BABSON PARK, Mass.—Babson College men's golf alumnus Burt Gesner '22 will compete against some of the top amateur players in the world at the United States Mid-Amateur Championship hosted at Troon Country Club in Scottsdale, Ariz., beginning on Saturday.

Gesner shot an even-par 70 and earned the last of three spots among 76 players by winning a 4-for-1 playoff to qualify for the 44th edition of the U.S. Mid-Amateur back on July 22 at Hanover Country Club in Abbottstown, Pa. To be eligible for the U.S. Mid-Amateur, a player must by 25 years of age with a handicap index of 2.4 or better. The United States Golf Association (USGA) accepted 5,942 entries for this year's championship. 

Gesner, who will make his U.S. Mid-Amateur debut, is among 264 players that will play 36 holes of stroke play on Saturday and Sunday at Troon CC. The low 64 scores will advance to match play, which begins on Monday. He is set to begin his first round at 7:34 a.m. PST on Saturday. 

A 2022 Golf Coaches Association of America (GCAA) All-America honorable mention, Gesner enjoyed a terrific career for the Beavers. He posted a 74.60 stroke average during his final season at Babson and the team rose as high as a program-best fourth in the national poll before tying for 12th at the NCAA Division III Championship. 

Gesner, who also earned all-region honors in 2022 and All-Capital Athletic Conference (CAC) accolades as a rookie in 2019, ranks ninth in program history with a 75.65 stroke average in 43 career rounds. 

As Gesner prepares for the U.S. Mid-Amateur, we had a chance to catch up with him about life after Babson and balancing work in the corporate world with his golf aspirations. 

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Babson Athletics (BA): Before we get into golf, tell us a little about life since graduating from Babson. Where are you living and what are you doing for work?

Burt Gesner (BG): I live in Annapolis, Md., not too far from where I grew up. My family still lives in the area so it's great to be nearby everyone. After starting my career in Investment Banking, I joined a technology startup a little over a year ago. Our company is called Keeyns, and provides an innovative tax technology platform for companies across a variety of industries. The company is based in the Netherlands and my role is to launch the business in the U.S. and lead our operations here. It has been a lot of fun and we have a great team, including some other passionate golfers. I'll be representing with Keeyns logo golf balls out at Troon.

BA: What were your expectations going into the US Mid-Amateur qualifier back in July and was this your first time trying to qualify for a USGA event?

BG: I honestly had no expectations heading into the event and didn't know what to expect as a score that would qualify. (Fellow Babson men's golf alumnus) Niko Gianelos '22 and I have tried to qualify for the USGA Four Ball a handful of times, but this was my first USGA qualifier playing as an individual. It was a bucket list item for me to qualify for a USGA event, so it is pretty cool to cross it off the list so soon.

BA: You put together a good round shooting an even-par 70 and end up in a four-man playoff for one spot. Were you watching the leaderboard following your round and how did you stay focused while not getting ahead of yourself thinking about possibly qualifying for Mid-Amateur during the playoff?

BG: I have never been a "leaderboard watcher", especially during the round. I usually try to just stick to whatever game plan I map out ahead of the round. After I finished my round, and saw I was in contention, I was definitely paying close attention to see if I'd get into a playoff, which seemed like the best-case scenario. I was able to draw on past experience and not get ahead of myself. Back in 2019, Niko and I had actually been in a big playoff to qualify for the USGA Four Ball, so I remembered what that was like and definitely got too excited in the moment back then. When I entered this 4 for 1 playoff, I kind of simplified everything to just trying to play one perfect hole. Niko actually played in this same qualifier so it was very cool to have him walking along during the playoff, supporting me and to have someone to celebrate with after the fact. I was also thinking a lot about my dad throughout the playoff hole. He passed away about a year ago and was my biggest golf fan (especially at Babson where he never missed a tournament). Similar to me, he was very competitive and would have thought this entire thing was unbelievable and pretty special.

BA: I'm sure playing competitive golf can be difficult working full time in the corporate world. How often do you get to play or practice and how do you stay sharp? 

BG: I'm definitely a weekend warrior these days. Aside from a handful of competitive events held during the week, I play once or twice every weekend during the golf season. Luckily, I was never able to practice for long periods due to injuries, so playing a couple rounds a week is plenty of golf to keep my game in shape. I also do a lot of hot yoga and swimming to stay in shape.

BA: What have the last six weeks been like as you're preparing for next Monday's opening round? 

BG: The last six weeks haven't looked too different than usual for me. Mostly, I've been spending a lot of time on my day job. I unfortunately hurt my wrist en route to a second-place finish at the Maryland State Four Ball last month, so had to take a couple weeks off. I've been playing more recently, and also continue to do plenty of hot yoga and swimming to stay loose.

BA: You're getting ready to play against some of the top amateur players in the country. What do you know about Troon and what are your expectations heading into the tournament? 

BG: I admittedly don't know much about Troon and have never played any "desert golf" before this. In terms of expectations, I really don't have any, other than to try to play smart and grind to the end. Expecting a round to go a certain way can be a distraction when you're on the course and things inevitably never go as planned. At Babson, I was able to compete with golfers who were admittedly much better players than me by having a good mental approach. I won't be anywhere near as good as a lot of the guys out there, so will look to compete the same way by having a detailed game plan and trying to execute it. Above all else, I'm expecting to have a very fun and memorable week. It will be a family affair for us. My family rented a house for the week and my mom, brother-in-law, and girlfriend will all be out there. Most importantly, my older sister, who played college lacrosse and plays a lot of golf now, will also be there and is caddying for me.

BA: Your career at Babson included both individual and team success despite having to navigate a missed season due to the pandemic. What did you learn from your time at Babson that you carry with you today? 

BG: After watching lots of U.S. Open tennis the last few weeks, I was reminded of one of my favorite quotes from Billie Jean King: "Pressure is a privilege". I certainly appreciated it during college, but perhaps even more now, I realize how cool it is to be able to compete in events like this. I learned at Babson not to take these moments for granted, and to embrace being an underdog, which we often were as the team from a small school in the Northeast. All in all, I'm pretty lucky to have one of top worries in life currently be how my golf game is shaping up. The running joke with a lot of my friends right now is that I'm only "8 (good) rounds away from playing in the Masters", so let's see how it goes.