VIERA, Fla. – Although rain dominated the weekend at Duran, Yvette O'Brien claimed the Girls (16-18) title while Jaylen Abbas, Darren Zhou and Connor McCann were crowned co-champions at the weather shortened event.
Boys (16-18)
Duran Golf Club would prove to be a true test of golf for this very talented field. At the conclusion of play on day one, three players would find themselves tied atop the leaderboard. Jaylen Abbas, Darren Zhou and Connor McCann would all finish their rounds with scores of 3-under par, 69. After recently winning at the FJT Bay Point Open, Abbas would be looking to pick up his second win of the year. Having already amassed three FJT victories and seven other top 5 finishes this year, Darren Zhou would look to add to his trophy cabinet come Sunday. Connor McCann's first round was highlighted by an eagle on the par five, 15th hole. With seven other players within three shots of the lead, the trophy was still anyone's for the taking. With a dismal forcast predicted for the final round, the field was hopeful that the second round could be played. Persistent rain would unfortunately win the day and rendered the course unplayable. With the final round being cancelled, the results at the end of the first round became final with co-champions being crowned. Jaylen Abbas, Darren Zhou and Connor McCann would each notch a victory at Duran Golf Club.
Girls (16-18)
The Girls (16-18) division would see some tough competition with a stellar field teeing it up at Duran. Leading the way at the end of the first round was Yvette O'Brien. The Greenwich, CT native would lead the division with five birdies on the day. The 2025 grad's birdie on the difficult closing hole would be enough to give her a one-shot lead heading into the final round. Closely behind O'Brien was Youyang Li after an opening round of 2-under par, 70. Li would also equal O'Brien's total of five birdies after making three in a row on holes 10-12. The Orlando native would be looking to pick up her third FJT victory of the year after winning two Exempt-Only events. Rounding out the top three was Amelia Cobb at 1-under par. Cobb played steady throughout the day with her round consisting of birdies on holes 9 and 15 after her lone bogey on the opening hole. With play being cancelled during Sunday's final round, O'Brien would earn her first FJT Victory with Li finishing as runner-up and Cobb in third place.
