Ryan Mccormick Maintains State Player Of The Year Lead Over Brian Komline

Ryan McCormick of Suburban, off a second-place tie in the recent 97thMet Open at Plainfield, has expanded his lead over Brian Komline for the NJSGA Player of the Year award from just 27.5 points to 92.5 points in the latest standings.

A month ago, McCormick, then off his victory at the MGA Amateur which followed his triumph at the NJSGA Amateur, held just a 750-722.5 lead over Komline, winner of the 2012 State Mid-Amateur.

Currently (through August 30), McCormick, a junior at St. John´s University, has totaled 928.75 points to 836.50 for Komline, a lead of 92.5 points. Benjamin Smith of Little Mill, winner of the State Open at Manasquan River, isin third place with 680 points while Mike Stamberger of Spring Lake, last year’s Player of the Year, is fourth with 677.5 points. Niall Handley of Essex Fells is fifth with 625 points.

VIEW ENTIRE POINTS LIST:http://www.njsga.org/index.php?pageid=75

The Player of the Year Award recognizes the top amateur player in the state.

Komline, Stamberger and Handley will represent New Jersey in the upcoming USGA State Team National Championship, Sept. 19-21, when the event comes to New Jersey for the first time at the Galloway National Golf Club. Players are selected on the basis of their accumulated points over the past two seasons. According to NCAA rules, college golfers are not eligible.

McCormick, of Middletown, N.J., was tied with three others for the runner-up spot at the Met Open, one stroke behind winner Danny Balin of Connecticut’s Burning Tree.McCormick was tied with two other New Jerseyans, Robert Gage of Forsgate and touring pro Morgan Hoffmann of Wyckoff.

McCormick became only the fifth player in history to win both the NJSGA and MGA Amateur championships in the same year when he added the MGA crown on August 5 at Hollywood to his NJSGA victory in June at Baltusrol.

At the Met Open, McCormick was aiming to be the first golfer ever to win the Met Amateur and Open and NJSGA Amateur in the same year and he was close to becoming only the third person to win both the Met Amateur and Open in the same year.

McCormick also won the New York City Amateur in May.

A number of events still remain on the calendar, including this Sunday’s Bergen County Amateur at Rockleigh, in which golfers may still accrue Player of the Year points.