| Flight | Winner | Runner-Up | Entrants |
|---|---|---|---|
| Championship | E.J. Wholey | Skip Hingley & Mark Jones | 13 |
| First Flight | *Jack Kelly | Shawn Bernard | 23 |
| Second Flight | *Ray Doherty | Dave Farrell & John Von Deck | 20 |
| Third Flight | Gary Carnevale | Louie Daigle | 8 |
* Denotes won in playoff
Highlights of the Championship Flight of the 2001 Burrillville Open included new records for the tournament and for a single round as E.J. Wholey (pictured left) edged out Skip Hingley and a hard closing Mark Jones to win his second Open. Saturday's first round featured a new single round Burrillville Open record as Hingley brought the challenging Raceway course to its knees with a round of 69. Lurking close behind were former champions Wholey (71) and Jones (74) as well as two time runner-up Sandy Farrell (72). Bunched between 75 and 77 and barely hanging on were Rich Farrell (75), Brian Hauser (75), Frank Hauser (76), Ed Renaud (77) and three-time former champion Jeff Farrell (77). The big surprise of Saturday's first round was two-time defending champion Mike Sabatino "kicking it around" to a score of 81, leaving him 12 strokes off the lead and essentially eliminating him from contention in the tournament.
Hingley began Sunday's round by playing the first seven holes one under par dropping him to an amazing three under for the tournament after 25 holes. Meanwhile, the rest of the final grouping, Jones, Wholey and Sandy Farrell, managed to stay within shouting distance of Hingley by playing solid golf over these early holes.
As has been the tradition over the eight year history of the Burrillville Open, things tightened up down the stretch. Hingley arrived at the 16th tee with a two stroke lead over Wholey. Both players hit poor tee shots leaving Wholey over 200 yards from the green while Hingley drove into the hazard on the left 150 yards away. After taking a penalty and dropping from the trench, Hingley still had tree problems and finished the hole with a triple bogey seven while Wholey managed a bogey five, tying them for the tournament lead. Wholey parred the par three 17th to take the lead as Hingley bogeyed setting up another wild finish to the tournament.
Up first on the par four 18th hole, Wholey pull hooked his ball under a bush to the left about 165 yards from the green. Hingley then pounded his drive down the right side leaving him about 60 yards to the hole. After surveying his options, Wholey hit the shot of the tournament, punching a low-iron under the bush and to the front fringe of the green about 60 feet from the hole. Knowing he needed to birdie, Hingley's second shot landed near the hole and rolled about 30 feet above the hole. Meanwhile, forgotten in all the excitement and only two strokes back, Mark "The Vulture" Jones tried to swoop down and steal the tournament as he hit his approach shot to within 8 feet of the hole for birdie. Wholey then made another outstanding shot, chipping his ball to within a foot of the hole. After Hingley's 30 footer rolled just right of the hole and tapping in for par, Jones drained his birdie, tying him with Hingley. They both watched helplessly as Wholey tapped in his par putt to win the tournament by one stroke.
Following Wholey at 144 and Hingley and Jones at 145 were Sandy Farrell (147), Frank Hauser (149), Richard and Jeff Farrell (152), Brian Hauser (153) and Ed Renaud (156).
Championship Flight News & Notes: Hingley's consecutive rounds from Sunday-2000 and Saturday-2001 would have totaled 70-69-139, breaking the tournament record by five strokes. Watch out in 2002!! .... After another fine finish, Sandy Farrell turned to the crowd and said, "I will win this thing someday". With the lowest average score of any competitor over the past three years (74.0), he probably will. .... After failing to break 150 for the eighth consecutive year, could Rich Farrell's window to win this thing have passed? .... Stuck in a "Farrell Sandwich" in 5th place, Frank Hauser proved once again that while he might not be able to play with "The Big Boys" he can still handle the "The Big Cat" .... In the "good thing Stonehill coaches don't hold grudges against officials" department, Rules Official Joe Laporte gave Brian Hauser what most observers considered a tough ruling on the 15th hole on Sunday which cost him a tie for 6th place with Richard and Jeff Farrell. Pictured right, Joe breaks the news to Brian. Sleep with one eye open Joe!! .... Burrillville Open rookie Dave Carpenter posted a WD-inj, the first in Burrillville Open history.
