SANFORD – Early nerves met a late charge, and No. 1 seed Ricky Jones of Rockland Golf Club survived the first day of match play at Sanford County Club – barely.

Thirteen-time champion Mark Plummer of Augusta Country Club wasn’t so fortunate.

Jones shanked a drive on the third hole into the woods, bogeyed the fifth and sixth holes and fell three down to No. 32 Justin Ball of Gorham Country Club through eight holes of play in the pair’s match in Wednesday’s round of 32.

“I was nervous,” Jones admitted. “Being the No. 1 seed was a little nerve-wracking, and I think I surprised myself in a bad way when I sprayed my shot on three to the right.”

On the 14th hole, after taking one shot back at the ninth, Jones stuck a wedge approach shot within four feet of the hole and made birdie, starting a string of three straight hole wins to reclaim the lead in his match for good.

Jones played his final 10 holes in 2-under par to fight off Ball and win his opening match 1-up.

“The biggest shot I think was on 14,” Jones said. “Normally with the pin tucked behind the bunker like it was I wouldn’t go at it, but where I was two shots behind, I knew I had to do something to get back into it.”

On the 16th, with the match all square, Jones caught a break when Ball had to make a putt from behind the hole on a similar line, giving Jones a good read. Ball missed and Jones connected to go one up. The players halved the final two holes.

“It’s a lot easier when you have the lead,” Jones said. “You can force the other players to make birdies where you only have to make pars.”

Jones will face Nate Nealey in the round of 16 on Thursday morning.

Plummer, meanwhile, also a heavy favorite as the fourth seed and always a force in match play, did not fare as well. After making a haphazard bogey on the eighteenth hole to fall into a tie, Plummer three-putted on the 22nd hole and lost to Gary Manoogian of Falmouth Country Club.

“I just never felt right over the ball,” Plummer said. “I pull-hooked it into the trees on 18. There were a lot of almosts’ out there today, but nothing spectacular.”

As for Manoogian, the nerves weren’t as heavy as they might have been a few years ago.

“I’ve played with Mark enough and we are friends, so nerves weren’t like nerves I’d have if I faced him for the first time,” Manoogian said. “I just tried to keep my hands dry and tried to keep a good swing on the ball. It was a mental grind today.”

Manoogian advances to face Marc Siewertsen of Willowdale, who upended Mark Wallace of the Samoset Resort 3-and-1.

The shot sequence of the tournament provided a fitting end to the first day of match play.

Needing a birdie to at least stay in the match, first-round leader Corey Poulin found himself short of the green in the rough on the par-4 18th hole in two.

As a gallery of people watched from the porch of the clubhouse, Poulin sent his chip 20 feet deep into the green and watch as it glided toward the hole, as if guided by radar, rattling around before falling in for an unlikely birdie.

“I just hit it hard on a line,” Poulin said. “I had a Phil Mickelson-like moment there for a second.”

Only for a second, though, as Jason Gall of Augusta Country Club hurried to address his ball and snaked his own 30-foot offering up the slope. Breaking from left to right in the last three feet, his putt dropped, giving him the match win, 1-up.

“I’d been putting pretty well all day,” Gall said. “I was 3-up through 10 and then he won three straight to get back into it. He’d been chipping so well all day, and I almost expected his chip to go in, anyway.”

“That is one of the most amazing finishes to any tournament I have ever seen,” said No. 2 seed John Bauman as he watched from the clubhouse. “That was just incredible.”

Bauman, of Webhannet Golf Club, halved the 18th hole in his match with Mike Nowak of Augusta to win 1-up. He advances to face James Frost, Jr. on Thursday morning. Frost defeated John Whiteman in 20 holes.

Another of the big upsets on the day happened early, when Keith Patterson of Biddeford-Saco upended last year’s runner-up, Jay Livingston of Tri-City Golf, 3-and-1, to win the No.8-No. 25 matchup as the underdog. Patterson will face Natanis’ Toby Spector, last fall’s high school champion, who won easily (8-and-7) over Shawn McKague of Riverside.

“I didn’t really expect it to be that quick,” Spector said. “When he got into trouble, I got pars, and when he would make a birdie, I always seemed to have a good shot to stay in it, too.”

Spector made birdies on both par-3’s he played, and also a 40-foot putt on the tenth hole to secure the victory.

Other winners on Wednesday included Jeff Wass of Rockland, who beat Scott DeWitt of Biddeford-Saco, one of last year’s semi-finalists, on the 21st hole, Tim Flaherty of the Woodlands, Cash Wiseman of Sable Oaks in South Portland, Ross McGee of Clinton Golf Club, Ben Daughan of York Golf and Tennis Club, and Ron Dery of Biddeford-Saco. Nick Boutin of Biddeford-Saco advanced after Todd Kirn of Sanford withdrew with an injury.

Both the round of 16 and the quarterfinals will be contested on Thursday beginning at 7:30 a.m.

BREAKOUT INFO

Wednesday at the Maine Amateur

3: The number of matches that went into extra holes

6: The number of matches out of 16 that ended 1-up

9: The number of golfers left that were ranked No. 17 or worse to start the day

16: The number of golfers advancing to Thursday’s matches

22: The number of holes it took for Gary Manoogian to upend Mark Plummer

30: The lowest seed remaining in the tournament (Jason Gall)

Thursday’s Pairings

7:30 am Ricky Jones, Rockland GC vs. Nate Nealey, Gorham CC

7:40 am Keith Patterson, Biddeford Saco CC vs. Toby Spector, Natanis GC

7:50 am Gary Manoogian, Falmouth CC vs. Marc Siewertsen, Willowdale GC

8:00 am Jeff Wass, Rockland GC vs. Tim Flaherty, Woodlands Club

8:10 am John Bauman, Webhannet GC vs. James Frost Jr, Penobscot Valley CC

8:20 am Nicholas Boutin, Biddeford Saco CC vs. Cash Wiseman, Sable Oaks GC

8:30 am Jason Gall, Augusta CC vs. Ross McGee, Clinton GC

8:40 am Ronald Dery, Biddeford Saco CC vs. Ben Daughan, York G&TC