After a bit of bouncing around the Denver metro area its first two years of existence, the AJGA Transamerica / Hale Irwin Colorado Junior will set down some roots for the foreseeable future.

Following a year at CommonGround Golf Course in Aurora and another at Highlands Ranch Golf Club, the AJGA tournament named for the three-time U.S. Open champion who grew up in Colorado will be held at least for the next three years at The Heritage at Westmoor course in Westminster.

The 2017 event, which is expected to draw the state’s top boys and girls players along with dozens of others from elsewhere in the U.S. and internationally, will be contested June 6-8, with a qualifying round planned for June 4 and the Junior-Am and practice rounds set for June 5.

The dates for 2018 and ’19 are tentatively set for the first full week of June.

Heritage at Westmoor is no stranger to hosting significant golf tournaments in the state. This year, for instance, qualifying for the U.S. Women’s Open and the U.S. Junior Amateur, and local qualifying for the U.S. Open, were all held at the City of Westminster course. Heritage at Westmoor also hosted the Colorado Senior Open three times early in the new millennium, along with the 2014 CGA Match Play.

“You have an excellent golf course that’s walkable, well-designed and championship-caliber,” said Ed Mate, executive director of the CGA, which partners with the AJGA in conducting the Hale Irwin Colorado Junior. “It’s always in great shape.”

Indeed, Mate considers Heritage at Westmoor more than just a host facility, but as a de facto presenting sponsor because the course is being offered for the tournament at a nominal fee.

CGA staff and CGA and CWGA volunteers play major roles at the Hale Irwin Colorado Junior, which features separate tournaments for boys and girls. The Irwin event was named the AJGA’s “Newcomer of the Year” for the inaugural tournament held at CommonGround in 2015, when the event was preceded by Irwin himself conducting a clinic and Q&A for competitors and others at the site. The 2015 tournament itself was highlighted by the course-record 61 that boys champion Reese Ramsey from Texas shot in the final round — which also tied an all-time AJGA record — and by three holes-in-one on day 1.

The year 2 tournament at Highlands Ranch Golf Club had its fair share of fireworks as well as girls champion Clare Amelia Legaspi pitched in for eagle on the final hole to win by one, and two Coloradans (AJ Ott and Trevor Olkowski) tied for second place in the boys competition.

And now tournament officials, players, spectators etc., can look forward to course continuity in the coming years with Heritage at Westmoor hosting the event in 2017, ’18 and ’19.

“It’s always a challenge to move tournaments around,” Mate said. “The team that runs this tournament will get really good at it; they’ll learn all the idiosyncracies of the golf course. We’ve seen that benefit at the Colorado Open (Championships — including the Colorado Open, Women’s Open and Senior Open — all held at Green Valley Ranch Golf Club since 2004). You just get a lot better when you have the benefit of going back to the same venue. It’s nice to know we have that sewn up for the next three years.”

Transamerica has signed on as the Hale Irwin Colorado Junior’s title sponsor.
 

For sheer oddities, it would be tough to top the inaugural AJGA Hale Irwin Colorado Junior as last year a player shot a final-round 61 — a course record at CommonGround and tying an all-time AJGA record — and there were three holes-in-one on the first day of the tournament, including two from the same threesome of girls.

But the second annual Irwin Junior, now presented by Huntington Industrial Partners, had its moments. For instance, Clare Amelia Legaspi of Santa Clarita, Calif., pitched in for eagle from 30 yards on her final hole Thursday at Highlands Ranch Golf Club to edge out Lauren Beaudreau of Lemont, Ill., who narrowly missed eagling the hole herself.

And though it didn’t decide the tournament, future University of Denver golfer John Sand aced the 197-yard 17th hole Thursday at DU’s home course with an 8-iron. Sand went eagle, birdie on his final two holes to get into the top 10.

As for the boys title, for the second straight year a couple of Coloradans were in the hunt for the victory, only to finish a little short. Connor Howe of Ogden, Utah, prevailed by one stroke over AJ Ott (above) of Fort Collins, Trevor Olkowski (left) of Grand Junction and Sunday qualifier Tyler Parker of Knoxville, Tenn.

It was the second top-three showing in the tournament by the Colorado State University-bound Ott, who last year tied for third with Jackson Solem of Longmont.

“It feels good (but) I wanted first (place) pretty bad,” said Ott, the 2015 CJGA Tournament of Champions winner. “Two years in a row there’s definitely something in the water here for the Colorado kids. So I think someone (local) is going to win one one day; it just wasn’t this year.”

All told, five Coloradans placed in the top 10 of the boys division. Joining Ott and Olkowski (a University of Colorado commitment) were Colorado School of Mines signee Timothy Amundson of Littleton (eighth place at 212), incoming DU golfer Isaac Petersilie of Colorado Springs (who eagled the 18th hole to tie for ninth at 214) and David Leede of Greenwood Village (ninth at 214).

Howe (left), the 2015 Utah 5A state high school champion, held at least a share of the lead after all three rounds at Highlands Ranch GC. He followed up an opening 66 with consecutive 70s for a 10-under-par 206 total. Ott, Olkowski and Parker were one behind, with Olkowski (5-under-par 67) and Ott (a bogey-free 68) carding the best two rounds of the day in the boys division.

“I feel good about it,” said Olkowski, who eagled a par-4 and added five birdies on Thursday. “There were strokes I could have picked up out there, but I had three solid rounds. I’m happy with it overall.

“I knew I had to shoot 4 or 5 under (today to have a chance to win) and I did that. I gave myself the best chance I could. I came up one short.”

