NATCHEZ — Duncan Park Golf Course Superintendent Greg Brooking recently added another trophy to his collection, and he was quite happy about this one.

Brooking won the seniors’ division at the Mississippi Golf Association’s Mississippi Coast Amateur June 18-19 at the Grand Bear Golf Club in Boloxi.

“I had the overall lowest score, but in the seniors’ division, the tee is up 200-300 yards shorter,” Brooking said.

“It was the very first time I won the Coast Amateur. I’ve shot under par at a 36-hole tournament before, but to shoot under par overall in a tournament isn’t something we can do very often. It sort of shows a striving for excellence.”

In order to win the seniors’ division, Brooking had to overcome a course designed by golfing great Jack Nicklaus.

“You have to play serious golf,” Brooking said. “When he designs a course, it’s for good players. The course was in excellent condition.”

With the trophy in hand, Brooking is now turning his attention to two tournaments Duncan Park will be hosting this month. The city’s Junior Championship golf tournament is slated for July 11, and the Norman Puckett Memorial Championship — an MGA event — is July 18.

Although young golfers that attended the Norman Puckett Junior Golf Academy are encouraged to attend, Brooking said the city championship is not exclusive to those golfers.

“It’s really for everyone. You don’t need to have participated in the academy to play in the city championship,” Brooking said.

And Brooking said the Norman Puckett Memorial Championship will help bring attention to what Duncan Park has to offer golfers.

“For people that play the course, the best advertisement is word of mouth,” Brooking said. “The condition of our city park speaks for itself. I would put ours against any other city park in Mississippi, Louisiana and even Alabama.

“I think the closest one to ours in terms of quality is Ottomon Park in New Orleans, which just got renovated in the last three years.”

For more information on the tournaments, call 601-442-5955.