Bryson is Nebraska Junior Golfer of the Year
Lincoln Southeast Sophomore Wins First Award
OMAHA (November 15, 2022) - The Nebraska Golf Association is proud to announce the selection of Lincoln's Thomas Bryson as the 2022 Nebraska Junior Amateur Golfer of the Year.
Bryson, now a sophomore at Lincoln Southeast High School, had a breakout year and won the points race by a significant margin to secure his first Golfer of the Year award. He also joins his mother, Beth Anne Bryson (Cherry), who won the 2000 Nebraska Girls' Golfer of the Year award.
The highlight of the summer came in July at the 114th Nebraska Amateur Championship for Bryson, who finished tied for fifth and earned Low Junior honors. He was 11 strokes better than any other junior in the field and shot the round of the championship, a second round 66 (-5). Bryson stayed hot and birdied three of his first eight holes in the third round to tie the lead, eventually cooling off and posting 72 (+1) and 73 (+2) to finish five strokes back at 287 (+3).
In June, Bryson impressed at the 33rd Nebraska Junior Match Play Championship, opening with a 69 (-3) in stroke play qualifying to earn medalist honors and the No. 1 seed. He cruised through his first two matches, winning his first 5 and 4, then his second match 4 and 2. Bryson defeated Omaha's Kolby Brown, 3 and 2, in the Quarterfinals, and then took down Kearney's Cole Feddersen in the Semifinals, 1 up. He ran into a buzzsaw in the Final against Omaha's Jackson Benge, who birdied five of the first seven holes and went on to win 6 and 5 over Bryson.
Bryson had another solid performance at the 55th Nebraska Junior Amateur Championship, improving each round and closing with a 71 (-1) to finish tied for fifth with a 220 (+4) total.
Bryson also won the NSAA Class A Championship by three strokes as a freshman in May, and finished tied for seventh at the 2022 Nebraska Junior PGA Championship, along with three top 10 finishes in the 2021 NJG Fall Junior Series, which counts towards this year's point standings.
Although it did not count in the point standings, Bryson led Team Nebraska at the 36th Kansas-Nebraska Junior Cup, winning all three of his matches.
Bryson will be honored at the Nebraska Golf Association's annual awards banquet on Friday, December 2 at The Field Club of Omaha. In addition, the NGA will recognize its Amateur Golfer of the Year, Women’s Amateur Golfer of the Year, Girls’ Amateur Golfer of the Year and Senior Amateur Golfer of the Year.
For more on the award, link below.
About the NGA
The Nebraska Golf Association, founded in 1966, is comprised of all members of public and private clubs and/or municipal or regional golf associations which utilize an approved handicap service recognized by the USGA and provided by the NGA. Our mission is to uphold and promote the game of golf and its values to all golfers in Nebraska. Among the duties of the Association include governance of member clubs and service as their handicapping and course rating authority, conduct of state golf championships, local USGA qualifying & other notable competitions, promotion of junior golf, presentation of worthwhile educational programs and support of allied golf organizations in Nebraska. The Nebraska Golf Association is an Allied Golf Association of the USGA and carries out core services including Handicap Administration and Oversight, Course Rating, Rules of Golf and Rules of Amateur Status, Tournaments and USGA Championship Qualifiers and USGA Initiatives and Community Programs.
