Player of the Year: Billy Wingerd
Senior Player of the Year: David Nocar, Jr.
Two victories, part of a very active golf season, helped propel Billy Wingerd, while a similar season-long effort and one victory were enough for David Nocar, Jr., as they will be honored as Maryland State Golf Association Player-of-the-Year and Senior Player-of-the-Year, respectively, at the organization’s annual meeting. The annual meeting will be held on Friday, November 10th, at Baltimore Country Club’s Five Farms clubhouse.
Wingerd, who won the MSGA’s Amateur Public Links and Mid-Amateur championships, earned points in eight events and finished with 665. Bart Mease collected points in only five events, but two of them were second place in the MSGA Amateur and Mid-Amateur and he ended with 595. Ben Warnquist, Player-of-the-Year in 2016, was third with 505 in a season highlighted by being medalist and champion of the MSGA Amateur.
Wingerd, 34, who plays at Mountain Branch Golf Club, says he played well all spring and summer. At the Amateur, where he lost in the second round, “I felt like Columbia was a good setup for me, but the greens were too quick for my taste and I struggled with my putter all week. However, the other courses worked to my advantage, all fit my eye and some were places where I had had previous success.”
A reinstated amateur after a several-year pro career in the mid-2000’s, Wingerd said, “I think playing for a living gives one a different perspective on the game and how to score in each round. However, most of my demeanor on the course comes from my dad, who has caddied for me a lot. He’s always positive, never too high or too low. I think that is huge in allowing me to always stay calm and understand that things don’t always go your way in golf and you have to simply take your medicine and not compound your mistakes.”
Things have certainly become different for Wingerd, who works for the Baltimore Public Schools as a Senior Operations Supervisor in the Office of Facilities Operations, and his wife, Megan, a Baltimore County school teacher, since the birth of their daughter, Charlee, 2 1/2 years ago. “She is tons of fun,” says dad, “which makes it more difficult to go play. I basically don’t practice anymore and play about once a week, but I love being a dad and that’s my most important job now.”
David Nocar, Jr. played in eight events, with a victory in the MSGA Senior Amateur and a quarter-final berth in the U.S. Senior Amateur as his best efforts, and he ended with 380 points. Lee Flemister, who was in contention until the final event and whose best finishes were second in the Middle Atlantic Senior Amateur and a tie for second in the MSGA Senior Four-Ball, collected 285, followed by Tom Grem, MSGA Father-Son (with his son Jimmy) winner, 180.
“This year was the most tournaments I have played since 2012, when I turned 50,” Nocar declared. “That year, I set a goal to qualify for the U.S. Senior Open and did. This year, having turned 55 and now eligible for the U.S. Senior Amateur, I set a goal to qualify for that event. In Senior golf, it is good to be the young guy so leading up to and after I qualified, I put a priority on losing some weight, being able to walk 36 holes without effect to my game, and putting in the practice so I could be competitive. On-site, during the second round of stroke play and into match play, I felt better each round. In the quarters, Sean Knapp and I both played well but he was the better player that day”, Nocar stated.
Nocar’s family and career are his highest priorities and give him the most satisfaction. “My wife, Robin, understands the commitment [to golf] and encourages me to work on my game, but sometimes family, work, and golf get out of balance. The difficult part of tournament golf is the preparation ahead of time. At work, I am fortunate to have two exceptional partners at Federated Lighting Company, and we enjoy each other’s success outside of work. At the same time, there have been years when work dictated not being able to play any tournament golf.”
Nocar is one of the few who has won an MSGA Father-Son title with a father, David Sr., and a son, Conner. David Jr. pointed out, “Conner and I still talk about the 64 we shot in an alternate-shot format and the win is something we will remember forever. Growing up, my dad and I played a lot of golf together and Conner and I have played a lot over the years. The one thing that has stayed the same through the generations is the enjoyment of playing golf together.”
-Reported by John Stewart
