By Richard Rapp
rrapp@massgolf.org
BELMONT, Massachusetts (September 23, 2026) – The World Cup, leap years, the Olympics, Frank Vana (Marlborough Country Club) winning the Massachusetts Senior Amateur: these are things that happen every four years. The 2018 and 2022 champion is back on top in 2026, and he did it in style.
With Chris Congdon (The Links at Mass Golf) chasing close behind in the final group, Vana drained a 25 foot birdie putt on Belmont’s Country Club‘s rippling 18th green. Congdon then needed to hole his 50 yard approach to force a playoff, and honestly came pretty darn close. But the half-wedge landed a few feet from the cup, took a big bounce and checked beyond the hole. Congdon made the birdie putt, but came up one stroke shy of Vana’s 3-over total.
“It’s just great. It’s always great to win. You know, it’s always hard to win. And today was no different. Right down to the wire,” said Vana. “And, you know, I think Chris probably had a few hiccups. I had a few hiccups. But, you know, Mother Nature, I think, played a part in that. But the golf course was fabulous. Greens were great, conditions were awesome. And it was just two fun days.”
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As the final groups made the turn on a sunny but blustery day, the contenders had separated. Playing in the second to last group, Vana and Jim Patterson (USGA/Mass Golf GC) sat at 2 and 3-over respectively, and Congdon, playing in the final group, was also at 2-over. The next closest competitors were 6-over. Through 11, all three were tied at 3-over.
Coming off a bogey on the 11th, Vana made a critical up and down from well in front and below the green on the par-3 12th, holing a 15 foot comebacker to avoid back-to-back bogeys.
“Yeah, that was huge. That was one of my not so good shots. And, it’s just a tough spot. The green is down grain downhill, and it’s just tough to get it close. And then I made the putt coming back. So I was thrilled about that. Really thrilled,” said Vana.
It’s worth noting here that Douglas Hutcheson (Amherst Golf Club) and Andy Drohen (The Ranch Golf Club) both aced the 12th today. No word on whether they split the bar tab.
Congdon proceeded to hit his tee ball hole high to about 25 feet on 12, but three putted to drop a shot behind Vana and Patterson. Vana then birdied the downhill par-4 14th, hitting his approach to inside 7 feet and making the putt to get to 2-over, one clear of Patterson and two of Congdon, who had just missed a short birdie look on 13.
It got a little tumultuous for all involved after that, and it became apparent that we were in for a grind to the finish. Vana and Patterson bogeyed the difficult par-3 15th, which played to a 3.95 stroke average over the two days, then Vana three-putted his way to another bogey on 16 after a tremendous approach from what looked like jail on the right side. Patterson made a double from the center of the fairway, marking his exit from contention.
The door was open for Congdon, who hit an even better approach than Vana from the troublesome right side of 16, landing on the front third of the green and rolling out to 6 feet. But it was a rough day with the putter for Congdon, and he couldn’t get the would-be go-ahead birdie putt to fall. Vana and Congdon were tied at 4-over with two to play.
Heading to 17, Vana’s caddie let him know that he was tied atop the leaderboard with Congdon. Both players hit their second shots short and left on the severely uphill par-5. In the group ahead, Vana pitched from the rough to 8 feet, leaving himself with a very makeable uphiller for birdie, but the putt hung on the lip, a quarter of a rotation short. Congdon, playing from the edge of the fairway, pitched his to about 18 feet. After missing the birdie bid, he had inside three feet for par, but suffered a cruel lip out, which sent the ball spinning back towards his feet.
Vana hit a big drive on the downhill par-4 18th, leaving himself with a short wedge into a middle pin on the multi-tiered green.
“I hit a good drive, and then that was not a good second shot. You know, I just was in between. It was downwind and I hit it a hair fat,” Vana left himself a good 25 feet up the hill to a pin above a ridge. “I just really was trying to two putt it. I was really just trying to get up there close. And that’s when they go in…on 17, I left it hanging on the lip from like eight feet, so the golf gods paid back quickly, which was nice.”
Vana had left the flag in, and the putt struck the pin dead center and dropped, earning applause from his piers who had gathered on the patio.
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A few minutes later, Congdon’s Hail Mary bounced just past the hole, officially adding another line to Hall of Famer Frank Vana’s substantial resume. Just how many Mass Golf wins is this now? “A wild guess?” Vana offered, “I don’t know, 24 or 25?”
You know you’re in legendary territory when it’s too many to count, so how does he stay motivated to continue to grind out victories?
“I like to compete. You know, I mean, I don’t want to play golf every day, but I want to play in tournaments. I’ve got a great, great group of guys and that’s what it’s all about. I mean, playing with my friends, traveling with my friends, and then it’s nice to win.”
As his interview in the winner’s circle wrapped up, Vana, growing suddenly emotional, asked if he could add one more thought:
“I’d like to just dedicate this win to my longtime caddie, Dick Premerlani. He passed away six months ago and it just means a lot. So thank you.”
Watch: Final Recap
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Belmont Country Club’s history dates back to 1908 when Willard E. Robinson purchased an almost 90-acre site and old Colonial house in the sleepy suburban area between Belmont and Lexington, west of Boston. Originally known as Belmont Springs, the club expanded by purchasing more land, enough to enlarge the course to a full 18. Donald Ross came in to design the course, and many of his old-school features exist today, such as blind tee shots, punch bowl greens, and short holes up the hill.
Belmont has been the host site for numerous national golf championships, including the 1916 U.S. Women’s Amateur, the 1937 Men’s PGA Match Play Championship, and most recently, the Constellation Senior Players Championship in 2015. It has also served as the home course for Belmont High School, the Belmont Hill School, Buckingham, Browne and Nichols School, and Tufts University for several years.
As legend has it, in 1920, about 7,000 people, estimated at that time, watched English professionals Harry Vardon and Ted Ray play the leading U.S. amateur team of Francis Ouimet and James P. Guildford. English and Ray won, 4 and 2, in a 36-hole exhibition match.
In 2005, the course shut down for a year for a restoration under Craig Schreiner, who also restored Ross classics such as Oak Hill and Country Club of Buffalo. In 2022, the course closed again for six months to replace all its green surfaces and bunkering, under the supervision of architect Brian Silva. According to Michael Rose, who has worked the grounds at Belmont for 35 years, the course’s heralded Greenwich Velvet greens were replaced by 007 Creeping Bentgrass. Developed at Rutgers University, 007 is known for its fine texture, tolerance to low mowing, and adaptability to warm summers and cold winters. It was also the type of surface used for the Tokyo Olympics in 2021. – By: Steve Derderian
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