Howe led by three after making a 6-inch birdie on No. 16, but he needed to drain a 15-foot putt to post a bogey on No. 17, where he took a penalty stroke. Ott birdied from 8 feet there to cut the deficit to one going into 18. But Ott ended up in a greenside bunker in two and couldn’t get up and down, settling for a par on the par-5. And despite a three-putt for par on the 18th green, Howe prevailed by one.

“This is probably the best win I’ve had,” the 16-year-old Howe said of his first AJGA victory. “This and state (high school) are probably tied. I shot 62 at state so that’s hard to beat, but this was a big tournament for me. I’m happy I pulled through.

“It’s a really good confidence-builder for me. I know I’ve been able to win (an AJGA event), I just hadn’t been able to pull the trigger. To be able to win one, just for the future gives me lots of confidence in bigger tournaments.”

On the girls side, Thursday marked the third AJGA win for the UCLA-bound Legaspi (left), but her first since 2014. She played her final 10 holes in 6 under par, and needed every one of those strokes, including the pitch-in on 18. That’s because Beadreau played her final 16 holes in 5 under par, reeling off birdies on 15, 17 and 18. Beaudreau almost pitched in for eagle on 18 to match Legaspi and force a playoff, but she was forced to settle for a tap-in birdie.

The two players matched 68s on Thursday, with Legaspi posting a 7-under-par 209 total.

Legaspi and Beaudreau were tied going up 18 after the latter sank a long birdie putt on 17.

“I knew I had to make something — an eagle or anything,” said Legaspi. “Lauren was playing really well so I knew I had to do something magnificent on the last hole.

“I had to will (the pitch shot) in because I really knew I had to make something happen. I think every shot is makeable. I just always think positive that it’s going to go in, it’s going to go close. I always try to will it in.”

Two young golfers led the way for Coloradans among the girls, with Hailey Schalk of Erie and Caroline Jordaan of Cherry Hills Village tying for seventh place at 6-over-par 222. Jordaan closed with a 73 and Schalk with a 74.

“I achieved what I wanted to do,” said the 15-year-old Jordaan, who finished second last month in the 4A state high school tournament. “Coming in I had never finished top half (in an AJGA event) and that was my goal. To do even better than that was great.”

Schalk (left), 14, was 2 under par for the day through 12 holes, but four bogeys coming down the stretch didn’t help the cause.

“I feel really good about the week,” she said. “It was really fun and I played really solid golf. It was just those (back-nine) mistakes that make me a little bit annoyed. But overall I was proud to get into the top 10.”

Also posting a top-10 finish was DU signee Camille Enright of Plano, Texas, who placed fifth at 217.

As for the 17-year-old Legaspi, it wasn’t the first time she’s holed a wedge shot at a particularly opportune moment. Two years ago, in a playoff for a spot in the U.S. Girls’ Junior, she drained a 60-yard shot to advance after her opponent had put her approach within tap-in range.

“This is a breakthrough win since I haven’t been playing well for the past year,” said Legaspi, who won a gold medal while competing for the Philippines in the 2013 Asian Youth Games. “It means a lot to me. I’ve been through a lot the last year (an injury, equipment change and finishing high school) and I haven’t won for a long time. So this is really special for me.”

For both Legaspi and Howe, it was their first time competing in Colorado.

The AJGA Hale Irwin Colorado Junior, Past and Future: After the tournament, the AJGA presented CGA executive director Ed Mate with the AJGA Newcomer of the Year Award for the 2015 AJGA Hale Irwin Colorado Junior, which was held at the CGA-owned CommonGround Golf Course.

Mate announced that after one year each at CommonGround and Highlands Ranch Golf Club, the 2017 Hale Irwin Colorado Junior is set for Heritage at Westmoor in Westminster. A junior-am is planned for June 5, 2017, with the championship rounds scheduled for June 6-8.

For boys scores from the AJGA Hale Irwin Colorado Junior, CLICK HERE.
 

For girls results, CLICK HERE.

Within six strokes of Howe heading into Thursday’s final round are AJ Ott of Fort Collins (who trails by three), Trevor Olkowski of Grand Junction (four back), Timothy Amundson of Littleton (five behind), and Philip Lee of Denver, Oliver Jack of Cherry Hills Village, first-round co-leader Isaac Petersilie of Colorado Springs, Jackson Solem of Longmont and Troy Dangler of Grand Junction (all six back).

In the girls competition, Clare Amelia Legaspi of Santa Clarita, Calif., holds a one-stroke lead, with a couple of Coloradans in the top 10 after two rounds.

Fourteen-year-old Hailey Schalk of Erie is in sixth place, seven behind Legaspi, and Caroline Jordaan of Cherry Hills Village is another shot back, sharing ninth place.

Legaspi, No. 74 among girls in the Polo rankings, has posted rounds of 70-71 for a 3-under-par 141 total, one stroke better than Lauren Beaudreau of Lemont, Ill. (71-71).

Schalk has gone 72-76, while Jordaan has carded rounds of 74-75.

In boys action, Howe has racked up 14 birdies in two rounds, posting scores of 66-70 for an 8-under-par 136 total. He’s one up on Tyler Parker (70-67) of Knoxville, Tenn., going into Thursday’s final 18.

Ott, who tied for third at last year’s AJGA Irwin Junior, sits in that same spot after two days. The Colorado State University signee has gone 69-70, chalking up 10 birdies in two rounds.

The boys leaders will tee off on Thursday at 12:10 p.m., while the top girls will start at 11:20 a.m.

For boys scores from the AJGA Hale Irwin Colorado Junior, CLICK HERE.

For girls results, CLICK HERE.