Matt Lowe
This year’s field is one of the strongest in recent memory, with several players who have numerous MGA and Met Area victories already to their names. This includes the last three MGA/MetLife Boys champions Peter Kim, 16, of Metuchen, N.J. (2008), 16-year-old Mark Reilly of Babylon, N.Y. (2009), and reigning Boys champion Matt Lowe, 15, of Farmingdale, N.Y.
One of the hottest players of any age right now in the Met Area is 16-year-old Clancy Waugh of Manhasset, N.Y. Waugh was a medalist in a Met Junior Sectional Qualifier at Springdale Country Club on June 30, and reached the finals of the Long Island Amateur on July 8. Another teen coming in on a hot streak is 14-year-old Cameron Young, who won the 2011 WGA Amateur Championship and tied for 17th at the Ike Championship presented by Canon Business Solutions at Somerset Hills in late June. 2010 WGA Junior champion Theo Humphrey (15) of Greenwich, Conn., and Anthony Alex (16) of Wayne, N.J., winner of the 2008 New Jersey State Boys Championship, aim to capture their first MGA titles at Fairmount.
Several notable 18-year-olds are in their final year of eligibility for the Met Junior. These pleayers include: St. John’s University-bound Dylan Crowley of Glen Cove, N.Y., a member of the 2010 Williamson Cup Team; future Penn State Nittany Lion Xander-McDonald-Smith of Rockaway Park, N.Y., who also played in the 2010 Williamson Cup, and tied for third at the MGA/MetLife Public Links Championship at Hominy Hill; and Sean Kelly of Staten Island, N.Y., who was a semifinalist in this event in 2010 at Ardsley Country Club.
Players can earn exemptions into the Met Junior Championship in a variety of ways, including based on their finish in last year’s Carter Cup at Baltusrol (top 15) and last year’s Met Junior (semifinalists).
Sponsored by MetLife for the 28th consecutive year, the Met Junior consists of three days of match play. It is a test of mental as well as physical endurance, as the eventual champion will have survived two 18-hole matches each day. The field is pared down from 64 to 16 after the first day, and there are traditionally some surprising results. Before taking the course for the first-round matches, the players will have the opportunity to play Fairmount on Monday, July 11, when the MGA/MetLife Pro-Junior is held for the 44th time. All Met Junior entrants team up with a PGA professional in a better-ball competition.
In addition to competing in the Met Junior, boys 15 and under will tee it up at the MGA/MetLife Boys Championship on August 11 and 12 at Rumson Country Club in Rumson, N.J. Over half of the field of 16 for the Boys will be teeing it up in the Met Junior, including: Cameron Young, Sean Byrne, Christopher Gabriele, Matthew Csillag, Gordon Moore, Kyle Brey, James Mongey, Eric Alonso, and Jeremy Wall.
For more information on the Met Junior, contact Lou Cutolo or Greg Midland at the MGA at (914) 347-4653 or visit www.mgagolf.org.
