State Open: Change At The Top

By Rick Jenkins

The State Open has a new leader. Kevin Foley, the 24 year-old PGA Apprentice Professional from Neshanic Valley Golf Course, added another 68 to his opening round 68 to move to six-under par and take a three-stroke lead into the final round of the championship on Thursday. Foley has been a model of steady and consistent play, making only two bogies through two rounds on the challenging Hollywood layout. Playing in his first State Open, Foley appears to be on a mission to fulfill certain goals as preparation for his trip to PGA TOUR Q-School in the fall, and winning the State Open is one of those goals. “It’s a good measure of where you are. Obviously, I have higher goals, but it’ll take time. You have to go step by step,” he said.

Jason Lamp, who blitzed the course with an opening round 65, fell back into a tie for sixteenth place after struggling to an 80 in the second round.

Two amateurs also playing steady golf lurk three strokes behind Foley. Mike Stamberger of Spring Lake Golf Club and Anthony Aloi of Mercer Oaks Golf Course are tied for second after rounds of 70 and 69 for a three-under par total of 139. Two seasoned professionals, Brian Gaffney from Rumson Country Club, the defending champion, and Brent Studer from Manasquan River Golf Club, a two-time runner-up, also are in contention at 140 (-2). Rounding out the top ten on the leaderboard are: Frank Esposito, Jr. of Brooklake Country Club, the 1999 Open champion, and Sam Kang of Farmstead Golf & Country Club, at 141 (-1); Jim McGovern of White Beeches Golf & Country Club and Jesse Smith of Black Oak Golf Club, at 142 (E); and Scott Paris of Plainfield Country Club, who with Foley shot 68 for low round of the day, and amateur Ben Smith of Little Mill Country Club, who was the runner-up at the NJSGA Amateur Championship last month, at 143 (+1).

The final round begins at 7:30 am on Thursday. To follow the action from Hollywood, click on the Live Scoring icon on the home page.