.
Jones, the three-time Maine Amateur champ, will play in the Downeast-Metro Amateur.
He applied too late to play in the Bunyan because he had gone out of town and wasn’t sure he would be available to play that weekend.
Once he found out he would be able to play, he signed up to play in the Downeast-Metro Amateur.
“It should be fun,” said the 43-year-old Jones. “They’re both fine courses, and they’re quite different. Bangor has bigger greens and is a little more wide open. It’s a bombers course. Kebo has smaller greens and is also in great shape.”
There are about 120 golfers who will tee off at the Downeast-Metro.
Kebo Valley golf pro Peiter DeVos said he is “ecstatic” about the turnout.
“We got 20 percent more than we expected,” he said.
Jones said there will be plenty of quality golfers in the field who could hoist the trophy after the 36-hole event.
“It’s definitely going to be a competitive field. I think you’re going to have to shoot under par to win it,” he said.
“We have an amazing talent pool,” said Bangor Municipal Golf Course assistant pro Rob Jarvis, who is running the tournament along with DeVos.
Jones said he has played only six times as he has been busy after his eighth-grade daughter Chloe’s softball season along with son Rhys’ Little League baseball campaign.
He listed Portland’s Matt Greenleaf and Mike Doran as two of the other favorites.
Greenleaf finished fourth in the Maine Amateur Championship last season, and Jones was fifth.
Bernier also will be a prime contender.
“My game has been fine but not great. I’m still working the kinks out,” said Jones.
Jarvis and DeVos said their respective courses are in terrific shape, and PVCC head pro Jason Harris and Falmouth pros Sean Barrett and Dick Harris said the same is true of their courses, which should lend itself to good scoring in both tournaments.
“I’ve never seen our course any better,” said Jarvis.
“Our course is in its best shape ever,” said Dick Harris, who expects close to 160 golfers at the Bunyan.
Grindle should be challenged by the likes of Bangor’s Drew Powell, who finished third in the Maine Amateur a year ago, PVCC’s Mark Barthelemy, Falmouth CC’s Pat Bucklin and Damariscotta’s Malcolm Oliver, who plays for Bentley University in Massachusetts.
On Saturday, the A and B flights for the respective tournaments will be played at the PVCC (Bunyan) and Kebo Valley (Downeast-Metro) courses with the C and D flights and Ladies Divisions at Falmouth and Bangor.
They will swap on Sunday.