Jones’ vastly different experiences in Wednesday’s quarterfinal and semifinal wins to correct that surprising omission from his resume underscored the point, too.

In his morning match at Sable Oaks Golf Club against Brian Angis, Jones — three-time winner of the Maine Amateur and a Maine Open champion — shot 10-over par through 17 holes.

Fortunately for Jones, Angis matched that total. Pars were enough to win five holes and secure a 2 and 1 victory.

“I got off to kind of a slow start, but I was up in the match,” Jones said. “Then I missed a swing left, didn’t feel very good. Then it was double bogey, double bogey. I couldn’t even hit it off the club face. I hit it into the woods a bunch.”

Jones grabbed a quick snack at the pro shop, shook hands with his next opponent, Sable Oaks club champion Mike Doran, and promptly sank 10 consecutive pars.

Knocking in a 25-foot birdie putt from the far right edge at 11 furnished a four-hole lead. Jones finished off Doran three pins later, 6 and 4.

He advanced to the title match at 7 a.m. Thursday against Jeff Cole, 25, of Scarborough, who beat Eric Crouse 3 and 2 and Scott Sirois 5 and 3 to continue what is far-and-away his best performance in an MSGA major.

Jones, 42, of Thomaston, has a titanic trophy collection from the others.

“I haven’t won it before since they started it four years ago,” Jones said of the match play crystal. “It’s kind of the one that’s left out there.”

His first two Maine Amateur titles came back-to-back in 2003 and 2004, when the MSGA utilized a match play format for its premier event.

The match play showcase was introduced in 2010 after the state amateur tournament returned to stroke play.

“It’s alright,” Jones said. “It’s kind of mixed. If you go out and shoot a lot under (par), the next time you can go out and shoot alright and still lose. Like my match (Tuesday against John Hayes IV). We were both hitting it good, both making pars. Then we had to go to sudden death. You have 32 guys and the difference between the handicaps is probably three at most. Anybody can win it.”

Cole, seeded No. 15, hopes that is a prophetic statement.

After taking out No. 2 Joe Walp in Tuesday’s second round, Cole rolled in three birdies to beat No. 10 Crouse and sank four more on the front nine to build an insurmountable six-hole lead over Sirois.

Although the official tournament bracket lists him out of York Golf & Tennis, Cole, like Doran, also is a member of Sable Oaks.

“I like the golf course. It sets up well for me. I know it really well,” Cole said. “I don’t even know if it fits my natural game. I’ve just played it so many times that I know where to hit it and I know where not to hit it. It’s definitely a help for sure.”

Cole carded double bogey at 13 and bogey at 14 before ousting Sirois with his eighth birdie of the rainy, cool day at 15.

“The last six holes here are so tough that if you make one bad swing, it can derail the train really quick,” he said. “You don’t want to be holding onto a lead on the back nine here.”

Doran dispatched Joe Alvarez in the morning, coming from behind three times before consecutive pars at 16 and 17 clinched a 2 and 1 win and his first-ever trip to the semis.

There, he stayed square with Jones until a bogey at 5. Doran, 29, three-putted for another at 7, then dropped four of five on the back nine to end his run.

“Ricky made about a 35-footer for par on 3 to halve the hole. That was my golden chance to claim the tee for once,” Doran said. “Ricky just played steady. We played 14 holes. He had 12 pars, one birdie and one bogey. It was like playing against the scorecard almost. I don’t mind losing to Ricky. I got through three good players to get here.”

Sirois downed Jack Wyman 2 and 1 in the other quarterfinal.

None of Wednesday’s matches went the full 18-hole distance. That, and a late-morning abatement in the rain, helped the MSGA get in all the day’s activities.

Whoever prevails Thursday will be the fifth different winner. Alvarez, Ryan Gay (now a professional), Hayes and Matt Greenleaf are the others.

In his only previous appearance, Cole lost in the 2013 opening round at Fox Ridge.

Asked his biggest win in an MSGA tournament, he hesitated, then laughed.

“Probably a weekend event at Old Marsh,” Cole said. “I never won the juniors. I lost in the finals. I was 12. A lot has changed in 13 years.”

Mostly due to their difference in age and stature in the game, Jones and Cole have never played golf together.

They hadn’t even met until arriving in the clubhouse Wednesday afternoon.

“Obviously I know of him, but I’ve never played with or against him,” Cole said. “It’ll be fun. I’m looking forward to it. I’ll have my buddy Kyle (Bourassa) on the bag again. Just go out and play and see what happens.”