There was certainly no lack of highlights to punctuate the CJGA 11-13 Junior Series Championship that concluded on Tuesday at Deer Creek Golf Club in Littleton.
On Monday, the golfer who would end up winning the girls title, Katie Berrian of Castle Rock, shot a 4-under-par 66, the lowest score of her life — by seven strokes.
Then on Tuesday, boys competitor Elijia Harp of Antonito in southern Colorado made the first hole-in-one of his life, acing the 123-yard 16th hole with a pitching wedge.
And, adding an exclamation mark to the tournament overall, Jordan Jennings of Montrose, playing in the same group as Harp, chipped in for birdie from 25 feet on the final hole to claim the boys title by one stroke. It was the first individual CJGA title this season for Jennings (pictured above) after three runner-ups and a two-person team victory.
“I knew I had to chip it in so I pulled out the pin and I played a little check shot and it rolled in,” the 12-year old said. “I was really happy.”
With the hole-out, Jennings edged another Montrose resident, Micah Stangebye, who had posted a 1-under-par 70 just minutes earlier. Jennings’ 73, which included four birdies, gave him an even-par 142 total. Two strokes back of Jennings and one behind Stangebye was Jack Hughes of Snowmass Village, who closed with a 75. That left Western Slope players with a sweep of the top three boys spots.
On the girls side, Berrian’s first-round 66 gave her a four-shot cushion entering the day and a 4-over-par 74 on Tuesday left her with a five-stroke victory. The 13-year-old made two birdies on Tuesday en route to posting an even-par 140 total. It was the fourth CJGA title this year for Berrian (left and below).
“This means a lot,” said the eighth-grader at St. Thomas More Catholic School. “I’ve always wanted to win this since I was 9. Now I finally have the opportunity.”
Hailey Schalk of Erie finished second among the girls despite suffering a quadruple bogey 7 — she hit into the hazard twice on No. 16 — and a double bogey on Tuesday. Schalk carded a 75 to check in at 145. Brittlynn O’Dell of Grand Junction came in third at 148 after a 76 on Tuesday.
Though Berrian played well enough to win on Tuesday, her out-of-the-blue 66 was what set up the victory. On her back nine Monday, she made an eagle and three birdies en route to a 4-under-par 32.
“I’ve never putted like that before,” said Berrian, whose previous best round was a 73. “It was really nice.”
Berrian recently placed a very respectable 15th in the girls 13-14 age group at the Optimist International Junior Golf Championships in Florida. But her Monday round took things to another level.
“I was pretty confident coming into this week,” she said. “I’ve been playing great lately, hitting it good and putting good. But I surprised myself a little (by shooting that score).”
While Berrian had some cushion coming down the stretch on Tuesday, the same wasn’t the case in the boys tournament. Jennings (below) and Hughes were tied going into the 17th hole, but Hughes made bogey after hitting his approach into a bunker on 17 and parred 18. And Stangebye, who had made up four shots on Jennings on holes 14-17 to draw even, fell victim to Jennings’ final-hole chip-in for birdie.
“I’ve qualified for the Optimist (International) twice and the Junior Worlds once, but this is probably my biggest (golf accomplishment),” said Jennings, a seventh-grader at Columbine Middle School in Montrose.
The 11-13 tournament marked the second of three CJGA Junior Series Championships. Last week at The Ranch Country Club, Coby Welch and Mary Weinstein of Highlands Ranch won the titles in the 14-18 age group. And the 10-&-under tournament will take place Wednesday at Boulder Country Club’s Les Fowler Par-3 Course.
CJGA 11-13 Junior Series Championship
At Deer Creek GC in Littleton
Boys (Par-71)
Jordan Jennings, Montrose, Colo. 69-73–142
Micah Stangebye, Montrose, Colo. 73-70–143
Jack Hughes, Snowmass Village, Colo. 69-75–144
Elijia Harp, Antonito, Colo. 72-78–150
Ryan Liao, Littleton, Colo. 75-75–150
Christian Agelopoulos, Denver, Colo. 79-74–153
Davis Long, Lafayette, Colo. 74-79–153
Ryan Sangchompuphen, Denver, Colo. 76-78–154
Traejan Andrews, Windsor, Colo. 78-81–159
Thomas Hicks, Denver, Colo. 84-81–165
Supawich Beam Boonta, Centennial, Colo. 84-83–167
Jeffrey Nelson, New Castle, Colo. 86-83–169
Medhaj Shrestha, Golden, Colo. 84-88–172
Jake Chesler, Firestone, Colo. 91-83–174
Zaden Gomez, Westminster, Colo. 89-87–176
Girls (Par-70)
Katie Berrian, Castle Rock, Colo. 66-74–140
Hailey Schalk, Erie, Colo. 70-75–145
Brittlynn O’Dell, Grand Junction, Colo. 72-76–148
Marie Jordaan, Cherry Hills Village, Colo. 74-78–152
Amisha Singh, Greenwood Village, Colo. 82-71–153
Charlotte Hillary, Cherry Hills Village, Colo. 77-86–163
Emma Bryant, Denver, Colo. 84-83–167
Anju Ogi, Arvada, Colo. 85-91–176
Sofia Choi, Littleton, Colo. 88-90–178
Katelyn Lehigh, Loveland, Colo. 94-85–179
There was much to admire Tuesday as the CJGA 14-18 Junior Series Championship concluded at The Ranch Country Club in Westminster.
The boys champion, Coby Welch of Highlands Ranch, became the first person in history to win all three age divisions of the Junior Series Championships.
