MHS golfer Quartararo becomes school’s first to qualify for states

Sam Quartararo wasn’t trying to make history. He was just trying to play the best golf possible.

The sophomore did both and was rewarded by becoming the first Mattituck High School student to qualify for the state golf tournament.

Quartararo shot a 75 in the championship round of the Section XI Individual County Championship on Oct. 21, finishing fourth with a 154 and booking a spot to compete in the states at Mill Creek Golf Course in Churchville from June 5 to June 8, 2026.

“I definitely did want to make states, but I didn’t really know if I was good enough,” he said. “I didn’t really play great last year in counties. I didn’t know what the cut was going to be going into those few days. I was just trying to play good golf.

“I was very happy,” he added. “I’m very grateful for all the opportunities that I got to play in that and very grateful for my teammates and my coach and everyone who’s helped me get better at golf and get to where I am now.”

Quartararo’s success didn’t surprise Tuckers coach Paul Ellwood.

“He just works on the game on his own so much,” he said. “So, all the credit goes to him in terms of the work he puts in. He’s out at the range, hitting balls all the time, playing golf all the time. I’m just sort of a spectator watching him, watching him develop.”

Westhampton senior Zach Berger won the tournament with a 146. Longwood’s Logan Knipe and Half Hollow Hills West’s Harry Wolk each shot a 2-over 75 on Tuesday and tied for second at 152. Bayport-Blue Point’s Chase Rebore, Westhampton’s Danny Schumacher, and Mount Sinai’s Jaxon Caruso tied Quartararo for fourth.

“Last year as a freshman, to not even make it to that tournament, and then to turn around and not only make it this year and then finish in fourth place is an amazing turnaround,” Ellwood said.

Quartararo shot 79 on the first day and made the cut at Pine Hills Golf and Country Club in Manorville. He double-bogeyed the final hole the second day, but by then he had reached the states.

He started playing golf at the age of seven.

“I kind of was just swinging out of my shoes, swinging as hard as I could, trying to hit it far,” he said. “I found it fun. It was a fun thing I did with my dad, weekends at the golf course. Then it turned into I wanted to practice and actually get better.”

He said that he got serious about the sport around the sixth grade.

“My dad told me that if I made the golf team when I was in seventh grade, he’d buy me a new set of irons,” he said.

Quartararo’s strength is his ability to hit the ball a long way.

“It’s very impressive,” Ellwood said. “I’ve seen tour players, I’ve caddied for guys on the professional golf tour, and he has that same kind of pop that they have. He can hit a 340-yard [drive] when he has to off the tee. That’s like tour length.”

And it’s more than that.

“Just his knowledge of the game and the way he thinks around the golf course is also very impressive,” Ellwood added. “He’s very mature. He’s grown up fast … There’s probably something in his head right now that he thinks he needs to do better, because that’s just what makes golfers better.”

Quartararo and his county colleagues will need to wait seven months before the states. He will play and practice through the winter, whether it be in his backyard or at North Fork Country Club.

“They’re still open in the winter, so I can still play there when it’s warm,” he said.

Mattituck senior Michael Buckley shot 76 for fifth place in the conference tourney on Oct. 17. On the first day of the Individual tournament, Buckley shot an 85 and missed the cut by one stroke.

In the county team tournament, the 18th-seeded Tuckers lost to No. 15 Huntington in the opening round on Oct. 23.

Ellwood and the Tuckers were pleasantly surprised they reached the postseason. “Coach [Mat] Litchhult and I were congratulating the kids on a good season,” he said. “We didn’t think we made it, but then we saw the scores come in. ‘Oh my gosh, we’re in the playoffs. Guys, sorry, the season’s not over. We got to come out and play.’”

It was well worth it for so many reasons.