Championship Flight Results:
| Player | Scores |
| E.J. Wholey | 71-73-144 |
| Skip Hingley | 69-76-145 |
| Mark Jones | 74-71-145 |
| Sandy Farrell | 72-75-147 |
| Frank Hauser | 76-73-149 |
| Richard Farrell | 75-77-152 |
| Jeffrey Farrell | 77-75-152 |
| Brian Hauser | 75-78-153 |
| Ed Renaud | 77-79-156 |
| Mike Sabatino | 81-76-157 |
| Jay Lachance | 84-77-161 |
| John Naylor | 84-83-167 |
| Dave Carpenter | WD-inj |
For only the second time in tournament history, a playoff was needed to decide the winner of the First Flight of the Burrillville Open. 1998 winner Jack Kelly (pictured left) defeated Shawn Bernard on the first playoff hole to become the first two-time First Flight winner of the Burrillville Open.Saturday's first round concluded with four annual favorites within three strokes of the lead, led by Kelly and Bernard at 76. Sitting in perfect position at 78 and 79 were Rich Moulico and John Malley respectively. Obviously the winner would come from this fine quartet of ball strikers, unless 1996 winner Jack Griffin (89 on Saturday) could duplicate his record round of 72 from that year.
When the final group of Kelly, Bernard, Moulico and Malley teed off on Sunday, most felt that all would contend until the final hole. The first to be relegated to spectator status was 1999 winner Moulico. Despite prodigious length, Moulico just couldn't "get it in the hole" and was never a factor after the front nine posting an under-achieving 82 for the day. Meanwhile, undistracted by Moulico's disaster, Kelly, Bernard and Malley all posted quality rounds of 77 sending Kelly and Bernard to a playoff.
The playoff began on the first hole, a 323 yard par four. After both men hit solid drives, Kelly made the shot that would be the key to his win. His approach to the green came to rest perfectly, on the green and just to the left of a tough front left hole placement. This left him with a 10 foot uphill putt for birdie. Bernard left his approach shot just short of the green and right of the hole, setting up a third shot which would be almost impossible to get close. He chipped past, missed his par putt and made a bogey five. Kelly then calmly stepped up and two putted for par and the win.
First Flight News & Notes: In a fine show of post-tournament sportsmanship, both Kelly and Bernard praised Moulico for "staying out of our way" as he fell apart on Sunday .... Finishing two shots back in third place, Malley went directly to the range to tune up his swing and prepare for his revenge in Myrtle Beach .... After a solid opening round of 84, Beaver Johnson posted the high round of the tournament with a 95 on Sunday. The ball pictured to the right was found in the Race Track to the right of the 18th hole. Beaver, "was that an Oklahoma?" .... One last time Beaver, for Griffin's sanity, "Did R.E.M. put that ball in the hole or not?!!" .... Taking a huge step forward in 2001, Ron Perrott actually finished the tournament with a card. After failing to post a Sunday score in 1999 and 2000, Perrott finished his Sunday round with a 92, posting his first tournament score (185) in three years of competition.
First Flight Results:
| Player | Scores |
| *Jack Kelly | 76-77-153 |
| Shawn Bernard | 76-77-153 |
| John Malley | 79-77-156 |
| Rich Moulico | 78-82-160 |
| Randy Morse | 80-80-160 |
| Wayne Morvan | 81-82-163 |
| Jay Davis | 85-82-167 |
| Jack Griffin | 89-79-168 |
| Bob Dalfonso | 87-81-168 |
| Ryan Morse | 85-85-170 |
| Jim Waterman | 84-86-170 |
| Paul Dalfonso | 86-84-170 |
| Doug Beland | 81-89-170 |
| Matt Trimble | 89-82-171 |
| Joe Sabatino | 83-89-172 |
| Mike Fasshauer | 86-89-175 |
| Jim Arnold | 85-93-178 |
| Kenny Kimatian | 91-88-179 |
| Beaver Johnson | 84-95-179 |
| Yosh Lesniewski | 93-87-180 |
| Phil Lavallee | 92-91-183 |
| Ron Perrott | 93-92-185 |
| Steve Tancrell | 97-90-187 |
Ray Doherty (pictured left), won the Second Flight of the 2001 Burrillville Open on the second hole of a three man playoff. Finishing tied with Doherty at the end of regulation were two first time entrants Dave Farrell and John Von Deck forcing the first playoff in Second Flight history.The first day ended with four players within two shots of leader Steve Burns' round of 80. Dick Morse was solo second at 81, while Jonathan Murphy, Richard Palleschi and Doherty posted solid rounds of 82. Also in the hunt at 83 were Farrell, Von Deck and 1999 Second Flight Champion Pat Keegan.
