Met Junior Makes Way to Sunningdale
ELMSFORD, N.Y. (July 12, 2024) – Sunningdale Country Club in Scarsdale, N.Y., will host the 107th Met Junior Championship Sponsored by MetLife, July 15-17, as it welcomes the nation’s oldest junior championship for the first time since 1938.
Related: Pairings | Met Junior History | Met Junior Records
Sunningdale has long been a supporter of amateur and junior golf, serving as a frequent host for qualifiers as well as MGA and Westchester Golf Association championships. The layout will serve as a quality test for the region’s top junior players, especially in the match play format following the opening day’s stroke-play qualifying that takes place over 36 holes.
The MGA Foundation conducts the Met Junior as part of its extensive youth programming, which is supported by MetLife. MetLife’s particular support of the MGA Foundation is a testament to the company’s longstanding mission of giving back and allows the MGA Foundation to continue instilling the values and traditions of golf in the next generation of golfers through a variety of programs and junior championships.
The list of Met Junior champions to hoist the prestigious Mandeville Trophy includes the likes of Butch and Bill Harmon, Marc Turnesa and more recently Michael Miller and Cameron Young. The field this year once again contains a deep list of rising stars looking to etch their name in MGA history as a winner of the nation's oldest junior championship.
Back Again
John Hiller of New York, N.Y., has been a constant in the championship, having advanced to match play each of the last three years. Hiller finished as runner-up in 2021, won the title in 2022 at St. George’s Golf and Country Club, and once again advanced to match play in 2023. Hiller is aiming to become the 11th player to win the Met Junior multiple times in their career.
From Second to First
Last year’s runner-up Liam Pasternak of Morristown, N.J., looks to continue a recent trend of players going from runner-up to winner of the Met Junior in consecutive years. Will Celiberti (2019), Luke Sample (2020), and Hiller (2022) all accomplished the feat.
Three in a Row
While Hiller aims to make it four consecutive appearances in the match play bracket, Jack Chung of Greenwich, Conn., and Jack Estrella of Brookville, N.Y., are both looking to make their third straight match play appearance in the championship. Estrella was a quarterfinalist last year at Echo Lake.
Back in the Bracket
Overall, nine of the 16 match play competitors from 2023 are back in the field again this year: Chung; Estrella; Hiller; Pasternak; Joseph Dolezal of Old Westbury, N.Y.; Ryder Hodgson of Montclair, N.J.; Tommy Mangan of Harrison, N.Y.; Lucas Rizo-Patron of Rye, N.Y.; and Josh Yan of Newburgh, N.Y.
Regional Champs
The field includes a number of regional junior champions including this year’s Long Island winner, Jiajun Wang of Old Westbury, N.Y.; this year’s Westchester winner Thomas Bonomo of Greenwich, Conn.; and Hodgson, last year’s New Jersey junior winner.
Boys’-Junior Double
Overall, 11 players have won both the MGA Boys’ and Met Junior titles. At Sunningdale, Arjun Caprihan of Florham Park, N.J.; Ken Fernandes of Chappaqua, N.Y.; and Lance Hollingshead of Basking Ridge, N.J., all have the chance to become the 12th.
Points on the Line
The Met Junior Championship Sponsored by MetLife heats up the race for the MGA Junior Player of the Year Award, Presented by Callaway as the winner receives 250 points. Eight of the current top 10 players of the listing are slated to tee it up at Sunningdale.
Format
• 36 holes of on-site stroke play qualifying (July 15), with top 16 advancing to match play.
• Round of 16 & quarterfinals conducted July 16, with semifinals and championship match taking place July 17.
• Field determined through exemptions and three qualifiers held throughout the Met Area.
Sunningdale Country Club
• The club’s roots date back to 1913 and a 9-hole course in Mt. Vernon.
• In 1916, it purchased Overlook Golf Course, which occupied 149 acres at the club’s current location.
• A host of architects have left their mark on the layout, from Seth Raynor, Walter Travis and A. W. Tillinghast to Stephen Kay and most recently Mike DeVries.
• Recent work has included the updating of greens and bunkers.
Coverage
• Live scoring throughout the championship
• @MGA1897 on Instagram, X (Twitter), and Facebook for additional content.
• Scoring, recaps, photos, and more available on mgagolf.org.