Facing the Rochester area's best golfers, some of whom boast far more experience, in her first match play-style tournament was no sweat for Adelaide Puccia.
The impending Penfield High School senior is the most recent winner of the Women's Rochester District Golf Association tournament, held in July at Cobblestone Creek Country Club.
A first-time participant, Puccia defeated defending champion Emily Ferguson in the semifinals, then clinched the title on the 15th hole of the final against 2009 winner Debra Wood.
Puccia, 17, is the third-youngest winner in the tournament's 96-year history and youngest in nearly half a century (Jamie DeWeese won the 1979 tournament at 14 years old, then repeated the following year).
"I wasn't really expecting to make
it that far. The last round got to me but I figured it out," Puccia said during an August interview.
The thought of claiming first didn't creep in until well into the final round. Puccia squeaked by Ferguson in the semifinals largely thanks to her approach shot on the 17th hole that she dropped about 10 feet from the pin.
After falling behind early in the final, Puccia clawed back and eventually won with three holes to spare. The victory capped a four-day, six-round event which Puccia played around 100 total holes.
Making it all the sweeter, Puccia's grandfather Steven caddied.
"He's a really great golfer, so it was helpful," Puccia said. "He's played (Cobblestone) a bunch and he's taught me a lot."
Puccia's rise in golf
A veteran golfer of about four years, Puccia picked up the game in eighth grade at the behest of Penfield head coach Scott Bringley.
Bringley, a recent retiree from the Penfield Central School District, was once Puccia's father Anthony's gym teacher. The two struck up a conversation over a cup of coffee about Adelaide taking on a new sport.
It was a natural fit. Adelaide Puccia played some basketball and lacrosse growing up, but was hoping to try a more relaxed sport.
"He needed girls for golf, and he asked if any of my daughters would play," Anthony Puccia said. "I said, 'Adelaide could probably pick it up and learn.' She never really played but knew how to swing a club. She's an athlete."
In her first season, Puccia was in Penfield's starting five and typically shot in the low 50s (high school matches are nine holes).
Through her junior year, Puccia has developed into an all-state caliber golfer. She placed seventh overall at the Section V championships last October at Deerfield Country Club, then finished tied for 19th overall (14-over 158 across two rounds) at the New York state championships at Wildwood Country Club in the spring.
At the latter tournament, Puccia shot a 75 on Day 2. That score vaulted her from 36th into the top 20. After the season, she was one of 12 golfers named first team All-Greater Rochester.
Spring scramble
Making the feat all the more impressive, Puccia had to overcome the schedule along with opposing golfers.
Section V players complete the bulk of their season in the fall, then wait several months before the state tournament. Some, like Puccia, spend their summer months involved in other sports.The rising senior is also a member of Penfield's varsity flag football team. Playing alongside sister Sophia (the team's quarterback), Puccia helped the Patriots capture the Class A section title and reach the NYSPHSAA semifinals last spring.
To remain sharp in golf, Puccia used the simulator at Webster Golf Club during the winter months, then played 10 to 15 rounds outside prior to states.
That last flag football game, a loss Section 2's Shaker, started at 9:30 a.m. on Saturday, June 6 in Homer, about a two-hour drive from Rochester. Puccia had to scramble home after the game to make the practice round for golf states at Wildwood, then play 36 holes over the following two days.
"I'd never played a full 18 at Wildwood before. so that was definitely a change," Puccia said. "And making the all-state team, I wasn't expecting that either. It worked out well."
Puccia has remained busy in the month following her WRDGA win. In mid-August, she won the WNYPGA Junior Tour championship with a 20-over at Stafford Country Club (and earned player of the year honors). The following weekend Puccia was one of three golfers from New York state that competed in the Nora Begay Junior Golf Championship Maryland regional qualifier. She won with a score of 8-over (including a 73 in the second round).
She hopes to continue her strong play into her senior season, capped with a sectional tournament win and top 10 finish at next spring's NYSPHSAA tournament.
— Justin Ritzel works as a sports reporter for the Democrat and Chronicle, with a focus on Section V athletics and high school trends.
This article originally appeared on Rochester Democrat and Chronicle: A Penfield golfer is making history before her senior season