In stark contrast to the Championship and First Flights where play usually deteriorates on Sundays, this group improved their play on Sunday as five players shot in the 70's after none doing so on Saturday. Farrell and Von Deck both scored low rounds for the day at 77, while Doherty and Rob Colonero posted fine rounds of 78. This left Doherty, Farrell and Von Deck tied at 160 for the tournament while first day leaders Burns and Morse faded, finishing at 169 and 164 respectively. Morse remained in the hunt until the final hole where he dumped his approach shot into a bunker and then took numerous "slashes" at the ball before managing to escape the sand.
Von Deck was the first to fall from contention in the playoff as he failed to match pars posted by Farrell and Doherty on hole number one. Doherty then won the title with a strong par four on the difficult 401 yard second hole.
Second Flight News & Notes: Farrell and Von Deck both tied the single round tournament record for the second flight with 77's on the final day .... Rumor has it that Dick Morse was assessed an extra charge on his membership for the "excavating" he did in the green-side bunker of the 18th hole on Sunday .... Newcomer Jonathan "Little Tuna" Murphy (only 19 years old) showed he will be a threat in the coming years, posting solid rounds of 82 and 84. His father, Mark "Big Tuna" Murphy, posted disappointing rounds of 85 and 83 and according to Jonathan, is "no longer a challenge for me". .... Peter Beane and Burns went in opposite directions for their 169 totals as Burns added nine strokes on Sunday while Beane reduced his score of 90 to 79 on Sunday .... In a surprising development, three time Second Flight Champion Wayne Rivet finished seventeen shots back at 177. Is his game headed down the same path as tournament director Richard Farrell? Do they both need to drop down one flight for one last taste of victory? Stay tuned in 2002.
Second Flight Results:
| Player | Scores |
| *Ray Doherty | 82-78-160 |
| Dave Farrell | 83-77-160 |
| John Von Deck | 83-77-160 |
| Rob Colonero | 85-78-163 |
| Dick Morse | 81-83-164 |
| Pat Keegan | 83-82-165 |
| Jonathan Murphy | 82-84-166 |
| Richard Palleschi | 82-85-177 |
| Mark Murphy | 85-83-168 |
| Steve Burns | 80-89-169 |
| Peter Beane | 90-79-169 |
| Henry Tessier | 90-83-173 |
| Jim Blair | 87-86-173 |
| Sal Von Deck | 92-82-174 |
| Wayne Rivet | 86-90-176 |
| Tom Foley | 91-86-177 |
| Bob Cuthberson | 95-82-177 |
| Dave Turbidy | 87-92-179 |
| Al St Jean | 98-90-188 |
| Dave Boothillottee | 103-87-190 |
Gary Carnevale (pictured left), won the innaugural edition of the Third Flight of the Burrillville Open with a four stroke victory over a game Louie Daigle. Carnevale posted twin rounds of 87 to finish at 174, just enough to hold off a hard charging Daigle.An opening round 87 gave Carnevale a four shot lead over Daigle (91), with long time Raceway competitors Charly King and Rich Givner still in the hunt at 93 and 95 respectively. On Sunday, King and Givner drifted further behind as Daigle became the only player to press Carnevale by posting a fine round of 87. Up to the challenge however, Carnevale posted a smooth 87 himself and coasted in on the final hole as the first winner of the Third Flight of the Burrillville Open.
Third Flight News & Notes: Carnevale's 174 total sets a standard for future Third Flight competitors to shoot for, while he and Burns share the single round record of 87. .... King's 184 total could have been better and he is certainly an early favorite in 2002 .... New to tournament golf in 2001, Kevin Murphy showed promise as a future contender. His cunning use of the special "five club length rule" saved all members of his Saturday group from real problems on the third hole.
Third Flight Results:
| Player | Scores |
| Gary Carnevale | 87-87-174 |
| Louie Daigle | 91-87-178 |
| Charly King | 93-91-184 |
| Rich Givner | 95-98-193 |
| Kevin Murphy | 96-101-197 |
| Peter Lambert | 97-105-202 |
| Jamie Givner | 97-110-207 |