Plainfield to Welcome 119th Met Amateur
Plainfield is hosting its sixth Met Amateur Championship.
ELMSFORD, N.Y. (July 26, 2021) -- The 119th Met Amateur Championship heads to Plainfield Country Club in Edison, N.J., July 29 - August 1, as the Met Area's top amateurs aim to capture the MGA's oldest championship. The Met Amateur was first played in 1899 and has been contested five times at Plainfield, a founding member of the MGA.
Related: Pairings | Met Amateur History | Met Amateur Records
The field contains 68 of the Met Area's top amateurs, who will battle over 36 holes of stroke play qualifying on Thursday to earn a spot in the 16-player bracket. Two rounds of match play follow on Friday, with the semifinals taking place Saturday and the 36-hole final determining a champion on Sunday. The championship stands as a test of both golf and stamina, which has been claimed by the likes of Walter Travis, Willie Turnesa, Frank Strafaci, Dick Siderowf, Jerry Courville, Sr., George Zahringer and many more through its noted history.
Past Champions
Three of the event's last four champions are in the field aiming to capture the MGA's oldest title for the second time: Jack Wall of Mansquan River, Chris Gotterup of Rumson and Matt Mattare of Darlington. Wall will aim to become the first repeat champion since Johnson Wagner won in 2001 and 2002.
Making it to Match Play
Dawson Jones of Eagle Oaks owns the longest active match play streak in the Met Amateur, having advanced to the bracket each of the last five years. Jones has also won at least a match each of those years and advanced to the semifinals in 2017, 2019 and 2020. Dean Greyserman of Hamilton Farm and Wall own the next longest streaks, having advanced the last two years.
Back in the Bracket?
A total of 12 players that made match play in 2020 are in the field once again in 2021: Ben Carpenter of Darien, Mark Costanza of Hamilton Farm, Jackson Fretty of Greenwich, Dean Greyserman of Hamilton Farm, Sam Goldenring of Brooklake, Justin Lane of Woodstock, Eric LeFante of Somerset Hills, Matt Mattare of Darlington, Ben Mitchell of Fresh Meadow, Luke Sample of Old Oaks and Jack Wall of Manasquan River.
Adding up the Amateurs
Michael Brown of Rock Spring recently claimed the New Jersey State Golf Association's Amateur title, adding to his 2020 Pennsylvania Amateur and 2021 Delaware Amateur victories. Brown, 48, is aiming to defend his Pennsylvania Amateur title early this week at Merion before turning his focus to the Met Amateur on Thursday.
Field of Champions
A total of 17 players in the 68-person field have won an MGA championship:
| Max Buckley | Westchester | '07 Carter Cup |
| Ben Carpenter | Darien | '19 Carter Cup |
| Mark Costanza | Hamilton Farm | '03 Boys, '07 Junior, '20 Ike |
| Nathan Han | Salem | '15-'16 Boys |
| Darin Goldstein | Deepdale | '17 Mid-Amateur |
| Chris Gotterup | Rumson | '19 Met Amateur |
| Dawson Jones | Eagle Oaks | '14 Met Junior, '19 Ike |
| Eric Lefante | Somerset Hills | '12 Public Links |
| Matt Mattare | Darlington | '17 Met Amateur |
| James McHugh | Pine Barrens | '16 Junior |
| Ethan Ng | Knickerbocker | '16-'17 Carter Cup |
| Trevor Randolph | Arcola | '15-'16 Mid-Am |
| Luke Sample | Old Oaks | '18 Boys, '20 Junior, '20 Met Open |
| Michael Stamberger | Spring Lake | '03 Met Amateur |
| Colin Summers | Plainfield | '21 Junior |
| Brad Tilley | Sleepy Hollow | '03 Ike, '19 Mid-Am |
| Jack Wall | Mansquan River | '20 Met Amateur |
From Baltusrol to Plainfield
Six competitors make the transition from Baltusrol and the 19th MGA Carter Cup on Tuesday to the Met Amateur: Dean Greyserman, Cade McLaughlin of Bedens Brook, Arav Patel of Forsgate, George Roessler of Maidstone, Sample, and Summers.
Home at Plainfield
A trio of competitors will aim to defend home turf at Plainfield: Johnny Bush, Brian Colbert and Colin Summers.
Format
- 36 holes of on-site stroke play qualifying on Thursday to determine the 16 competitors for match play
- Two rounds of match play Friday, semifinals on Saturday and 36-hole championship match on Sunday
Plainfield Country Club
- Founding member of the MGA
- Donald Ross design highlighted by rolling terrain and elevated greens with challenging contours
- Has hosted five previous Met Amateurs, the last coming in 1988.
- Has twice hosted the lead event of the FedExCup Playoffs
Coverage
- Live hole-by-hole scoring for the entirety of the championship
- Social media: @MGA1897 on Twitter for updates through each day; additional content on Facebook and Instagram
- Scoring, recaps, interviews and photos on mgagolf.org