WEST BOXFORD — One day removed from a record-setting round on the golf course, it occurred to Phil Miceli yesterday that the North Shore Amateur at Far Corner was his tournament to lose.
That's what happens when you shoot a 65, as Miceli did Tuesday, and take command in the opening round of a two-day tournament. Your mind can play tricks on you, and the key is not to fall apart.
"It puts a different type of pressure on you," admitted Miceli, 37, who lives in Bradford and plays out of Sagamore in Lynnfield. "You're worried about blowing it."
Miceli didn't play out of his mind in the final round yesterday, shooting a 73, but he was good enough to win the 33rd annual tournament in runaway fashion. His two-day total was a six-under par 138 as he captured the North Shore Amateur for the first time.
Former St. John's Prep hockey player John Gilmartin, who plays out of Indian Ridge in Andover, finished a distant second with a 146 (74-72).
"Phil was pretty much uncatchable," said Gilmartin, a two-time North Shore Amateur champion. "The only way it happens is if you shoot four-under (for the front nine) and he plays poorly, but that didn't happen. Phil was one-under after nine, so he was really solid."
Miceli birdied the third and eighth holes and made the turn with a 35. He bogeyed three holes on the back nine, but was so comfortably ahead down the stretch that it didn't matter.
"It wasn't bad (being so far ahead). I didn't mind it," said Miceli, whose best previous finish in the North Shore Amateur was second place two years ago. "It was windy out there, so it was tough (for anyone) to shoot low.
"The idea was to keep (the lead) safe. I played safe, didn't fire it much and made sure I two-putted everything. I tried not to give anything away. It wasn't a case of being conservative. But with the wind, you just had to concentrate and play hard."
Mike Cole of Gannon Country Club in Lynn turned the heat up on Miceli when he eagled the first hole. But Cole would settle for fifth place with a 148 (72-76).
"Mike threw a jab at me right off the bat," said Miceli. "I was thinking, 'OK, here we go'. But it ended up OK."
Miceli once shot a 61 at Sagamore, setting the course record, but it's much different when you're in a competitive situation. He won the Mass Publinx tourney at Cranberrry Valley in Harwich in 2005, but this one was more satisfying, being so close to home.
"Everyone wants to win the North Shore Amateur if you're from around here," said Miceli, who works on the grounds crew at Sagamore. "It feels great. I came in second before, and this time I was able to pull through."
Before Miceli finished up yesterday, one golfer commented that Tiger Woods wouldn't have beaten Miceli on Tuesday, when he established the tourney record with his 65, paving the way for the championship.
Miceli took it as a compliment but begged to differ. "I think Tiger would've (won)," Miceli said with a chuckle.
Ki Kwon of Far Corner, who was in second place after the first round, slipped to a 76 yesterday for a 147 and finished in a third place tie with Phil Smith of Vesper, who rallied with a 71 on the final day of play.
