Atkinson golfer Joe Leavitt made an auspicious debut in his first collegiate tournament for Florida Southern College last weekend.

Leavitt, the 2012 New Hampshire Golf Association State Amateur champion, finished tied for 11th at The McLaughlin, a tournament staged over the Red Course at Bethpage State Park in Farmingdale, N.Y.

Although Leavitt was Florida Southern's low scorer at 2-over-par 212 (70-70-72), his scores didn't count toward the team's total because he competed as an individual. During 54-hole qualifying earlier this month for the five spots in Florida Southern's opening tournament lineup, Leavitt finished tied for fifth place before losing in a playoff. But despite his near-miss, Florida Southern coach Doug Gordin took him to The McLaughlin anyway, Leavitt said.

An 18-year-old freshman, Leavitt was one of three players to compete as individuals at Bethpage, the Long Island golf complex that hosted the 2002 and 2009 U.S. Opens on its vaunted Black Course. With the top four scores of its starting five counting in each round, Florida Southern finished sixth, 35 strokes behind winner Auburn University.

With his performance, Leavitt earned a berth in the starting lineup for Florida Southern's next tournament, the AFLAC Cougar Classic in Columbus, Ga., on Oct. 1-2,

“Obviously I'm kind of like a no-name again down here,” Leavitt said. “I'm trying to build up my reputation again. So to go out there and show the guys that, I know I'm a freshman but I can still hang with them and I can be a big help on the team, it meant a lot.”

Dartmouth College finished fifth at The McLaughlin, three strokes ahead of Florida Southern. Charlie Cai, a freshman from West Windsor, N.J., finished tied for fourth (71-68-70) to lead the Big Green, while Nashua's James Pleat, a senior, finished tied for 15th (73-72-69). Dartmouth's next tournament, the Shoal Creek Intercollegiate, starts tomorrow in Birmingham, Ala.

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PHIL'S COMEBACK: A few days before the start of last week's NHGA Mid-Amateur Championship, defending champion Phil Pleat was on a chiropractor's table seeking treatment for recurring lower-back woes that had prompted him to withdraw from the New England Senior Amateur after a Sept. 10 practice round. By last Wednesday, however, Pleat was hoisting yet another NHGA trophy.

Six strokes behind Portsmouth's Craig Steckowych entering the final round at Lake Winnipesaukee Golf Club in New Durham, the 56-year-old Nashua Country Club player shot a tournament-low 71 to defeat Steckowych (79) and Golf Club of New England's Brett Wilson (72) and capture his eighth NHGA Mid-Amateur, a tournament for male amateurs 25 and older.

While Steckowych and first-round co-leader Danny Arvanitis of Derryfield faltered on Wednesday, Pleat surged with a pair of front-nine birdies. Despite bogeys at Nos. 9 and 17, he led Steckowych and Wilson by a stroke when he reached the 18th tee and promptly iced the tournament with a closing birdie.

With a 16th NHGA individual trophy on his mantle — he won No. 15 at the NHGA Senior Championship last month — Pleat departs Wednesday for West Caldwell, N.J., where he is slated to compete starting Saturday in the USGA Senior Amateur, the national championship for amateurs 55 and older in which he was runner-up last year.

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Through the green: The New Hampshire team of Joshua Chamberlain (75-79-76), Ryan Kohler (77-82-72) and D.J. Lantz (75-77-83) finished 19th at the USGA Men's State Team Championship last Friday in Galloway Township, N.J. The tournament featured three-man teams from all 50 states, the District of Columbia and Puerto Rico, with the low two scores counting toward each team's total daily. ... With 26 points, Maine won the 74th annual men's Tri-State Matches last Sunday, defeating New Hampshire (23) and Vermont (23) in the two-day team event at Jay Peak, Vt. Concord's Will McLaughlin was the leading scorer for the Granite State squad, earning 2.75 of a possible three points. ... Keene Country Club's Mike Kowalczyk and Mike Kelly (67) won low gross at the NHGA Fall Four-Ball at their home course last Sunday, while fellow club members Chip O'Neil and Ed Phippard (57) won low net. ... Postponed by inclement weather in June, the NHGA Players Championship is slated for next Saturday and Sunday at Baker Hill. ... Pheasant Ridge's Torrie Whitcher, Cochecho's Claire Isenstein, Canterbury Woods' Janice Davio and Nippo Lake's Susan Hannah won the New Hampshire Women's Golf Association's Stephanie Thomas Classic last Tuesday at Wentworth By The Sea.

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Mike Cullity's column on New Hampshire golf appears weekly during the golf season in the New Hampshire Sunday News. He may be reached at mcullity@unionleader.com.