Tag: nabnasset lake

John Moriarty didn’t hear the end of it.

The last time the Mt. Pleasant Golf Club member hit the links at Nabnasset Lake Country Club for the Lowell Senior City Golf Tournament, he shot a 99 and finished last.

“There was some pretty good ribbing for a long time, reminding me about finishing dead last,” Moriarty said with a laugh.

That was five years ago. And a lot has happened since. It was around that time that Moriarty was diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease, forcing him to retire from a 40-year career at National Grid while relocating to Florida for the majority of the year to escape the frigid New England winters.

His journey of fight and determination perhaps reached a fitting full-circle moment last Friday at Nabnasset Lake.

Playing in the Lowell Senior City Golf Tournament, Moriarty carded a 4-over 74 to enter a three-way tie with Vesper’s Danny Brown and David Markuson. After a three-way playoff, Moriarty went from worst to first, winning the tournament to the excitement of a large gathering of family and friends.

Moriarty, 68, shaved 25 strokes from the round that lived in infamy while earning the individual title.

“I did go from the outhouse to the penthouse,” said a chuckling Moriarty.

Moriarty’s round was nothing short of masterful. He tallied two birdies and 11 pars en route to an impressive score at the challenging Westford course.

A birdie on the first hole was a precursor to the successful day. But at first, it looked like déjà vu. That’s because Moriarty also dropped a birdie putt on the first hole at Nabnasset in his last-place finish five years ago.

“So I said, ‘Oh God, don’t tell me this is going to happen again.’ But we obviously had better results the second time,” he said.

From there, Moriarty rolled. He would bogey just twice around a flurry of pars on the front nine to post a 36 before rebounding from a double bogey on 13 with consecutive pars on the last two holes. He managed to hit 11 of his first 12 greens in regulation.

His brother, Jim Moriarty, had a front-row seat to John Moriarty’s impressive round. Jim Moriarty said his brother made the game look easy in the playoff holes.

“John never flinched,” Jim Moriarty said. “He had one bad hole, and he just kept it going … he couldn’t have played any better.”

Jim Moriarty is known at the Lowell club as the unofficial mayor of Mt. Pleasant. Last summer, the champion’s trophy at the Lowell Cities was named in his honor. He grew up the eldest of nine siblings — two of whom passed away at a young age — in the Highlands section of the city and lived down the street from the course. The family grew up around the game.

“He’s a great player in his own right, and he’s very methodical with his thought process. He thinks everything out, he’s an excellent putter, so he’s able to read some greens. He reinforces positive thoughts,” John Moriarty said of having his brother caddie for him.

Brothers Dennis and Brian were also on hand to witness the victory — a win that means a lot more to the Moriarty family than rising out of the basement of the standings five years ago to the top of the leaderboard.

Jim Moriarty said John Moriarty never once complained about his diagnosis or the struggles it brought to daily life. Golf has essentially been John Moriarty’s key to staying on the right path. When his neurologist stressed that staying active was the best thing he could do, he turned to the course.

“In the last four years, I’ve probably played more than I have in the last 20 years,” said John Moriarty, who spends seven months of the year in Florida and the remaining five in York, Maine.

His game naturally improved. He quipped to his wife, Anne, that he had a shot of winning the tournament on the way to the course. Anne Moriarty had a major foot surgery within the last month, but still walked all 21 holes in a boot to support him.

“The funny thing is, I told my wife as we were heading down to the club, I said, ‘Get ready because I think I’m going to win it.’ It was certainly in jest,” John Moriarty said.

What was once viewed as a fever dream came to reality last Friday, and John Moriarty has plans to return to the tournament next year to defend his crown.

“To come to fruition and see the fruits of my labor rewarded is pretty nice,”  John Moriarty said. “And hopefully I have a whole bunch of years ahead of me where I continue to play and enjoy myself. That’s the most important thing.”

Until then, he’ll keep playing, fighting and giving back. On Wednesday, he organized a tournament in memory of the late Mike Mullavey, the former pro at Mt. Pleasant for 40-plus years. John Moriarty quarterbacked the event, which is set to fund scholarships.

He knows all about giving back to the community. And more than a thing or two about going from last to first.