OCALA, Fla. - Parker Bell and Victoria Tan came home with Florida Junior Tour victories at Country Club of Ocala. Both players hit big shots in the clutch, as Bell birdied the final hole to win by one shot and Tan outlasted two competitors in a three-hole playoff.
Boys (16-18)
Saturday’s opening round at Country Club of Ocala belonged to nearby Gainesville resident Chris Terzian. The class of 2023 member carded five birdies including both the par 5’s on the front side to post a 1-under 71 to take the lead through 18 holes of the event. Brody Stevenson was Terzian’s nearest competitor after an even-par 72 Saturday. Stevenson is no stranger to the top of the leaderboard with top-six finishes in all of his three FJT starts this year. Both players looked to break through for their first win of 2022 on Sunday.
Overnight leader, Terzian, got off to a good start with a birdie on the short par-4 second hole but a double-bogey 7 on the fifth would bring a pack of players back into the thick of things in the final round. Brody Stevenson also took advantage of conditions early, with a birdie on the opening hole and another on the picturesque par-3 eighth to take the lead.
Two of the players who started the day two shots back, Parker Bell and Lee Poppell, continued their steady play. Both players would be even par for most of the day and just lurking to track down Stevenson as he made the turn with a three-shot lead.
As the players came to their final nine holes, Stevenson dropped a shot at the 13th and 16th holes to cut his lead to only one shot. Lee Poppell’s three bogeys on the back nine dropped him to two shots back as the final groups made their way up the 18th. Stevenson’s bogey on the 17th put him in a tie with Parker Bell with just the par-5 18th to play.
Bell, playing in the penultimate group, got t the first chance to at the 18th. His birdie put all the pressure on Stevenson, as the Tallahassee native took a one-shot lead as Stevenson played his final hole. An approach shot that would find the water on 18 leading to a bogey would give Parker Bell the win.
Bell’s rounds of 73-71 for an even par total gave him the win in his first FJT appearance of 2022. Stevenson finished in a tie for second, with Joshua Pritchett, as both players finished at 2-over 146.
Girls (16-18)
In the first round, the Girls (16-18) Division saw a multitude of players put themselves in a position to try take home the tournament win on Sunday. Notably, Ava Zeng and Sophia Hong shared the top spot on Saturday evening with 2-over 74’s after the first round.
The two Windermere natives played their way around Country Club of Ocala in different ways. Hong took advantage of the par-5’s playing them at 2-under par for the day, while Zeng would struggle on the par-5’s but use back-to-back birdies on 13th and 14th to cement her place at the top of the leaderboard.
There were six players within three strokes of the lead when players arrived to the course Sunday morning for the final round. With players starting on the back nine, things got interesting as they made the turn on the par-5 18th.
Victoria Tan, who’s 79 on day one saw her needing a good round Sunday, made an eagle to jump within two shots of the lead. Junyuan Zheng and Sophia Hong made birdies of their own on the 18th and would set them up with an opportunity to take home the trophy as players made their way through their last nine holes.
Despite being only one back to start the day, Nancy Cox would lose ground on the front nine with a 4-over 40, but she steadied the ship on the inward nine with a birdie on the third hole. With the final group on their 16th hole of the day, the leaderboard was crowded and four players were sitting tied at the top: Nancy Cox, Victoria Tan, Sophia Hong and Junyuan Zhang.
A costly double-bogey on the par-3 eighth took Nancy Cox out of contention for the win. Tan, Zhang and Hong all finished the tournament at 7-over par, which would necessitate a playoff for the Girls (16-18) division.
In the first playoff hole, all three girls made a par at the par-5 18th to continue the playoff. On the second playoff hole, Sophia Hong fell one shot short, as Zhang and Tan continued on to a third hole. The tournament was decided on the par-3 16th hole, with Tan’s par securing the victory for her. This win is Tan’s first of 2022 after capturing an FJT Major at Trump Doral last year. Hong and Zhang shared second place.
