Ike Heads to Baltusrol
The par-4 15th at Baltusrol. Photo: Evan Schiller
ELMSFORD, N.Y. (June 21, 2022) -- For the fourth consecutive year, the Ike MGA Stroke Play Championship is making its first-ever appearance at its host, with the Lower Course at Baltusrol Golf Club welcoming the 67th playing, June 27-28. The club, of course, is no stranger to hosting MGA championships and especially MGA Majors, having hosted the Met Amateur on five occasions (1908, 1912, 1997, 2006, 2015) and the Met Open twice (1908, 1988).
Related: Pairings | Ike History | Ike Records | Past Champions Gallery
This will be the first multi-round championship hosted on the Lower Course since it's 18-month restoration overseen by Gil Hanse that was completed in spring of 2021. The work turns back the clock to Tillinghast's original intent for the layout. Hanse and his team replaced fairway bunkers, restored wider, twisting fairways, returned greens to original sizes, reintroduced ramp approaches to greens and repositioned greenside bunkers, while the club also made investments in underground infrastructure from irrigation and drainage systems to a sub-surface air system for the greens.
The championship features 133 of the Met Area’s top competitors vying for the iconic Ike bust trophy and the title in the region’s premier amateur stroke play event. Qualifying this year took place at six sites throughout the Met Area.
Defense Time
Ten times in the championship’s history has a player successfully defended his title in the Ike, with Jerry Courville, Sr. doing so on two separate occasions. Reigning champion Matthew Fields of Quaker Ridge aims to become the 11th, becoming the first since Cameron Young (2015-16) to repeat.
Past Champions
Four of the last five Ike champions are in the field: Matthew Fields of Quaker Ridge ('21), Mark Costanza of Hamilton Farm ('20), Dawson Jones of Eagle Oaks ('19), and Matt Lowe of Bethpage ('17).
Major Moments
By hosting the Ike, Baltusrol becomes the 19th MGA club to host all three MGA Majors--the Ike, Met Amateur and Met Open. The last came in 2015, when Peter Kim won the Met Amateur on the Upper Course.
Top-10s
Only one player in the field has an active streak of top-10s at the Ike: Mark Costanza. Costanza followed his 2020 victory with a tie for ninth in 2021. Last year, Ethan Ng of Knickerbocker had his string of three consecutive top-five finishes at the Ike stopped, as he missed the 18-hole cut at The Bridge.
Winning Ways
Seven players in the field have already hoisted a trophy in 2022:
| Michael Brown | Rock Spring | Philadelphia Amateur |
| Ben Carpenter | Darien | Connecticut Amateur |
| Peichang Chen | Rock Hill | MGA Public Links, Long Island Amateur |
| Brandon Dalinka | MGA eClub - New Jersey | NJSGA Mid-Am |
| Eric LeFante | Somerset Hills | Eagle Oaks Invitational |
| Dennis Lynch | Baiting Hollow | MGA Senior Amateur |
| Matt Mattare | MGA eClub - New Jersey | Travis Invitational |
It's Good to be Back
Past Ike champion Matt Lowe of Bethpage and past Met Amateur winner Pat Wilson of Hamilton Farm have both had their amateur status reinstated, bringing years of MGA experience and past MGA major victories back to competition.
MGA Champions in the Field
This year's Ike may stand among the deepest in recent history, with 24 past MGA champions in the field. Last year the Ike field contained 17 past MGA champions.
| James Allen | Scarsdale | '20 Carter Cup |
| Ben Carpenter | Darien | '19 Carter Cup |
| Christian Cavaliere | Mahopac | '16 Met Junior |
| Peicheng Chen | Rock Hill | '21 Public Links |
| Mark Costanza | Hamilton Farm | '03 Boys, '07 Met Jr., '20 Ike |
| Chris DeJohn | Arcola | '21 Mid-Am |
| Bobby DiForio | MGA eClub - Hudson Valley | '15 Carter Cup |
| Nathan Drogin | Mountain Ridge | '21 Carter Cup |
| Garett Engel | Old Westbury | '01 Met Junior, '21 Met Amateur |
| Matthew Fields | Quaker Ridge | '21 Ike |
| Darin Goldstein | Deepdale | '17 Mid-Am |
| Nathan Han | Salem | '15-'16 Boys' |
| Lance Hollingshead | Trump National - Bedminster | '21 Boys' |
| Dawson Jones | Eagle Oaks | '14 Met Junior, '19 Ike |
| Eric LeFante | Somerset Hills | '12 Public Links |
| Matthew Lowe | Bethpage | '10 Boys', 17 Ike |
| Dennis Lynch | Baiting Hollow | '09-'10 Mid-Am, '21 Senior Am |
| Matt Mattare | MGA eClub - New Jersey | '17 Met Amateur |
| Ethan Ng | Knickerbocker | '16-'17 Carter Cup |
| Trevor Randolph | Arcola | '15-'16 Mid-Am |
| Jonathan Renza | Hudson National | '07 Boys' |
| Luke Sample | Old Oaks | '18 Boys', '20 Met Junior, '20 Met Open |
| Colin Summers | Plainfield | '21 Met Junior |
| Pat Wilson | Hamilton Farm | '13 Met Amateur |
Points in Play
The Ike is the season's first event with a significant point total up for grabs in the MGA Player of the Year race. The winner will receive 250 points.
Team Title
The Ike Team Championship is conducted concurrently with the Ike MGA Stroke Play Championship. The title is awarded to the two individuals from the same club with the lowest combined score for 54 holes. Westchester's Max Buckley and Tobin Whitman earned the title in 2021, but just Whitman is back in the field in 2022. Host Baltusrol has the most representatives in the field with seven, while Arcola and Old Westbury both have four apiece. Baltusrol's Stephen Wentz and TJ Betlow will have the honor of hitting the first tee shots off Nos. 1 and 10 on Monday.
Format
• Two days, 54 holes of stroke play
• Field cut to low 40 players and ties following Monday’s opening round
• Ike Team Championship runs concurrently (title goes to the two individuals from the same club with the lowest combined score for 54 holes)
• Eligibility open to amateur golfers who are members of an MGA Member Club with a Handicap Index not exceeding 5.0.
Baltusrol
• Founded in 1895.
• It's "Old Course" hosted multiple USGA championships, then A.W. Tillinghast designed the "Dual Courses" that were completed in 1922
• The club has hosted seven U.S. Opens overall, with the 1954, '67, '80, and '93 all taking place on the Lower Course.
• The Lower Course has hosted the 2005 and 2016 PGA Championship and will host again in 2029. It welcomes the Women's PGA in 2023.
Coverage
• Live hole-by-hole scoring for all 54 holes of the championship
• Social Media: @MGA1897 on Twitter for updates throughout the day; additional content on Facebook and Instagram
• Scoring, recaps, interviews, and photos on mgagolf.org