Manchester, Vt.
The 22-year-old Woodstock High graduate lofted a soft wedge onto the green, his ball rolling to a stop about 5 feet behind the pin. A small gallery following him and Vermont Amateur playing partners Stephen Richards and Mark Massucco lightly applauded.
“Thanks,” Kimbell said, looking back at Massucco. “I missed it, but …”
“Don’t tell us that,” Massucco replied.
Kimbell grinned. He did a lot of that on Tuesday despite a 14-over-par 84 to open his first appearance at the state amateur, and one of his few stroke-play tournament starts.
Kimbell carries a varied athletic resume. He potted more than 100 goals as an attackman for the Woodstock High boys lacrosse team, earning all-American recognition as a senior in 2012. He competed as a ski racer at Holderness as a sophomore and the Killington Mountain School his last two winters in high school. He plays soccer regularly and was a fixture all over the field in high school for the Wasps. He’s even taken to squash.
As new as this golf thing seems, it isn’t. Kimbell’s been playing the game since he was tiny, joining his grandfather, Fred Riehl, for weekend rounds at the Quechee Club. It’s the tournament thing that’s brand new.
“I grew up playing every Sunday with my grandfather; I still play pretty much every weekend with him,” Kimbell said after Tuesday’s round. “I didn’t really do competitive golf until freshman year of college. I’d never played competitive golf, tried out for the team and thought, ‘This would be fun to do.’ …
“I caddied last summer on the Cape and played a lot of golf there. Suddenly, I got a lot better … although it wasn’t apparent today.”
The athleticism Kimbell showed in high school, particularly lacrosse, works to his benefit on a golf course. He routinely lasered his drives — both woods and irons — long and down the center of Ekwanok’s fairways on Tuesday. It’s the short game and putting that still require work for him to be more competitive at the state am level.
On the other hand, when Kimbell first took up the game, it wasn’t with competition in mind.
“Originally, it really wasn’t about the sport; it was about spending time with my grandfather,” Kimbell said. “Now that I’ve gotten more into the sport, I still may try to go out and just have fun with my grandfather. We have little matches all the time. He normally wins, somehow. I’m not sure how that works.”
It wasn’t until last year, between terms at St. Lawrence University, that Kimbell ramped up his golf.
Living out of what he called a “tiny, little doll house” owned by a family friend, Kimbell spent last summer either caddying at Cape Cod National Golf Club in Brewster, Mass., or making use of a membership at the nearby Captains Golf Course. Combined with playing at least a handful of holes as much as four days a week when the course near the SLU campus was open and “when exams aren’t around,” Kimbell’s skills improved quickly.
“Traditionally, chipping has been my biggest weakness,” he said. “I think I’m a pretty good ball-striker in terms of my irons. I duffed one or two today, which isn’t great, but it’s my biggest strength.”
Kimbell tried to make the field for last year’s Vermont Amateur, but missed the cut at a Rutland Country Club qualifier. He returned to Rutland on June 26 to try again and easily made the field, shooting a 4-over 74 to tie for sixth place with fellow Woodstock Country Club golfer Alex Moore.
Kimbell’s first round at Ekwanok revealed a golfer still discovering the finer points of the game. He admittedly wasn’t ready for the speed of Ekwanok’s greens, which contributed to a four-putt triple bogey on 8 after his fine drive and approach.
The potential showed on 16, a straightaway par-4 playing to 431 yards on Tuesday. Kimbell striped his drive down the right side of the fairway and, after a second shot from 150 or so yards out, left himself a 6-foot putt for his only birdie.
“Normally, if I’m on the green in two, I can at least two-putt (for par),” he said. “These greens here are a lot faster than I anticipated. I knew they were going to be fast, but maybe not this fast. I struggled with them today.”
Then again, he’s still learning. But Kimbell has gained enough confidence in his abilities to at least consider trying out for the St. Lawrence golf team this fall when he returns for his senior year of school.
The golf club is his preferred stick now.
“I haven’t really touched a lacrosse stick in a while, to be completely honest,” said Kimbell, who stays active in club soccer and skiing at St. Lawrence. “Probably maybe freshman year of college. I haven’t really played much since then. I tried out for the St. Lawrence team and didn’t make it. Made it to the final round of cuts. I hadn’t played lacrosse for a year; I was pretty rusty, and my heart wasn’t really in it.
“Lacrosse wasn’t my favorite sport. I just had some success at it.”
He may be about to have the same experience on the golf course.
Chip Shots: Kimbell’s dad, Charlie, is a co-founder of the Covered Bridges Half Marathon. … Those arriving at Ekwanok in late morning had the pleasure of being greeted by former major league pitcher Jim Kaat, who is a member of the private club and reportedly an excellent golfer from either side of the ball. … The Upper Valley has only two other representatives at Ekwanok this week aside from Kimbell. Zach Temple, the former Hartford High standout who will return to Castleton University men’s golf as a senior in the fall, shot 78. Moore shot a first-round 79. … Burlington’s Richards, one of Kimbell’s playing partners, shared the first-round lead at 1-over 71 with defending Vermont Am champ Alex Rainville, of St. Johnsbury, and two-time runner-up Bryan Smith, who plays out of Jay Peak. … Ekwanok is hosting the Vermont Am for the 21st time and the first since the club’s Bill Hadden won the championship in 2002. … Former Burr & Burton Academy standout Hans Albertsson won the Vermont Am at Ekwanok in 1988, ’90, ’91 and ’92. A one-time pro who eventually regained amateur status, Albertsson shot a 75 in Tuesday’s round. … The top 40 scores and ties after today’s round advance to Thursday’s 36-hole final day.
Greg Fennell can be reached at gfennell@vnews.com or 603-727-3226.