PLAINFIELD COUNTRY CLUB HOSTS THE 104TH NEW JERSEY OPEN CHAMPIONSHIP PRESENTED BY DONNELLY INDUSTRIES

EDISON, NJ – Plainfield Country Club is host to the 26th New Jersey State Golf Association Championship and the eighth New Jersey Open Championship and is excited to host the 104th New Jersey Open Championship presented by Donnelly Industries, featuring New Jersey’s top amateurs and professionals competing for the CW Badenhausen Champions Trophy.

Plainfield has been the scene of some great championship results, including Brian Komline’s triumph at the 2007 State Open Championship, which ended in a thrilling finish with a narrow win over Frank Esposito Jr. Komline, then 33, shot rounds of 71-74-69 for a 2-under-par total of 214 on Plainfield’s 6,998-yard, par-72 course. Komline is in the 2024 field and will tee off at No. 10 at 7:41 a.m. Tuesday. Members of the New Jersey Golf Hall of Fame have also won Open titles at Plainfield, including Babe Lichardus (1952) and David Glenz (1990).

The club has also hosted two USGA championships, including the 1978 U.S. Amateur and the 1987 U.S. Women’s Open. It has also hosted two PGA TOUR events – the 2011 and 2015 Barclays.

When the 104th Open Championship returns to Plainfield Country Club in 17 years, it will be the first time that Gil Hanse has begun gradually restoring the course to its original state that Donald Ross once created. Hanse began the long-term project in the late 1990s, and by the early 2000s, all greens, fairways, tee boxes, chipping areas and bunkers were restored and overhanging trees were removed.

in The Field

Of the record-breaking 510 approved entries, 120 made it to the actual championship. The field for Plainfield was determined over the course of five national 18-hole qualifiers and the 52 exempt participants.

Nine former champions are in the 2024 field, including last year’s winner Brent Paladino. He is joined by Ed Whitman (1991, 95, 96, 04), Frank Esposito (1999, 13), Greg Farrow (2003), Brian Komline (2005, 07), Brian Gaffney (2010), Marc Issler (2018), Tyler Hall (2015, 16, 21) and Mark Costanza (2020). Paladino could become the first back-to-back champion since Tyler Hall won in 2015 and 2016.

There is no shortage of participants representing Plainfield, with four professionals – Scott Paris, Sean Golden, Ryan Hager, Rhett Sellers and four amateurs – Nicholas Conti, Greg Goodman, Brian Kilduff and Colin Summers – all looking to defend their home club titles.

The competition begins on Tuesday, July 23 and 24 with 18 holes of stroke play. After 36 holes, the 40 lowest scorers and ties will be counted and advance to the final round on Thursday, July 25.

Spectators are welcome to attend the event. Admission is free throughout the event. The use of carts is not permitted.

PLAYER NOTES
A selection of notable players from the 104th Open Championship:

• Nick Bova, 39, narrowly missed out on the Open at Hackensack Golf Club last year, finishing one stroke behind Brent Paladino. Bova, the 2023 NJPGA Player of the Year, won the Fall Finale and finished second in the Charity Clambake and third in the NJPGA Professional Championship. The Hamilton Farm Golf Club director of instruction also qualified for the 2024 PGA Professional Championship at Fields Ranch in Texas, finishing in a tie for 42nd place.
• Mark Costanza (a), 35, is one of nine former Open champions in the field. Costanza won the 2020 New Jersey Open at Knickerbocker Country Club and tied for third in the New Jersey Amateur on July 8-10. In 2021, he finished second in the U.S. Mid-Amateur Championship. He is currently ranked 192nd in the World Amateur Golf Rankings (WAGR).
• Austin Devereux (a), 25, began the summer with a win at the 41st New Jersey Mid-Amateur Championship in his first year competing in the event. Devereux won the New Jersey Amateur in 2020 and finished T-12 in the Amateur Championship at Forest Hill FC in early July.
• Cole Ekert (a), 21, a rising senior at the University of Richmond last played in a New Jersey Open in 2022, finishing tied for 6th at The Ridge at Back Brook. The Fairmount Country Club member had a solid collegiate season, leading the Spiders with a 72.4 stroke average. In 2023, Ekert qualified for the U.S. Amateur Championship.
• Brian Gaffney, 53, recently competed in the U.S. Senior Open at Newport Country Club, where he made the cut and tied for 64th. Gaffney, one of nine former champions in the field, won the 2010 New Jersey State Open at Spring Brook Country Club and twice finished runner-up (1998, 2009). The head golf professional at Essex Fells Country Club has three top-five finishes in NJPGA major championships this season, including a runner-up finish at the 30th Dunning Head Pro Championship, 5th at the Match Play Championship and 5th at the Charity Clambake. Last year, Gaffney tied for 8th at the New Jersey Open at Hackensack Golf Club.
• Tyler Hall, 42, is seeking his fourth New Jersey Open title and first since 2021. Hall, a 2015, 2016 and 2021 champion and director of education at Upper Montclair Country Club, recently finished third in the 2024 Charity Clambake, an NJPGA major championship. He also qualified for the 2024 PGA Professional Championship at Fields Ranch in Texas, where he finished tied for 42nd.
• Danny Harcourt, 27, has been in contention throughout the Open Championship at Hackensack Golf Club. Harcourt, an assistant at Fiddlers Elbow Country Club, finished 3rd in the 2023 Open and has had a solid start to the 2024 season. He has won one NJPGA assistant event and finished runner-up in three others.
• Brian Komline (a), 50, has won two New Jersey Open titles, including the last time it was played at Plainfield Country Club in 2007. The Black Oak Golf Club member has won the Open, NJSGA Amateur, Mid-Amateur, Public Links and Four-Ball Championships. He is playing his first Open since 2020, when it was played as part of the Centennial Games at Knickerbocker.
• Tyler McArdell, 34, has won four NJPGA Assistant Professional events in 2024. The Hollywood Golf Club Assistant Professional posted his best finish in a State Open at Hackensack Golf Club last year. He was named NJPGA Assistant Player of the Year in 2022.
• Brent Paladino, 37, had a great run at the 2023 New Jersey Open Championship to win his first NJSGA title. Paladino won the 2024 NJPGA Match Play Championship at Arcola Country Club in May. In 2023, Paladino collected wins at the Match Play and the Charity Clambake.
• Grant Sturgeon, 46, is gaining momentum after sitting out 2023 with a wrist injury. The head professional at Arcola Country Club has two New Jersey PGA Section victories this season at the 30th Head Pro Championship and the 60th Charity Clambake. His best finish in a New Jersey Open came in 2017, as runner-up and top professional, when amateur Luke Graboyes won at Metedeconk National Golf Club.
• Troy Vannucci (a), 32, The 2023 New Jersey Player of the Year is coming off a solid 2023 season that saw him finish runner-up at the New Jersey Mid-Amateur, 6th at the New Jersey Amateur, and 3rd at the New Jersey Open. He kicked off 2024 with a quarterfinal appearance at the 41st New Jersey Mid-Amateur. Vannucci finished 6th at the 123rd New Jersey Amateur at Forest Hill FC in early July.
• Jack Wall (a), 23, is coming off a T-3 finish at the New Jersey Amateur after winning the 2023 championship. Wall finished second at the MGA Ike Championship. In 2023, Wall finished T-14 at Hackensack Golf Club. Wall is ranked 269th in the World Amateur Golf Rankings (WAGR).