Let us reject the premise forwarded by a few overzealous egos that golf is grown with smugness and arrogance. Instead, meet someone who uses perspective and a calming dignity to spread the beauty of this game.

Seul-ki Hawley is her name. Touching hearts, opening minds, and igniting enthusiasm are cornerstones to her game.

Not that she isn’t willing to step out on her own from time to time to accept a challenge – no matter how daunting – and foster a belief she has in herself and her mission. Monday, for instance, horrendous weather forced a lengthy delay, so eight hours were required to complete Hawley’s opening round of the Massachusetts Open, most of her golf being played in rain and cold wind upon an Oak Hill CC layout set up at 6,619 yards that probably felt like 7,119 to her.

Hawley conceded that it was hard to feel comfortable.

It was not difficult, however, to feel that she belonged. Not when she had earned it. And not when she had committed to the

message that comes with a historic opportunity – the first woman to ever compete in the 111 editions of the State Open.

“Did I feel the nerves, feel a little intimidated? Maybe. But that’s the hurdle we as women have to go through to play with men,” said Hawley, who played the Symetra Tour for six seasons and is the teaching professional at Winchester CC.

“But the message I am part of is, ‘The more we do it, the more it will help us.’ ”

To appreciate all that was involved in Hawley’s Massachusetts Open appearance requires an understanding that not everyone possesses. Renee Sloan is not one of those people. As the women’s golf at the University of Illinois, Sloan feels blessed to have coached Seul-Ki Park, as she was known back then. (Park married longtime touring professional Scott Hawley of Shrewsbury in 2019.)

“I am extremely proud of her and excited for her,” said Sloan, who shares an important distinction with her former player.

“I was the first woman to play in the Illinois State Open many years ago, so I know. To be the first at anything is exciting, but it’s also an honor and a privilege.”

To those who don’t see the big picture, their focus will go directly to the scores, so here goes: In Monday’s slop – when the field average was 75.054 and more than 50 players shot 76 or higher – she shot 15-over 85.

Seul-Ki Hawley knows it comes with the territory. She didn’t even want any sort of consolation talk, like how the score doesn’t matter, that it’s all about inspiring her students at Winchester CC.

“It’s hard to embrace that right now, because selfishly, I want both – the score and to be an inspiration,” said Hawley. “I would be lying if I said I wasn’t disappointed. I’m a competitor.”

Leave it, then, to a voice of great reason, Jim Salinetti, to embrace the significance of Seul-Ki Hawley’s achievement. In another era, Salinetti was the best amateur in our area; today, he’s equally distinguished as a club professional, a guy who sees the big picture.

“First of all, she earned her spot (by finishing fourth in the New England PGA Section Championship),” said Salinetti. “She’s qualified for three straight major championships (the KPMG LPGA Championship) and a Women’s PGA Cup.

“This could be the norm. She could continue to do well.”

But Salinetti knows that Hawley had played just two rounds of golf this year and “she was probably the least prepared for a tournament that I’ve ever seen her.”

Which brings us to the heart of the story: Two reasons why Seul-Ki Hawley had played so little in 2021.

“One, she works her butt off,” said Salinetti, who said that there are at least 250 junior golfers at Winchester CC, 120 of them are also involved in the club’s PGA Junior program, and nearly all of them “look up to her.”

Parents feel so comfortable with Hawley’s calm demeanor, they entrust their children to her for lessons, coaching, advising, mentoring. The results, said Salinetti, can be translated in a number of ways, but he points to a young Winchester CC golfer, Christine Mandile. Very much a novice golfer a few years ago, Mandile connected so well to Hawley’s encouragement and leadership that she dedicated herself to the game and will attend the University of Richmond on a golf scholarship next fall.

There are more Mandiles in the pipeline, more young kids at Winchester CC latching onto golf because of Seul-Ki Hawley. But if you want to throw a yellow highlighter on a detail to the story that makes Salinetti smile, it isn’t that she shot 76 in Round 2 and bettered the scores of 34 males (although we should all take note of that), it is this:

“In our program, it’s almost 50-50, girls to boys, and that’s an inordinate number. But that’s Seul-Ki; clearly she’s a role model.”

Truth be told, Hawley should be a role model for many of us for the second reason she couldn’t prepare properly: She is 20 weeks into a pregnancy.

