Goldenberg Leads After Round One of 108th Met Open
PARAMUS, N.J. (August 22, 2023) – Josh Goldenberg of Atlantic leads after the opening round of the 108th Met Open Presented by Callaway at Arcola Country Club following a 2-under par 69. He leads five players by one shot, while six more came in at 1-over 71 to stand well within the mix. Overall, 24 players will begin round two within four shots of the lead.
Arcola yielded only 10 rounds of even-par or better on Tuesday, with the scoring average standing at 77.1. A steady breeze blew across the property all day, adding difficulty to each shot and increasing the challenge on the greens as the day progressed.
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Goldenberg birded Nos. 14, 15, and 16, rebounding after double bogey on the par-4 13th hole to come in at 2-under. Goldenberg, who played collegiately at Penn, tallied a pair of birdies on his front nine as well, converting them on Nos. 5 and 9.
“Nothing about the course was playing easy today,” said Goldenberg, who finished as runner-up in the Westchester Open earlier this year at Whippoorwill. “I was proud of myself for hanging in there. I had a bad three-putt then made three birdies after that, so shook those off.” Goldenberg also competed on PGA TOUR Latinoamerica this season, finishing No. 28 on the tour's points list.
Of the five competitors one-shot back, four played in the morning wave: Tom Lovelady of Silo Ridge Field Club, Ryan Skae of Hudson National, 2023 Ike champion and MGA eClub - New Jersey member Melan Dhaubhadel, and Dylan Newman of Meadow Brook. Alex Beach of Westchester Country Club posted the other under par score, closing his afternoon round with a birdie on the par-5 ninth to post his 70.
Lovelady, who has finished second in his two Met Open starts the last two years, said after his opening round, “The course is in perfect condition. The greens are nice and quick, and you have to make you sure you were below the hole.”
Past Met Open champions Matt Dobyns of Meadow Brook and Andrew Svoboda of Great River Golf Club, stand in the group at 1-over par after logging 72s on Tuesday. Fifteen more players sit at 3-over to add to the packed leaderboard.
This year's MGA Public Links champion Matthew Lowe of Bethpage joins Dhaubhadel as the lone amateurs in the top 15 after the first round of play. Lowe is in the group at 1-over par.
The second round gets underway at 7:30 a.m. on Wednesday from Arcola. The club's parkland layout has already served as a stern test, playing long and requiring a deft touch on and around its famously fast greens. The club is hosting its first-ever Met Open, having previously welcomed the 2018 Met Amateur Championship as well as the 2019 Carey Cup matches, plus four MGA Senior Amateurs in the past. In 2022 it served as the stroke play co-host for the U.S. Amateur Championship.