West Hartford Golfer Wins Major CT Tournament

WEST HARTFORD/WATERBURY, CT — A West Hartford golfer won a dramatic tournament victory last week, winning a playoff for the 21st annual Russell C. Palmer Cup.

West Hartford resident Cody Paladino defeated several others in overtime May 21 in earning the victory, which was at the Country Club of Waterbury, according to the Connecticut State Golf Association (CSGA).

Paladino, whose home course is the Hartford Golf Club, said winning the tournament is difficult.

He should know. This was his third title in one of Connecticut golf's most prestigious tournaments.

"It's hard to win. It's hard to win tournaments. It's not like I've never won, so this is my first time trying to win. I think it's just hard to win, and fortunately for me, I'm in the mix a good amount, so that's great, but I'm just hoping to close the door more often because that winning feeling is so special, and that's what keeps me coming back," said Paladino.

Paladino was also the winner of the 2012 and 2022 Russell C. Palmer Cup.

This year's tournament tested Paladino mentally, he said.

"It takes a lot of mental rechecking when the voice in my head is telling me you should have won this thing by five shots, so that voice is still there reminding me, so I was trying to push that aside and refocus. Honestly, after everything that happened, I kept telling myself, hey, you're in a playoff. You should be glad that you're in a playoff after everything that happened," he said.

Paladino was able to have the final say as he took home the crown.

"It was a long day," Paladino said. "I felt pretty good after I played yesterday and I had pretty good control over things. [But today] it was very, very up and down, up and down, up and down, all the way until the very last putt in the playoff."

The Russell C. Palmer Cup presented by Chris Cote’s Golf Shop is one of 20 championships conducted by the Connecticut State Golf Association. The CSGA functions as an extension of the USGA and provides stewardship for amateur golf in Connecticut.

For a detailed chronicle of the 2024 Russell C. Palmer Cup, click on this link.