“I can’t lie. Being pregnant has been hard and I couldn’t practice a lot,” she said. “But I’m enjoying this now. Physically, it feels good to be out here.”

Standing with Scott Hawley, who caddied for her, Seul-Ki smiled brightly when talking about her pregnancy. They know it’s a girl, which widened her smile.

“I feel like I’m playing for the two of us,” said Seul-Ki Hawley, though truthfully, she was playing these two days for her students – the girls, yes, but also the boys – and for the essence of the game.

“I want them to know that they can do this, too, that they will have the opportunity to challenge themselves and the game will help them open doors.”

Adamonis leads Spitz by 1, others in pursuit

They are connected by golf in a variety of ways, much of it centered around Rhode Island. Today, Brad Adamonis and Ben Spitz will be united in a chase that has many pursuers but can produce just one winner.

Adamonis, who at 48 has played professionally for more than half his life – frequently in New England, but also on the PGA Tour and Korn Ferry Tour and many ports in between – posted a 2-under 68 Tuesday at Oak Hill CC in Fitchburg to seize a one-stroke lead over Spitz in the 111th Massachusetts Open.

Spitz, 37, eagled the par-5 seventh hole and posted the best score of the tournament, a 5-under 65, to secure himself a spot alongside Adamonis, a longtime acquaintance.

Adamonis is at 6-under 134 entering today’s final round, while Spitz is at 135.

It’s not like either can settle into a match-play frame of mind, however. That’s because after the misery of Monday when brutal rain caused havoc and only nine players broke par, Tuesday’s warmth and dry conditions produced 21 red scores and a jam-packed leaderboard was the result.

Max Theodorakis of Danbury, Conn., who shared the first-round lead at 66 with Adamonis, backed it up with a 70 and at 136 he’s in a tie for third with Rob Labritz of Pound Ridge, N.Y.

Matthew Conti, an amateur who plays out of Walpole CC, shot 68 – 137 and shares fifth with Shawn Warren (67), a longtime pro out of Maine.

Of the others also in pursuit, three-time champion Jason Thresher (67 – 139) is joint ninth, but five back, and Mike Martel, who won the Massachusetts Open when it was last held, in 2019, shot 71 – 140 and is tied for 12th.

The ties between Adamonis and Spitz are plentiful, most especially thanks to junior golf. As a kid, Spitz played a lot of Challenge Cup, the circuit that was the brainchild of Dave Adamonis Sr., Brad’s father, and is now under the direction of Dave Adamonis, Jr.

Rhode Island is where Adamonis grew up; the University of Rhode Island is where Spitz went to college.

There have been highlights for both – Adamonis have made it to the PGA Tour, thankfully during a time when his proud father could watch, while Spitz won the Massachusetts Amateur in 2006 and the Massachusetts Public Links Championship in 2017.

They could probably talk for hours about how golf has connected them, but today will be about focus, not nostalgia – and they’ll have a lot of others sharing that same mindset.

US Senior Women’s Open qualifier

Danielle Lee calmed things down early. Sue Curtin saved her best shot for late in the day. Different routes, but the same destination came their way yesterday – berths into the U.S. Senior Women’s Open (July 29 – August 1, Brooklawn CC in Fairfield, Conn.)

Lee, who plays out of The International in Bolton, earned medalist honors at the qualifier at Bass Rocks in Gloucester. She was 6-over through eight holes but played 1-under the rest of the way for 5-over 75. Her playing competitor, Curtin (Boston Golf Club), finished at 6-over, tied with Pam Johnson, an LPGA Tour Division member who teaches at Hatherly Country Club.

The drama in regulation was produced by Johnson, who birdied 18 to tie. But the playoff excitement belonged to Curtin, who said she hit her best shot of the day – and 8-iron to 4 feet – to birdie the second extra hole, the par-4 16th.

“It’s now hitting me that I’ve actually qualified,” said Curtin. “I know it’s a new event (the U.S. Senior Women’s Open debuted in 2018), but the women exempt are the women I grew up watching and idolizing. To compete against them is beyond thrilling.”

