ELMSFORD, N.Y. (July 15, 2011) -- With a performance that was heads and shoulders above anyone else in the field, 2008 Ike champion Kevin Foley of Neshanic Valley won the 2011 New Jersey State Open at Hollywood Golf Club on Thursday, July 14th for his first significant victory as a professional. Foley, a 2010 graduate of Penn State University, shot rounds of 68-68-69 to finish five strokes clear of Sam Kang of Farmstead and earn $15,000.

Foley, a native of Somerville, N.J., made his pro debut in the 2010 Met Open at Bethpage Black, finishing tied for third and earning $10,000. He entered PGA Tour Qualifying School last fall, advancing to the First Stage, and then spent a good portion of the winter caddying in Florida and competing in one-day events on the Fuzion Minor League Golf Tour. While he did win one of those events, this latest victory means much more in terms of both money and prestige.

"This is absolutely a boost for me," Foley told MGAgolf.org. "It was my first time playing in the State Open, and obviously being from New Jersey it means a lot. Hopefully it's a step in the right direction toward where I ultimately want to be."

Where Foley clearly wants to be is on the PGA Tour, and he'll get his next crack at Q-School in October. Thanks to his top-40 finish in the First Stage in 2010, Foley will be exempt into that stage in 2011, avoiding the Pre-Qualifying Stage.

Until then, Foley is entered to play in the 96th Met Open Championship sponsored by MetLife, which will be held at Sleepy Hollow Country Club in Scarborough, N.Y., on August 23 to 25. The MGA's largest championship boasts a $27,500 first-place prize, which would make a significant dent in the costs associated with trying to make it as a professional. PGA Tour Qualifying School, for instance, carries a $5,000 entry fee.

In addition to playing select events on the eGolf Tour in the Carolinas, Foley is also working this summer as a PGA apprentice at Neshanic Valley, a busy 27-hole public facility in central New Jersey that also boasts a nine-hole academy course and Callaway Golf Performance Center. "I've been helping out with junior golf camps, women's clinics, and inside the pro shop," said Foley. "It's been a great experience so far."

Foley's win at Hollywood was remarkable in many ways. While he had played a practice round at the 6,962-yard, par-71 course, which will host the Met Amateur in 2012, the tournament was his first competitive round on a layout known for its deceptively difficult greens. No other player in the 125-man field shot more than one round in the 60s, making Foley's three-round total of 8-under-par 205 seem that much better.

"Hollywood demands a lot of precision into the greens, and you have to be smart about where you're hitting the ball with all the slopes and tiers," remarked Foley. "I just played really consistently all three rounds and managed to stay out of trouble. You can't overpower that course--I hit a lot of irons off the tees and just kept the ball in the right spots."

Foley enjoyed a lot of support from his former Penn State teammates, even though they weren't able to be there to cheer him on. Foley mentioned that Tommy McDonagh, the 2011 Ike champion from Shorehaven Golf Club, was following the tournament online and texted him congratulations afterwards, as did several other members of the Penn State golf family.

If his career continues on the trajectory he would like, perhaps someday Foley will be receiving congratulatory texts at a PGA Tour event.