A dream season on the course for Nick Maccario was capped off Wednesday morning, when Mass Golf announced that the St. John’s Prep alum had been named the 2020 Richard D. Haskell Player of the Year.
Maccario had a monster summer, finishing runner-up in the 112th Massachusetts Amateur Championship, the 91st New England Amateur Championship and 53rd Ouimet Memorial Tournament before earning a victory in Plymouth Country Club’s 56th Hornblower Memorial Tournament. The win, followed by a third-place finish in the 37th Massachusetts Mid-Amateur Championship, capped off one of the most dominant summer stretches in recent history and put Maccario well ahead in the Mass Golf Player of the Year race.
Maccario, 29, a Waltham resident who plays out of Bradford Country Club in Haverhill, became the 25th individual to earn the Richard D. Haskell Mass Golf Player of the Year Award since it was first bestowed in 1976.
“Being able to always be in the group where things were happening was always fun,” Maccario said. “I certainly had my share of chances to win, but in golf, if you put yourself there more often, it will go your way. I feel like I did that and will strive to do that in years to come.”
Maccario burst onto the amateur golf scene last year by winning the 36th Massachusetts Mid-Amateur Championship, the Massachusetts Four-Ball Championship and qualifying for the U.S. Amateur for the first time.
When the 2020 season eventually got underway, Maccario certainly had a knack for making things interesting. After overcoming a 3-hole deficit to Matt Parziale in the semifinals of the Mass Amateur at The Kittansett Club, he faced a 4-down deficit to Matthew Organisak with six holes remaining in the final match. Relying on his clutch short game abilities, he closed the gap to 1-down, bringing the match to the 36th and final hole of the day.
The next week, he fired back-to-back 67s in the final two rounds of the New England Amateur at Concord Country Club, going into a playoff with John Broderick, this year’s Mass Golf Christopher Cutler Rich Junior Player of the Year. Maccario sank a clutch putt to tie the first playoff hole, but Broderick made birdie on the next hole to win it.
During the final round of the Ouimet Memorial Tournament at Woodland Golf Club, Maccario birdied the 18th and in a rare display of outward emotion, pumped his fist and shouted “Yes!” in celebration as it fell into the cup. The birdie gave him a second consecutive 66, however, Chris Francoeur, sank a 30-plus footer for birdie in the final group to give him the win.
Maccario finally broke through by winning Hornblower at Plymouth Country Club in August, firing a final-round 3-under 66 to win by one stroke.
But ultimately he said his favorite part of the summer was having his caddy, Mackenzie Murphy, on the bag. Murphy’s family owns Bradford Country Club, and has a close relationship with Maccario.
“It is special to have such a great family close to me,” Maccario said.
While these last two accomplishments don’t count toward his point total, Maccario put an exclamation on a legendary season with an immaculate round of 56 at Bradford, chipping in on 18 to smash his own course record at 15-under. He also qualified for the 2020 U.S. Amateur Four-Ball Championship with close friend Mike Calef earning a trip to Chambers Bay Golf Course (WA) in the spring.
Also finishing strong in the Player of the Year standings were Swampscott natives Christian Emmerich (Kernwood CC) in 11th place overall and Steven DiLisio (Salem CC) in 23rd place overall.
Mass Golf also announced a number of other award winners Wednesday, with Shannon Johnson (Thorny Lea GC) winning the Anne Marie Tobin Women’s Player of the Year Award, Frank Vana Jr. (Marlborough CC) winning the George M. Cohen Senior Player of the Year Award, Pamela Kuong (Charles River CC) winning the inaugural Women’s Senior Player of the Year Award, John Broderick (Dedham Country & Polo) winning the Christopher Cutler Rich Junior Player of the Year Award and Allison Paik (Ledgemont CC) winning the inaugural Girls’ Junior Player of the Year Award.