MANCHESTER — Sean Bosdosh put himself in contention at the Charlie’s Maine Open early in his round Monday. The way he finished was even better.

The PGA professional from Clarksville, Maryland, birdied each of his first three holes at the Augusta Country Club and continued his solid play throughout the early afternoon to finish with a 9-under 61.

“It’s an interesting golf course; greens are pitched a lot and I really like it,” Bosdosh said. “I was able to stick to my routine, focus on my process and keep it simple. I kept it to the middle of the green when I could, and when I didn’t like a shot, I’d just shoot it easy. I focused on my distances.”

Bosdosh, 32, missed the course record of 60, achieved twice by 13-time Maine Amateur champion Mark Plummer, by one shot. A former University of Maryland golfer, Bosdosh said consistency with his irons throughout the round set him up for success on the greens.

“I tried to play fairway and green, and I had a lot of good iron shots that set me up for some easy putts,” Bosdosh said. “I think I had three tap-ins, and I also had a hole-out on 18. When you do that, you’re going to put up a pretty good number.”

Bosdosh had never played at Augusta prior to a practice round in wet conditions Sunday.

That was also the case with Ryan Celano and Zachary Barbin, who both finished three shots back of Bodosh at 6-under 64.

Caleb Manuel tees off on the second hole. Rich Abrahamson/Morning Sentinel

Celano, of Naples, Florida, made the trip to central Maine from Bolton, Massachusetts, where he was helping his father, Paul, with his duties as golf director at International Golf Club. The former University of Florida golfer was 2 under through 10, then birdied four of the six next holes to take the early lead.

“The course is in great shape, and it really withheld the rain well,” Celano said. “I just played all-around pretty solid; I didn’t make too many mistakes – I only had one little hiccup – and I got aggressive when I felt comfortable with certain shots, drove it straight, played it close and hit some putts.”

Barbin, an Elkton, Maryland native, climbed the leaderboard throughout the day with a bogey-free round. He had an eagle on 12 before finishing his round with a birdie on 18 to move into a tie for second.

“There were a couple holes where I was not sure about what I was going to do today, but I chose the more aggressive approach,” Barbin said. “I wasn’t trying to be overly aggressive into the greens, but off the tee I was pulling the driver more than I maybe should have, so I might re-evaluate tomorrow.”

Jack Maguire of Ridgefield, Connecticut, was one of the early leaders, shooting a 4-under 31 over the front nine. He would finish at a 1-under 69 after a series of challenging holes down the back stretch.

“There were a lot of birdie opportunities out there, but there was definitely some trouble out there, too,” Maguire said. “I think scoring is going to be somewhat low this week, but it’s definitely a fun course. The greens are good.”

Everett Najera of Boothbay finished the day at 2-under 68 to place atop the Maine professional division. Dan Venezio of Portland and three-time Maine Amateur champion Caleb Manuel of Topsham were both one shot back at 69.

Eli Spaulding, right, watches his drive on the second hole as his playing partners Andrew Slattery, center, and Mark Plummer watch during the first round of the Maine Open on Monday at the Augusta Country Club in Manchester. Spaulding, of Freeport, shot 2-under 68. Rich Abrahamson/Morning Sentinel

Manuel found himself at 2 over with three holes to play after recording bogeys on 13 and 14. He rebounded with an eagle on 16 and a birdie on 18.

“To get it to 1 under after that, it will definitely help me sleep a little better tonight,” Manuel said. “I just stayed patient, and I was just kind of laughing off the bad shots. I knew something like that was going to happen eventually, whether it was today or tomorrow, so to have it at the end gives me a little momentum.”

Mick Madden of Portland, Jack Quinn of Litchfield and Eli Spaulding of Freeport finished the day tied atop the amateur leaderboard as well as the juniors leaderboard. Quinn wasn’t particularly happy with his drives, but playing on his home course, he said, provided the familiarity he needed to find other ways to make up ground.

“I hit my driver great yesterday, so I don’t know what happened today, but we’ll figure it out,” Quinn said. “It’s good to know that I can hit my driver bad and put myself in tough positions but still score.”

Jerry DiPhilippo, winner of the 1995 Maine Open, led the senior division at even par. Abby Flanagan of Monmouth was the top girls’ scorer at 10-over 80.

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