November 2, 2010 - For the second time in three years, Joe Saladino of Huntington Country Club is the winner of the MGA Jerry Courville Sr. Player of the Year Award. In one of the most competitive races in history, Saladino finished on top thanks to four Met Area victories and career-best performances at the U.S. Amateur and U.S. Mid-Amateur. The award will be presented at the 113th MGA Annual Meeting and Dinner on Wednesday, December 1, at Westchester Country Club in Harrison, N.Y.

The Jerry Courville Sr. MGA Player of the Year Award is presented annually to the Met Area amateur who compiles the best record in select events during the course of the year and is based on a system in which players earn points for their finishes in designated local, national and international championships.

“Over the past few years Joe has become one of the Met Area's most accomplished golfers and, after another sensational season, it comes as no surprise to again see him atop our player of the year points list,” remarked MGA Tournament Director Brian Mahoney.

Besides Saladino, three other players held the top spot in the Polo Golf MGA Player of the Year Point Standings at various points in the season. Mike Ballo Jr. of Woodway, who repeated as Ike champion, won the Rockland County Amateur, and had strong showings at the Northeast Amateur, Arcola Cup and Met Amateur. MGA/MetLife Public Links champion Brian Komline of High Bridge Hills led the points race for a time, helped by his second-place finish at the Ike and win at the NJSGA Amateur.

New to the MGA tournament scene but making a big first impression was Evan Beirne of Bethpage, Ballo’s former teammate at St. John’s University. Beirne, in between his junior and senior years in college, had a breakout summer that included wins at the 108th Met Amateur and Hochster Memorial, both held at Quaker Ridge Golf Club in Scarsdale, N.Y.

Saladino, 30, hovered near the lead of the Polo Golf MGA Player of the Year Point Standings thanks in part to wins at the Havemeyer and Mittelmark Invitationals, and a top-five finish at the Ike. “Getting MGA Player of the Year honors is always a goal, and I set my schedule early in the season and just tried to get a couple wins,” he said. In late August, the Long Island native made match play for the first time at the U.S. Amateur and earned 125 Player of the Year points for that performance on a national stage.

Held the same week as the U.S. Amateur, the Met Open at Bethpage Black was where Beirne moved up into the top spot in the Polo Golf MGA Player of the Year Point Standings. He tied for third and was low amateur at the two-time U.S. Open venue, earning him a total of 313 points to pass Ballo and Saladino. Beirne seemed to take control of the Polo Golf MGA Player of the Year Race, but as the St. John’s senior captain was getting his fall collegiate season underway, retaining his lead would prove to be a challenge.

Saladino, meanwhile, was just getting warmed up. He found the winner’s circle again at the Bergen County Amateur, held September 12 at Rockleigh Golf Course, while Beirne finished tied for sixth. The victory gave Saladino, who is also St. John’s alum, another 75 points with one more national event still on the schedule, the U.S. Mid-Amateur. Contested on a course he knew well, Atlantic Golf Club in Bridgehampton, N.Y., Saladino used the hometown comfort to his advantage as he won two matches and advanced to the Round of 16. That gave him another 160 points, narrowing the margin between himself and Beirne to 21 points.

With one event left on the calendar and Beirne’s Met Area season complete, Saladino went into the Nassau Invitational with another MGA Player of the Year title in his sights, and he delivered. He won the Nassau on the strength of an opening-round 63, a new course record, and emerged with a lock on the Player of the Year title. His 1,002 points for the season are the second-highest total in the last seven years, falling just shy of his 1,117 points in 2008, when he won the award for the first time.

"To win [player of the year] once was a great thrill, and to do it again gives me a lot of confidence,” said Saladino. “It’s definitely something to enjoy right now and it’s nice to be able to sum up the season with the words ‘MGA Jerry Courville Sr. Player of the Year.’”

The award will be presented at the 113th MGA Annual Meeting and Dinner on Wednesday, December 1 at Westchester Country Club in Harrison, N.Y. For more information on the 2010 Jerry Courville Sr. Player of the Year Award, please contact Greg Midland (gmidland@mgagolf.org) or Billy Condon (bcondon@mgagolf.org) at the MGA office at             914-347-4653.

For final Polo Golf MGA Player of the Year Standings: click here

Complete point breakdown: click here

For a list of past winners of the MGA Jerry Courville Sr. Player of the Year Award: click here