Rodgers and Tavares Secure First Victory
GAINESVILLE, Fla. – The Florida Junior Tour held its first (13-15) division event of the year at The Mark Bostick Golf Course home to the University of Florida men’s and women’s golf teams. The event consisted of an 84-player field held over 54 holes of golf. After a chilly three days, Parker Rodgers and Leonie Tavares outlasted the field to capture the first victories of the season.
Boys (13-15) Division
Parker Rodgers posted a tournament total of two under par to secure the victory by four strokes over Wylie Inman. Rodgers captured a wire-to-wire win. He shot a two-under par in the first round carding three birdies in cold conditions. He then took the solo lead after round two after firing a two-over par. Finally, Rodgers closed it out during the final round firing another two-under par, 68. The Iowa native was unbothered by the cold and posted ten birdies over the three days. Rodgers said, “It’s a big barrier broken and hopefully I can do it again.”
In addition, Inman secured a solo second place finish carding a tournament total of two-over par. Inman carded the most birdies of the tournament with eleven over the three days. Blake Hartman finished in solo third place with a tournament total of four over par.
Girls (13-15) Division
Leonie Tavares posted a tournament total of fifteen over par and outlasted the field by three strokes. She went wire-to-wire to capture her first win of the season and her first win in the (13-15) age division. Tavares posted a three over par, 73 during the first round to hold the lead by three strokes. She then extended her lead to nine strokes after posting a two over par, 72 in the second round. She posted five birdies over the three days. She explained that it feels really good to win her first event and even though the final round was more of a struggle than the first two days, overall, she explains, it was a really good tournament.
Natalie Angelo and Sahana Chokshi finished tied for second with a tournament total of eighteen over par. Angelo posted her lowest score of the tournament with a 73 and climbed two places on the leaderboard during the last round. In addition Chokshi carded the most birdies of the tournament with a total of six over 54 holes.
