Robert Galbreath, Jr., of Huntingdon Valley CC capped off his junior golf career in record breaking fashion after becoming the first junior player to earn his third Junior Player of the Year award on the strength of a 685-point total. That mark was good for a 305-point margin of victory and the highest point total in the award’s brief history, eclipsing Galbreath’s old record of 617.5 points set in 2006.
Galbreath’s largest point sum of the year came after he surpassed yet another milestone by winning the 94th Junior Boys’ Championship for a record fourth time after beating Russell Hartung of Doylestown CC, 4&2, at Huntingdon Valley CC.
“I’ve worked very hard to get to this point,” said Galbreath, 17, after his win back in June. “This was, I’d say, the one goal that I had all year. If I didn’t do anything else, I’d just be happy with this win at Huntingdon Valley, my home course, in front of a lot of people I know. And to beat a great player in Russell [Hartung], it feels great.
“I really wanted to get that record [fourth win] because you can be an amateur forever but you can never be a junior again.”
Galbreath also netted points by finishing a close second at the Christman Cup, advancing into match play at the Amateur Championship and for qualifying for the Patterson Cup and Open Championship.
But it was Galbreath’s emergence on the national scene that drew some of the most attention as the senior at Lower Moreland High School advanced into the round of 16 at the U.S. Junior Amateur Championship.
“That was the greatest experience of my life,” said Galbreath. “Playing in a USGA event against the Top 10, Top 50 juniors in the world. It was a great feeling to advance into match play.
“I never really did well in any American Junior Golf Association [AJGA] events or other national tournaments. That was the best golf I could play for a five-day stretch and I will remember that for the rest of my life.”
Galbreath is headed to the University of Central Florida next fall.
