Matthew Homer fired a 2-under 34 for the stroke-play qualifying medal.

Wilmington’s Homer leads #GAPJrJr stroke-play qualifying

  CHERRY HILL, N.J. - Matthew Homer got a taste of victory at last year’s Junior-Junior Boys’ Championship, winning the First-Flight trophy at Phoenixville Country Club.

  Now, he has his sights set on the top prize.

  Homer put himself in position to chase after the 70th #GAPJrJr title by claiming medalist honors with a 2-under-par 34, securing the No. 1 seed at Merchantville Country Club (par 36, 2,547 yards).

  Sixteen players qualified for the Championship Flight and the remaining eight qualified for the First Flight, which will begin tomorrow morning at 8 a.m.

  Homer earned the honors with a clean card that included two birdies at the nine-hole facility.

  “It means a lot to me to be the medalist,” said Homer, 13, of Wilmington, Del. “I was very happy to shoot 34 today because I honestly didn’t believe I had it in me. The fact that it is a pretty short course plays to my advantage.

  “I didn’t really know what to expect of this course. Since I was seeing it for the first time, I wasn’t sure if I could post a good score. But I played smart and didn’t make any mistakes.”

  After starting on No. 8 (par 4, 250 yards), Homer recorded his first birdie on No. 1 (par 5, 425 yards), his third hole of the day. After hitting his drive into the second fairway right, Homer caught a break and had a solid line at the green.

  He then took a 5-iron from 180 yards and landed it just in the approach fairway of the green. He would go on to convert a four-footer to get to 1 under.

  Homer used a precise 9-iron on No. 3 (par 3, 122 yards) that hit the flagstick to record his last birdie of the round. His tee shot nipped the flag and ended up six feet away. Homer buried it to get to 2 under and didn’t look back.

  “For the most part, I can hit the ball pretty long and straight off the tee,” said Homer, an incoming eighth grader at the Tatnall School. “But I didn’t today, so I just hit woods and irons off the tee. Today it was all about the wedges for me. I was hitting them on the green and not putting myself in many tough spots where I had to scramble for par.

  “I felt good about my game coming into this tournament. I just played in the club championship at Wilmington from the back tees and it took everything I had. I had a ton of support during the tournament and it meant a lot. I learned so much.”

  Homer, a Wilmington Country Club member, used that knowledge to punch his ticket to the quarterfinals. He used two birdies and an eagle in his match against Medford Lakes Country Club’s Tommy Marshall to win, 3&1.

  Homer’s other two brothers, Jeffrey and Jack, qualified for the Championship Flight as well. Jeffrey defeated Blue Bell Country Club’s Kevin Lafond, 4&3 and Jack defeated McCall Golf & Country Club’s J.P. Hoban, 2-up.

  Outside of golf, Homer is a huge Philadelphia Eagles fan. His favorite player is Eagles’ quarterback Carson Wentz. Wentz’s ability to make something out of nothing is an attribute Homer said he can relate to on the golf course.

  “I’m not a guy who punches out unless I absolutely have to,” said Homer. “I like to go at the flag every time. I just wanted to hit the ball in the fairway, hit the ball on the green and make par.”

  Matthew will play his brother, Jack, tomorrow at 7:30 a.m. to lead off the Championship Flight.

  Now in its 70th year, the Junior-Junior Boys’ Championship is open to players from Member Clubs who are 10 to 13 years of age.

Golf Association of Philadelphia
  Founded in 1897, the Golf Association of Philadelphia (GAP) is the oldest regional golf association in the United States and serves as the principal ruling body of amateur golf in its region. Its 260 Full Member Clubs and 75,000 individual members are spread across parts of Pennsylvania, New Jersey and Delaware. As Philadelphia’s Most Trusted Source of Golf Information, the Golf Association of Philadelphia’s mission is to promote, preserve and protect the game of golf.

Championship Flight
Round of 16
1. Matthew Homer, Wilmington CC, d. 16. Tommy Marshall, Medford Lakes CC, 3&1.
9. Jack Homer, Wilmington CC, d. 8. J.P. Hoban, McCall G&CC, 2-up.
4. Nicholas Ciocca, Aronimink GC, d. 13. Joshua Baker, West Chester G&CC, 12 holes.
5. Lucas Steinmetz, Spring Ford CC, d. 5. Reilly Shaffer, Llanerch CC, 3&2.
2. Win Thomas, GAP Youth on Course, d.15. Richie Biborosch, Aronimink GC, 4&2.
10. Henry Stone, Bidermann GC, d. 7. Matthew Normand, Riverton CC, 2&1.
3. Jeffrey Homer, Wilmington CC, d. 14. Kevin Lafond, Blue Bell CC, 4&3.
6. Ben Saggers, Applecross CC, d. 11. Nathan Guertler, Tavistock CC, 5&4.