Wang, Wachter, Wei and Cao Prevail at Plantation
VENICE, Fla. – The Florida Junior Tour headed to Venice where Plantation Golf & Country Club's Bobcat course hosted the first 9-12 event following the Summer break. Juniors in four age division all were vying for the top spots.
Boys (11-12)
Starting on the 10th hole in round 1, Yuhao Wang would get off to a great start making birdies on holes 13 and 16 to get to 2-under par on the day. From there on, the Orlando native would make five bogies to post a 3-over par, 75. This would be enough to give him a one-shot lead over Joshua Fleming who posted a 4-over par, 76. Only two shots back would be the pair of Benny Minter and Jack Smith who sit at 6-over par heading into the final round.
After a double-bogey on the thrid hole, Yuhao Wang would fall two shots closer to the pack in the final round. Wang quickly followed that up with two birdies on holes 4 and 5 and another on hole 9. The 2030 grad's round would be highlighted by an eagle on the par 5, 16th hole. A final birdie on the 17th hole would cap off a beautiful round of 2-under par 70 to finish the event at 1-over par. This would be Wang's first FJT victory. Jack Smith would finish runner-up after a final round 73 that included five birdies. Smith would finish at 7-over par total, six shots back of Wang. Benny Minter and Joshua Fleming would finish in a tie for third place at 11-over par.
Boys (9-10)
The younger boys divison would see Jake Jessop play some steady golf to take the lead in round 1. After getting to 5-over par through 15 holes, Jessop would birdie two out of his last three holes to post a 3-over par, 75. The Seminole native would take a four shot lead into round 2 after his nearest competitor, Jayden Wei posted a 7-over par, 79. Wei would be determined to vault into the lead in round two after opening up his final round with three birdies in his first four holes. The 2031 grad would continue his consistent play, making birdies on holes 7 and 15 to go along with two bogies. Wei's final round of 3-under par, 69 would be the low round of the tournament. Jake Jessop would follow-up his stellar first round with a final round of 12-over par, 84 to come in second place at 15-over par. Rounding out the top three would be Bryan Reupert at 35-over par.
Girls (11-12)
The Girls (11-12) division saw the tightest competition after round 1. Lily Wachter and Michelle Lu would match eachother, both shooting even par, 72. Both Wachter and Lu played consistent golf, making two birdies and two bogies each. Three shots behind the leaders would be Madelyn Dickerson after posting a 3-over par, 75. Both Lu and Wachter would start their final round with a bogey on the 10th hole, their first hole of the day. Wachter would be the first to bounce back with a birdie on the 13th hole. The Saint Augustine native would continue to play consistent golf with two more birdies and a lone bogey in posting a final round 71. Wachter's 1-under par tournament total would be the low number between all four divisions.
Starting the day in fifth place, Elize Nograbat would aim to climb the leaderboard quickly after making three biridies on the day. The Saint Johns native would fire a final round of 1-under par to jump three spots up the leaderboard into second place at 5-over par. Tying Nograbat and Wachter for the low round of the day in the Girls division was Alyna Yensabai. The 2032 grad would make two birdies in her final round to go along with one bogey in posting a 1-under par, 71. Yensabai's tournament total of 7-over par would put her in a tie for third place for the event along with Michelle Lu. Lu posted rounds of 72-79--151.
Girls (9-10)
When round 1 was complete, Ziyue Cao would sit atop the leaderboard after posting a 6-over par, 78 in the first round. The Sanford native's round was highlighted by a birdie on the par 5, 9th hole. Sitting three shots back would be Anastasia Todoric whose round was highlighted by a birdie on the par 5, 16th hole. Cao would continue to sit atop the leaderboard during round two, posting a final round 83 to finish the tournament at 17-over par. Todoric would try her best to match the lead but would ultimately come up one shot short. Her tournament total of 81-81--162 would be enough for second place. Rounding out the podium would be Lydia Lu at 29-over par.
