FJT Grasslands Open (16-18)

Boys (16-18)

The winds were high on Saturday afternoon leading to extremely challenging conditions at Grasslands Golf & Country Club. Connor McCann would be the one to deal with the conditions the best on his way to a 2-under 70. McCann made the turn on Saturday 2-over par but he would open his back nine with birdie-eagle to get to under par on the day. A birdie on his final hole got him to 2-under which would be enough for a one shot lead on Jackson Hiller.

With better scoring conditions in the final round, many players would make their move towards McCann at the top. Mohit Balaji made birdie on three of his first five holes to gain a share of the lead as McCann made a birdie on the second hole as well. Balaji would bogey the 6^th and 9^th holes while McCann would make all pars on the front with his lone birdie on the 2^nd hole to take a two shot lead to the final nine holes.

In a matter of two holes, that two shot lead would be lost by McCann. A bogey on the 14^th by McCann followed up by a birdie on the 15^th by Reggie Zhu would propel Zhu into a tie for the lead. Zhu had been making his way up the leaderboard thanks to four birdies on the day and with three holes left he saw him with a chance to win his third FJT event of the year. Meanwhile, Mojit Balaji with his 5 birdies on the day would find himself tied for the lead

Zhu’s bogey-birdie-bogey finish would put him in the clubhouse first at 1-under par. In the final group of the day, McCann would make double-bogey at the par-5 17^th to drop him to even par for the event. Meanwhile, Balaji would go birdie-birdie to finish at 2-under and claim the Boys (16-18) Division. His tee shot on the par-3 18^th would be within 5 feet leading to a birdie putt that he would make to win by one. Reggie Zhu’s 1-under par total would be enough for second while Connor McCann and Parker Bell tied for third.

Girls (16-18)

In Round 1, Mi Li would have an up-and-down day to open up the tournament. Li made four birdies but also made five bogeys in the first round to start the weekend with a 1-over 73. That would be enough to lead the Girls Division over Siuue Wu.

Early in the second round, Remi Bacardi would make her move to the top. After a 76 in round one that saw her fail to make a birdie, Bacardi would birdie her second and fourth holes of the day. That coupled with Mi Li’s double-bogey on her opening hole and bogey on her fifth hole meant that Bacardi would take the lead through five holes in the final round.

Bacardi would go on to make two more birdies on her front nine as well as two bogeys. Meanwhile, Siuue Wu made a birdie on the par-4 16^th to tie Bacardi at a 3-over par total. The two would make their way to the final nine holes of the tournament tied at 3-over par.

The 4th hole, the girls’ 13^th hole of the day, would prove to be pivotal. Bacardi’s eagle to Wu’s bogey would be a three shot swing and Bacardi would take a three shot lead with 5 to play. Wu bounced back on 6 with a birdie while Bacardi made bogey, cutting the lead to one shot. A bogey on the final hole for Bacardi would leave the two tied with one hole left to play for Wu.

Wu’s approach shot on the final hole would miss the green. A pitch to 7 feet past the flag would leave a par putt to force a playoff. That par putt would slip by and lead to a bogey. With rounds of 76-71, Remi Bacardi would capture her second FJT of the year and first in the (16-18) Division. Siuue Wu finished in second place one stroke back while Katie Carman and Mi Li tied for third at 8-over 152.

Results

Divisions and Approximate Yardages

• Boys (16-18) Age Division - 7,000 yards (gross only)

• Girls (16-18) Age Division - 6,000 yards (gross only)

How Entries are Accepted

• Players with an unused FJT exemption will be accepted on a first-come, first-serve basis (if submitted before the entry deadline).
• Players without an FJT exemption - all other entries are held until the entry closing date.  Shortly after the closing date, a computer-generated random draw is performed to determine which entries are accepted, and the order of the alternates. All players are notified of their status after the random draw is conducted,
• An alternates list will be posted to the FSGA website under "Tee Times & Player Information".
• Entries submitted after the entry deadline will be added to the bottom of the alternates list or used to fill any openings in the field.

Schedule of Events

Saturday, May 7th

11:00 AM - 1:30 PM - Tournament Registration (near pro shop) 12:00 PM - 1:57 PM - Round one tee times off the 1st and 10th tees

Sunday, May 8th

7:30 AM - 9:27 AM - Final round tee times off the 1st and 10th tees
Approximately 2:30 PM - Awards presentation

How to Enter

Entries are submitted through the FSGA website. To enter, each player must create an FSGA account on this website (free to set-up), purchase a current Junior Membership ($40), and have an active Florida GHIN Handicap (included in membership if golfer does not already have one). To proceed, click the "Enter" button above once entries have opened.

Late Entry Fee: A late fee of $10 will be applied to entries submitted after the close of entries date. The entry fee and late fee will only be applied if the player gets accepted in to the tournament field.

Practice Rounds

Practice rounds are available one week prior to the tournament on a space-available basis. Tee times are only available after 12:00 noon the weekend prior.  The price for a practice round is $30 + tax per player. Please call (863) 680-1616 to arrange your practice round. The proper place to practice your golf swing is on the driving range, hitting multiple shots on the course, not filling divots, and not repairing ball marks are unacceptable and may cause removal from the tournament without a refund.

TrackMan Sessions

We are pleased to offer tournament participants the opportunity to utilize our TrackMan launch moniter, and to have his/her swing recorded on Friday May 6th.  Specifics will be included in the pre-event email. There is no charge for this service.  All information will be posted to the junior's FSGA profile for college coaches to view.  Click here for more information.

National Rankings

Florida Junior Tour Policies

• Tournament & Entry Policies
• Hard Card
• Pace of Play
• Code of Conduct
• Spectator Policy

Host Hotel

Courtyard Lakeland Marriott
3725 Harden Boulevard
Lakeland, FL 33803
(863) 802-9000

Book your room HERE!

Directions

Grasslands Golf & Country Club
1600 Grasslands Blvd
Lakeland, FL 33803
(863) 680-1616

Click here for directions.