Aguirre and Parker Conquer the Capital
TALLAHASSEE, Fla. – The Florida Junior Tour made its way to the state’s capital and emerged with two first-time Champions. Giancarlo Aguirre and Lilly Parker took home the trophies after two days of competition.
Boys (13-15)
With birdies on two of the first three holes, Charlie Hipp from St. Augustine would take the early lead at Capital City Country Club. Brendan Walrath wouldn’t be too far behind as he would birdie the first hole as well and see himself in red numbers for a majority of the day. Both Hipp and Walrath would finish at 2-under on the day. Not to be outdone, Giancarlo Aguirre would catch fire as Round 1 closed out. The Windermere native birdied five of his last six holes to finish in 31 and 3-under 69 to hold the overnight lead.
After morning thunderstorms, the golf course would be gettable on Sunday. Despite an early bogey, Hipp would put himself back on top with four birdies on his opening nine. As the group came to the turn, Aguirre wouldn’t let Hipp extend his lead. Birdies on Holes 9 and 10 would get him to just one back of Hipp. An eagle on the drive-able par-4 13th, saw Aguirre pass Hip on the leaderboard for the time being. In response, Charlie would birdie the par-5 15th to square the two competitors with three holes remaining.
Giancarlo’s response would be quick and decisive. His birdie on the penultimate hole of the weekend would give him a one shot lead that he would not relinquish. Giancarlo Aguirre’s victory marked his first on the Florida Junior Tour after a bevy of top finishes. Charlie Hipp would finish two shots behind in solo second while Wilmer Mitchell would secure a solo third place finish.
Girls (13-15)
The elevation change present at Capital City Country Club always proves to be a challenge in tournament conditions. The challenge wasn’t too tough for Lilly Parker in Round 1 as she got off to a blistering start. Two birdies on her front nine and no bogeys put her into the pole position halfway through Round 1. Playing in just her second FJT, Mila Zalsman would find her form on the back nine Saturday. Her 2-under 34 on the inward nine left her at even-par for the tournament and the overnight lead as the aforementioned Parker finished 1-over on Saturday.
The two-player race would continue on Sunday after a three hour delay. Starting on #10, Lilly would make bogey on the opening hole but would bounce back with a birdie on Hole 13. After Zalsman’s double bogey on the 14th hole, Parker would find herself at the top, but only briefly. Mila Zalsman’s 20-footer for birdie on the tough par-3 16th would square the duo yet again as they made their way towards the front nine.
A trio of bogeys to start the front nine would put Zalsman behind Parker, who played those three holes at 1-over. A birdie on the 4th hole by Mila Zalsman would put her one behind with four holes remaining. However, Lilly Parker would not relinquish that lead all the way through the finish. A bogey by Zalsman on the 8th hole gave Parker a two shot cushion on the final hole where Parker would tap in for the victory.
The win is Lilly Parker’s first victory on the Florida Junior Tour. Mila Zalsman secured a solo second place finish while Keira Chavitranuk, who won earlier in the year at Hawkstone, would capture solo third place.
