JAGA Senior Amateur, FSGA Senior Amateur, set at Ponte Vedra clubs

• The 68th JAGA Senior Amateur will be held at the Marsh Landing Country Club and the 64th FSGA Senior Amateur will be held at the Ponte Vedra Inn and Club Ocean Course.
• Longtime golf volunteer Billy Drake passed away on March 30 at the age of 82.
• Matt Borocz has been promoted to general manager at the TPC Sawgrass.

Two significant senior championships will be played on the First Coast in the next two weeks. 

The first will be the Jacksonville Area Golf Association’s oldest tournament, the 68th JAGA Senior Amateur at the Marsh Landing Country Club in Ponte Vedra Beach. There will be three divisions of play (50-59, 60-69, 70 and older), with three rounds for the senior division and two for the other divisions. 

Richard Ames is the defending champion. He shot 68 in the final round at Deerwood to come from eight shots back to win. 

Ames and 13 other First Coast players are in the field for the Florida State Golf Association’s 64th Senior Amateur, April 15-17 at the Ponte Vedra Inn and Club Ocean Course.  

The field of 144 includes area exempt players David Anthony, Clayton Brewer, Steve Horner, Brian King, Chuck Kirk, John Lobb, Ken Moody and Brad Rollinson.  

Six more area players qualified at the King & Bear on April 2: Dave O’Haren (74), Brian Tennyson, Michael Del Rocco and Bart Abstein (75), and Ames and Steve Brugg (76). 

The field will be cut to the low-60 plus ties for the final round. 

R.J. Nakashian of Palm Beach Gardens is the defending champion. 

Longtime golf volunteer Billy Drake passes 

He was a familiar face in the Hyde Park pro shop and a volunteer with the Jacksonville Area Golf Association for 36 years. 

Billy Drake, as the JAGA newsletter noted, “will be greatly missed by the Jacksonville Golf Community.” 

Drake passed away on March 30 at the age of 82. He worked at Hyde Park in various capacities for 47 years and was a caddie for the late Billy Maxwell, the owner of Hyde Park and an eight-time PGA Tour winner. 

“He was a stable at Hyde Park, a wonder help to all of us and a great personal friend to my father,” said Melanie Bevill, owner of Hyde Park and Maxwell’s daughter. “He did it all, worked in the pro shop, maintenance, club repair … he was such a wonderful people person and everyone really, really loved him.”

Drake is survived by his wife of 59 years, Jane; three children; seven grandchildren; and seven brothers and sisters. 

A memorial service will be held at 1 p.m. on April 9 at Restoration Church, 1677 Southside Boulevard. The family has requested that donations instead of flowers be made to the Jacksonville Area Golf Association (JAGA) Charitable Trust, 130 Corridor Rd, Unit 525, Ponte Vedra Beach, FL 32004, in Mr. Drake’s name. 

Matt Borocz promoted 

Matt Borocz, who has worked at the TPC Sawgrass for 26 years, has been promoted to general manager to replace Derek Sprague, who left to become the PGA of America CEO in December of 2024. 

Borocz has been the assistant general manager for the last 11 years. 

Wylie Inman outduels Luke Balaskiewicz 

High school junior Wylie Inman of North Palm Beach shot 70-68–138 to win the Florida Azalea Amateur March 14-15 at the Palatka Golf Club. He defeated Luke Balakiewicz of Jacksonville (69-70) by one shot with the tournament shortened to 36 holes because of the storms that swept through the area on March 16. 

Inman has verbally committed to play at South Florida in 2026. Balaskiewicz signed with the University of North Florida and will enter this fall. 

Jonah Nacional of St. Augustine and former Jacksonville University player Alexandre Vandermoten tied for third at even-par 140. 

Florida State Golf Association results 

Dylan Frein of Fleming Island finished sixth in the boys 16-18 division of the Florida Junior Tour Rio Pinar Open in Orlando, at 5-over 149. He finished four shots behind winner Karl Stenson of Orlando. … Atharun Rajeshkumar of Ponte Vedra Beach posted a 4-over 148 to tie for fifth in the FJT Redland Open, at the Redland Golf and Country Club in Homestead. He was six shots behind winner Kaden Latreille of Naples. … David Anthony and John Milton of Jacksonville tied for 22nd in the FSGA Super-Senior Championship at the Lake Jovita Golf and Country Club in Dade City. Both shot 13-over 229. Brad Rollinson of Ponte Vedra Beach (231) tied for 26th.