Leopold Takes Medalist Honors at Rain-Soaked RI Amateur
Bobby Leopold kicked off his hunt for State Am title number six by claiming Medalist Honors at the 2026 Rhode Island Amateur on Tuesday at rain-soaked Ledgemont Country Club.
Leopold finished the stroke play portion at three-under par to take Medalist by three shots over Nathan Davis and defending champion Mike Calef.
“I always want to try and win the stroke play portion. There are points where I was like ‘it puts a target on your back’ but I got over that. There is a target on everyone’s back, anyone can be anyone in match play, so you just want to go out there, put up a good number and it is nice to get the confidence going,” said Leopold after the round.
With rain pouring down, and most players in layers of rain gear over the course of the two days, Leopold was the only player under par for the stroke play portion of the tournament.
“I’m proud of that. Yesterday (Monday) was tough, today was really hard. That to me showed my ball striking is where it kind of needed to be, and that’s a huge component of match play, being able to hit greens, hit fairways, put pressure on your opponents,” added Leopold.
This is the sixth time that Leopold has taken Medalist honors at the Rhode Island Am, and so far, he has turned that into five-titles.
He will begin his quest for a record tying title number six on Wednesday morning in the Round of 32.
Playoff on Wednesday Morning
There will be a playoff on Wednesday morning to determine the final spots in the bracket.
Those in the playoff include Joe Earley, Chad Correia, Rocco Biafore, Brian O’Leary, AJ Colonna, Jon Pannone and Sam Fuentes.
Notables to Make Cut
Beyond the six players battling for the final spots, there are several other notables who will make match play no matter what.
Those in the bracket include defending champion Mike Calef, former La Salle star Max Jackson, as well as, past RI Amateur champions Kevin Blaser, Kevin Silva, and Jake Bauer.
Former Moses Brown star Harry Dessel made the cut, as well as, Austin Cilley, RIC star Jasper Bruins Slot, former Barrington star Cole Vieira, Alpine’s John Drohen, 2024 High School State Champion Rocco Capalbo, two-time defending High School State Champion Drew MacLeod, and Tyler Cooke.