The Newark Star-Ledger's Chris D'Amico spent 26 years and one day putting out sports sections. If not for this summer's PGA championship, he could have stopped at a nice even number.

After putting out a 40-page preview of the event, which was played at Baltusrol in New Jersey, D'Amico spent his final weekend as sports editor watching a weather-plagued tournament. When darkness fell Sunday, he realized there would be more golf to play — and that his vacation would not begin on Monday. After nine years in the Star-Ledger sports department, including five as sports editor, D'Amico would have one more day on the job, after all.

So, he shifted space resources, made new story assignments and put out his last sports section. Then, he had a drink and thought about what lies ahead.

"I don't know, maybe it was my journalistic mid-life crisis or a sports journalism hernia, but I asked to try something else at the paper and the editor of the paper was kind enough to let me see how the other half lives," said D'Amico, now the paper's assistant bureau chief at the New Jersey statehouse.

"The fact I ended up here, helping with our coverage of Jersey politics is very cool, because, well, I think it speaks for itself. No lack of action here. Dead voters, resigning governors, crooked politics ... ah, the Jersey statehouse is a wonderful place for stories."

In his time at the Star-Ledger, D'Amico helped revamp the sports section, making it a perennial APSE contest player. Before his stint in New Jersey, he worked for a number of sports sections, including The National and the Chicago Sun-Times.

It wasn't easy leaving.

"It was bittersweet," D'Amico said. "While I'm eager for the new challenge, I have had the honor of working for and with some of the best journalists in the business and have made friends for life in Mike Fannin, Celeste Williams and Pat McLoone. I never considered us the toy department, because I saw the great journalistic work done by us and others.

"And looking on the bright side, the new gig does get me a better spot in the election night pizza line."

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