At 7 a.m. Friday, Jamie Place of Morrill will tee it up at Rockland Golf Club to begin the defense of his Bangor Daily News Amateur Golf Tournament title.

With a three-day total of 214, Place won the BDN Amateur (nee Paul Bunyan Amateur 27 years ago) last year by four strokes over Brian Lawton of Hampden, Mark Paine of Madison, and Keith Patterson II of North Waterboro.

Of the three runnersup, only Paine will not be back to take another crack at one of Maine’s two most prestigious amateur golf tournaments.

The tournament field of 624 golfers will spend the next three days rotating among four courses – Rockland Golf Club, Bangor Municipal Golf Course, Kebo Valley Club in Bar Harbor, and Bar Harbor Golf Course in Trenton.

The “A” flight players (handicaps 0-7) will start at Rockland on Friday, move to Bangor Muni the second day, and finish at Kebo on Sunday.

The rotation for “B” (7-12) is Bangor, Rockland, Bar Harbor. For “C” (12-17), Kebo is first with Bar Harbor second and Bangor third. In “D” (17-30), it’s Bar Harbor, Kebo, and Rockland, respectively.

“I’m rarin’ to go. Let the cards fall where they may,” said Place. “I’m anxious to play. I’m looking forward to it.”

Place has been shooting around 71 or 72 in most of the Maine State Golf Association weekend tournaments, but also posted a 66 at Hermon Meadow Golf Course.

“I have just as good a shot at winning as last year. Maybe more so,” added Place, who said he’s hitting the ball as well as last year. “Tomorrow (Friday) is a big day. I want to stay reasonably close, and try to get in a groove.”

Place will get a lot of competition from several past winners, the most prominent of whom is nine-time champ Mark Plummer of Augusta.

Plummer first won this event in 1973 as a college student at the University of Maine. His latest victory was in 1989. In between, he posted victories in ’76, ’79, ’81, ’83, ’84, ’85, and ’88.

Because of a new job, Plummer has joined the ranks of the weekend golfer.

“I play about three times a week now,” Plummer said Thursday. It hasn’t hurt his scoring much, though.

“I had a 63 last Friday (at Augusta Country Club in Manchester),” said Plummer. “I’ve been shooting between 68 and 72, mostly, the last few weeks.”

Significantly, most of Plummer’s victories have come in years when the tournament finished at Kebo Valley.

The only time since ’73 the tournament has finished at Kebo and Plummer has not won was in 1987 when Ellsworth’s Dan Sargent posted the victory on his home course. Sargent is chasing the title again this year.

Bob Girvan II of Kenduskeag is a two-time winner and will be gunning for No. 3 once again. Girvan won in 1977 and won in 1982 in a sudden-death playoff over 1978 champ Ralph Noel Jr. of Auburn, who will try again.

Rick Ambrose of Bangor is another two-time winner hunting for No. 3. His previous titles came in the early years of the tournament (’69, ’71), but he still plays a very competitive game.

Dave Brown of Bangor will be making his second run at the top in as many years. Brown defeated Plummer in a last-day showdown in 1980.

Mike Norris of Bangor and Tom Caron of Bangor have also been hot players in the MSGA weekend tourneys this year. Norris also represented northern New England in the U.S. Public Links Amateur Golf Championship last year.

Jon Martin of East Sullivan and Ron Brown Jr. of Cumberland Foreside are also expected to be in the hunt again.

A new wrinkle added this year is a car being offered by Kelley Mazda Inc. of Bangor for the first hole-in-one scored on the 199-yard, par-3 sixth hole at Bangor Muni. Since Class D will not play at Bangor, those players will shoot for the car on the 194-yard ninth hole at Kebo.

Other honors up for grabs include the C. Clinton Dill Award for players 55 and over (which Bunker Spear of Rockland will defend) and the Ralph W. “Bud” Leavitt Jr. Trophy for the club with the lowest four-man total (won by Bangor Muni last year). Bangor Daily News Amateur Golf Tourney

CHAMPIONS

1990 – Jamie Place

1989 – Mark Plummer

1988 – Mark Plummer

1987 – Dan Sargent

1986 – Troy Witham

1985 – Mark Plummer

1984 – Mark Plummer

1983 – Mark Plummer

1982 – *Bob Girvan II

1981 – Mark Plummer

1980 – Dave Brown

1979 – Mark Plummer

1978 – Ralph Noel Jr.

1977 – Bob Girvan II

1976 – Mark Plummer

1975 – Steve Conrad

1974 – Glenn Salwak

1973 – *Mark Plummer

1972 – Brian Enman

1971 – Rick Ambrose

1970 – John Sale

1969 – Rick Ambrose

1968 – Dave Bradberry

1967 – Dave Bradberry

1966 – Bill Martin

1965 – Vince Ferrara

(*-won sudden-death playoff)