Match play march

Tara Joy-Connelly had an impressive week in winning the Women’s Southern Golf Association Mid-Amateur Championship in Lake Worth, Fla. A Duxbury native who now lives in Vero Beach, Fla., Joy-Connelly defeated Kim Keyer-Scott, 1-up, in the finals at The Falls Club. Her run-up to the title included four wins, three of which didn’t go past the 15th hole. When things did remain tight, Joy-Connelly rose to the occasion, sinking a birdie putt on the 18th hole to edge Keyer-Scott.

Patterson, Clapp are Omaha-bound

Amateurs set the pace in a U.S. Senior Open qualifier at Thorny Lea GC in Brockton, with Jim Patterson of Southampton taking medalist honors at 2-under 68. Prevailing in a playoff at 1-under 69, Doug Clapp of Walpole grabbed the other spot, while John McNeil of Stow settled for first alternate. Another amateur, Brendan Hester, shot 70 and was awarded second alternate. The U.S. Senior Open will be held July 8-11 at Omaha CC in Nebraska.

Quinn tops packed leaderboard

Posting steady rounds of 68-70 to finish at 4-under, Owen Quinn of Holden earned a one-stroke victory in the Challenge Cup’s Players’ Invitational at New England CC. Mike Calef of Portsmouth, R.I. (72-67), Sean Magarian of Worcester (70-69) and Chris Francouer of Amesbury (68-71) were all at 139, tied for second.

Maintaining torrid pace

Caleb Manuel followed up his second-place finish in the Hornblower Memorial with a resounding victory in the Downeast Metro Am at Kebo Valley GC in Bangor. Having recently finished his freshman season for the UConn Huskies, the Topsham, Maine, native shot 66-63, good for 12-under and a 15-stroke win . . . . . Mark Brown, a fixture in professional tournaments in the Metropolitan New York area for years, shot 68-72-72 to finished joint 13th in the Long Island Championship at Fresh Meadow CC. A Milton native who honed his game while an assistant pro at Presidents GC in Quincy, Brown now works at Pine Hollow Country Club . . . . . Mia Grzywinski, a sophomore at Quinnipiac, made five birdies to shoot 30 on a sizzling final nine-hole stretch and win the Hartford Women’s Open at Goodwin and Keney Park GC. Grzywinski finished at 3-under after rounds of 71-66. Three Massachusetts women finished in the top 10 – Pam Kuong (73-74, sixth) of Wellesley Hills, and Angela Garvin (74-72, T-4) and Alia Godek (75-75, eighth) of Feeding Hills.

URI community rallies ‘round “Rosie”

He became arguably the face of golf media during a successful print and electronic career, but Tim Rosaforte always took pride in the fact that he was among great friends in New England. Thanks in large part to his New York roots and four glorious years at the University of Rhode Island.

Now, URI’s finest are stepping up to pay tribute to Rosaforte (Class of ’77), who was diagnosed a year ago with early-onet Alzheimer’s. “Rosie,” as he is belovingly called for all who know him, is 65.

To acknowledge Rosaforte and celebrate his notable career in golf journalism, URI is establishing the “Tim Rosaforte III ’77 Endowed Scholarship in Neuroscience.” URI neuroscience is involved in global efforts to understand the brain’s role in physical and mental health.

Friends, colleagues, and peers in the golf community, as well as URI alumni, are invited to contribute to this meaningful fund. Below is a link where you can donate:

https://securelb.imodules.com/s/1638/lg20/form.aspx?sid=1638&gid=3&pgid=770&cid=2270&dids=183&bledit=1

Should you be a fan of attending live golf events, next week is one you need to circle on your calendar.

Three tournaments of note will be staged that should pique your interest – the PGA Tour’s annual Travelers Championship in Cromwell, Conn.; the inaugural Live and Work Maine Open on the Korn Ferry Tour; and arguably one of the top attractions, if you like to scout out up-and-coming talents, the Northeast Amateur in Rumford, R.I.

The Travelers, June 24-27: The vibes should return to TPC River Highlands, as fans will be in attendance after a quiet 2020 when Dustin Johnson won in relative tranquility, thanks to COVID restrictions.

Ranked No. 1 in the world, Johnson is committed to this year’s tournament, and he’ll be in great company. Among the heavyweights who have confirmed: Phil Mickelson, Patrick Cantlay, Brooks Koepka, Bryson DeChambeau, Rickie Fowler, Paul Casey, Justin Rose, and Patrick Reed.

