Darin Goldstein
(MGA Photo)

Darin Goldstein of Noyac led the field of 83 players in the first round after carding a 1-over 71.

Despite starting his day with a bogey, he quickly bounced back and was able to make three birdies during the rest of his round.

“I got off to a little bit of a rough start, didn’t have a great first hole but I righted the ship quickly and hit the ball well throughout the round,” he said.

Goldstein, who this year advanced to match play at the U.S. Mid-Amateur, was able to use the course’s two par-5s to his advantage, making birdies on both of them.

“The course was great, it was fast, greens were perfect and if you just put the ball in the fairway and give yourself some looks, there can be some numbers out there for sure,” he said.

This is Goldstein’s first year of eligibility for the MGA Mid-Am, which is open to players age 35 and over.

Defending champion Trevor Randolph and Dan Macdonald, both of Arcola, are just one shot back from Goldstein. Randolph, who played in the USGA State Team Championship for New Jersey last week, had three birdies of his own but struggled toward the end of his round, coming in at 2-over par.

The rest of the leaderboard is filled with top players going into tomorrow’s final 18 holes. A total of 7 players carded 73s: two-time Mid-Am winner Dennis Lynch of Nassau Players, Brian Komline of Black Oak, KJ Kim of Darlington, Jim Dufficy of the Links at Union Vale, Dan Levinson of Bayonne, Chet Hrostek of MGA eClub – Westchester/Fairfield, and Steven Tarulli of Hempstead.

Other players of note who made the cut include Al Small of Fairmount (74), 2014 MGA Senior Open winner Adam Kugler of Alpine (74), 2015 Mid-Am runner-up Mike Stamberger of Manasquan River (74), and 2013 Mid-Am champion Michael Karger of Century (75).

Tamarack’s 6,678-yard course played to a par 70. Fast and firm conditions provided a great test of golf for the starting field of 83 players.

The Mid-Amateur is the MGA’s second youngest championship, making its debut in 2007 at Hudson National Golf Club. The two-day, 36-hole event is an invitational to competitors at least 35-years of age based on finishes in MGA and Met Area events. The trophy, the Westmoreland Cup, is named for longtime MGA Tournament Director Gene Westmoreland.

The field was cut to the low 40 and ties after today’s 18 holes. Tee times for the final round begin at 8:30 a.m. on Thursday.