Boynton Beach, Fla. – 46 teams took center stage at Indian Spring Country Club in Boynton Beach vying for the Junior Team Championship title. At the end of the day, four different golf associations of three players each brought trophies home. Here is how it happened.
Boys (16-18)
The First Tee of Miami was the lone team to finish at under par for the division over 36 holes, shooting even par the first day, followed by a round of three under the second.
Anthony Garcia led the way for the team shooting rounds of 67-70 for a two-day total of seven under par. Garcia only had three bogeys over 36 holes of play accompanied by his 10 birdies. Garcia is no stranger to big events. His stellar play this summer led him to a made cut at the Florida Open a few weeks back.
Although Garcia was steady throughout the tournament, Michael Rivera took care of business after his first round 77 by shooting 71 in the final round to secure the team’s four shot victory. Rivera was three under after thirteen holes, but he stumbled a bit over the next few holes. He showed his perseverance by making birdie on his 17th hole of the day.
Boys (13-15)
The North Florida Junior Golf Foundation was able to bring home their fourth win in a row in the Boys (13-15) Division. NFJG has been nothing less than dominant in this event for many years and has shown very little signs of slowing down.
Their 10 shot win was led by Luke Balaskiewicz on day one and Emmett Kuhlenkamp on day two. Balaskiewicz made six birdies in round one, highlighted by three in a four hole stretch. He did slow down on day two however, but not by much. His second round score of even par 71 was good enough to be a counting score for NFJG.
Kuhlenkamp was even par through seven holes before playing the final 11 in bogey free fashion to finish the day at two under par.
Ryan Houck was able to step in in round one with a score of 74. His round was highlighted by birdies on the fifth, eleventh, and seventeenth holes.
Girls (16-18)
The Girls (16-18) Division was the closest out of the four, but the International Junior Golf Academy was able to hold onto a lead in the final round to win by four shots.
Jiayang Li led the way for IJGA with rounds of 73-71. After only making one par through her first four holes with a birdie, bogey, and double bogey, she was able to right the ship by only making two bogeys for the rest of the tournament.
Hibiki Adachi was also quite steady for the team, shooting two rounds of 73. Her final round was highlighted by a front nine score of four-under 31.
Girls (13-15)
The Highlander Junior Tour was able to overcome NFJG by five shots to bring home the hardware. This was the Tour’s first win in the Junior Team Championship. Not only was it their first win, they were able to beat the field with only two players.
In round one, Youyang Li led the way with a first round score of 73. She made one birdie accompanied by two birdies for a round of one over par. Her second round score of 74 was all that the team needed to win the event.
Maggie Potash rebounded from a first round score of 75 with a final round score of even-par 72. Potash started off the round with a front nine score of 34, followed by a back nine 38.