Live and Work Main Open, June 24-27: Falmouth Country Club in Falmouth, Maine, will stage this opportunity for players to continue to enhance their status on the talent-rich developmental tour. The tournament will fall in a crucial time of year for players, as the push is on to earn full PGA Tour cards for 2021-22.

The logistics break down this way: The top 25 players on the KFT regular season points list earn PGA Tour cards for 2021-22; if you’re in the top 75 on the points list you gain a spot in the Korn Ferry Tour Finals, a series of three tournaments in the fall that will earn another 25 players some sort of PGA Tour status for next year.

Presently, two notable New Englanders – Peter Uihlein (32nd) and Evan Harmeling (57th) are in the mix and both have won this season.

Northeast Amateur, June 23-26: Even heralded annual classics couldn’t stand up to the pandemic last summer, so for the first time since it debuted in 1962 this “Masters of Amateur Golf,” as Ron Balicki, the late and great Golfweek writer dubbed it, was not held.

But Wannamoisett CC is primed for a return of this 59th iconic 72-hole, stroke-play event that has annually attracted the best amateur players in the country. (Cool feature – they play in twosomes all week, so the pace-of-play is exquisite.)

Consider the rollcall of former winners who went on to win a professional major (Ben Crenshaw, Hal Sutton, David Duval, Dustin Johnson), or a PGA Tour tournament (John Cook Scott Hoch, Notah Begay, Anthony Kim, Collin Morikawa). Impressive.

Allen Doyle won this tournament, as did Brett Quigley and Peter Uihlein, so that bodes well for arguably the strong base of New England players in years. (John Broderick, Davis Chatfield, Chris Francoeur, Nick Maccario, Matt Parziale, Michael Thorbjornsen, and Patrick Welch headline the local list.)

As for the list of stalwarts, Pierceson Coody and Cole Hammer lead the way, ranked second and 17th, respectively, in the World Amateur Rankings. Trey Winstead of LSU, Joey Vrzich of national champion Pepperdine, and Jackson Suber of Mississippi are other Top 50 names who’ll be in action.

As a reminder, the tournament runs Wednesday through Saturday.

1 – Diplomat required

And had it been determined to pair Bryson DeChambeau and Brooks Koepka at this week's U.S. Open, who was going to round out the group? Henry Kissinger?

2 – Ask them to set the pins while you’re at it

Hopefully, P.J. Boatwright knows that was a bad rumor about the USGA asking players if they'd be OK with pairings. It is a bad rumor, right?

3 – Bring ‘em back?

Curious how Sansabelt was a hit back in an era when golfers were on average – shall we say – a tad portlier.

4 – Getting too much credit?

Donald Ross called from the great beyond. Simply said: “I didn’t do that one. Or that one, either.”

5 – Like, really?

There’s nothing more pretentious than writers who pen these “open letters” to athletes and celebrities.

6 – There’d be short game magic

Yeah, yeah, you’d want Tiger vs. Jack. But, if possible, a head-to-head in-prime Tiger vs. in-prime Seve game – on links, of course – would get my blood flowing.

7 – Bucket List entry

I’m embarrassed to say I’ve never played golf in Michigan. It only looks like the most unheralded great golf state in the land.

8 – 3 beats 5 at 18

If the routing doesn’t allow for a strong par-4 18th hole, give me a wonderful par-3 ahead of a par-5 (Pebble Beach being the exception, of course).

9 – Enough already

Someone needs to file a cease and desist order against any player filing social media videos of practice-round balls getting swallowed up in rough at a U.S. Open. Old, very old. Move on.

There is a sense of timelessness to Plymouth Country Club, one of the truly unheralded great golf courses in our area. Wonderful routing, distinctive elevation changes, challenging doglegs.

There’s so much to love about Plymouth CC, including it being a par 69, much like another Donald Ross gem in our vicinity, Wannamoisett in Rumford, R.I.

While the unique number for its par has been a staple for years, it’s not the only layer of consistency at Plymouth. There’s also Harley, who will turn 11 in October and has been by superintendent Ben Whiting’s side at Plymouth CC from Day 1.

She is a chocolate Lab whose greatest strength all these years has been chasing after geese.

Harley may be competing in the Senior Division these days, “but she still has it when she wants to; it’s crazy,” said Whiting.

Have a great photo of your golf course dog? We’d love to include it in “Power Fades.” Email jim@powerfades.com