NEWTON CENTRE, Mass. - It may not have been the storybook tale that he envisioned, but Barrington, R.I. native Matt Broome can officially call himself a New England Amateur Champion. Following what turned out to be a rain-shortened, 36-hole event, Broome finished with a low score of 3-under par 137 to claim the 2008 title at Charles River Country Club.

Broome edged fellow Rhode Island competitor David McAndrew, also of Barrington, and Round-1 leader Keegan Fennessy of Minot by one stroke.

The New England Amateur Championship is normally a three-day, 72-hole event that features a final 36 holes of play during the third day.

Mother Nature took hold of the tournament, however, and forced several postponements of play on Wednesday and Thursday.

The second round of play was completed on Thursday morning, but torrential rain in Newton forced the tournament committee to call the event after just 36 holes.

That decision was just fine with Broome, who had catapulted to the top of the leaderboard following a second round score of 4-under 66. Broome was one of the fortunate players who was able to complete his second round on Wednesday prior to the rain delay which began at 2:00 p.m. that day.

Three players - Cody Larson (Castleton, Vt.), Cody Paladino (Kensington, Conn.) and Evan Beirne (North Haven, Conn.) - finished in a tie for fourth place with scores of 1-under par 139, while 2007 Champion Brent Paladino (Kensington, Conn.) came in seventh overall.