And the girls winner, Mary Weinstein, also of Highlands Ranch, prevailed despite calling a two-stroke penalty on herself Monday for an infraction which her playing partners didn’t notice.
Talent and integrity. That’s quite a 1-2 punch, especially when possessed by junior players.
Welch (pictured above and below), who last week finished seventh individually in the prestigious Junior America’s Cup, won the 10-and-under Junior Series title in 2008 and the 11-13 championship in 2012.
“It means a lot,” the 17-year-old said of completing the Junior Series sweep. “It shows that my golf game has improved, I guess, which is good to know. Hopefully going into college (in 2016) it’ll improve even more, and more past that.
But that’s a big accomplishment. It was something I wanted to do — a goal of mine. I accomplished it, so that’s good.”
In the 14-18 tournament, the Valor Christian High School senior-to-be shot consecutive sub-par rounds at The Ranch — 68 and 70 — for a 4-under 138 total. This, mind you, after closing with a 67 Friday at the Junior America’s Cup in Flagstaff, Ariz., meaning Welch is a cumulative 9 under par for his last three competitive rounds. On Tuesday, after being tied with Davis Bryant of Aurora after 27 holes, Welch shot a bogey-free 33 on the back nine Tuesday to pull away.
Daniel Pearson (left) of Longmont made five birdies on Tuesday in a round of 68 to finish second at 140. Bryant, like Welch a U.S. Junior Amateur qualifier and a CGA team representative at the Junior America’s Cup, placed third at 141 after closing with a 71. Timothy Amundson of Littleton posted consecutive 71s for a 142 total and fourth place.
Welch has played some of his best golf of the summer since recently verbally committing to play college golf at the University of Northern Colorado beginning a year from now.
“I think it helps a little bit (to have the pressure off),” said Welch, winner of the 2014 CJGA Tournament of Champions. “It isn’t as intense anymore.
“I’ve been playing good. I started out the summer a little rough, but I definitely got better and I’m playing some good golf now, so that’s exciting.”
On Tuesday, while Welch said he wasn’t in peak form, he was steady as a rock, carding two birdies, one bogey and 15 pars. Once Bryant bogeyed the 10th and 11th holes, Welch led for good.
“I wasn’t hitting the ball great today, but I just kept chugging and chugging and hoping it would come around,” Welch said. “A couple birdies came, and that was it.”
Weinstein (left and below), the 2015 CWGA Junior Stroke Play champion, shot rounds of 73-73, but Monday’s score included a two-stroke penalty on the par-3 15th hole, where the 17-year-old realized after the fact that she had teed off slightly in front of the tee markers. And though her playing partners didn’t see anything amiss, Weinstein called the infraction on herself and went on to take a double bogey on the hole.
“I don’t think it’s ever worth cheating,” said Weinstein, a senior-to-be at Regis Jesuit High School. “The way I played this tournament, it was good enough. I asked my playing mates, Morgan (Sahm) and Jaclyn (Murray), and they weren’t watching, so I called it. A rules official came over and did a string from my divot, but I knew I was out so I called the penalty and hit again.”
Penalty or not, Weinstein set the standard at The Ranch. Her 2-over 146 total was four shots better than runners-up Sahm, of Centennial, and Murray, of Grand Junction. Sahm, a 2015 U.S. Girls’ Junior qualifier, closed with a 72 as she eagled the seventh hole and birdied two of the last three on Tuesday. Murray (pictured below), runner-up in the 2015 CWGA Junior Match Play, had a 77 in a round that included a triple-bogey 8 on the third hole and an eagle 3 on the 16th.
Amy Chitkoksoong of Aurora, the CWGA Junior Match Play champion, placed fourth at 154 after a final-round 71 in which she played her final nine in 4-under 32.
For Weinstein, it’s been quite the summer. She won the CWGA Junior Stroke Play, finished 15th at the IMG Academy Junior World Golf Championships (the best showing ever by a Coloradan in the girls 15-17 age group), placed second in the CWGA Stroke Play, and now wins the CJGA 14-18 Junior Series Championship.
“I worked really hard and worked on my swing a lot, practiced hard and played a lot more tournaments,” she said, also crediting her swing coach, Terry Stearman. “All of that added up to playing better.”
Weinstein hasn’t yet settled on where she’ll play college golf, but she figures a verbal commitment will be forthcoming in the next week or so.
The CJGA Junior Series Championships for younger golfers will take place next week, with the 11-13 age group competing Aug. 10-11 at Deer Creek Golf Club in Littleton, and the 10-and-unders playing Aug. 12 at the Les Fowler Par-3 Course at Boulder Country Club.
CJGA 14-18 Junior Series Championship
At The Ranch CC in Westminster
Boys (Par-71)
Coby Welch, Highlands Ranch, Colo. 68-70–138
Daniel Pearson, Longmont, Colo. 72-68–140
Davis Bryant, Aurora, Colo. 70-71–141
Timothy Amundson, Littleton, Colo. 71-71–142
Isaac Petersilie, Colorado Springs, Colo. 74-69–143
Glen-Michael Mihavetz, Montrose, Colo. 73-71–144
Philip Lee, Denver, Colo. 72-73–145
Andrew McCormick, Denver, Colo. 75-71–146
Evan Buchalski, Loveland, Colo. 75-72–147
Samuel Taylor, Nederland, Colo. 73-74–147
Austin Burgess, Colorado Springs, Colo. 71-77–148
Tyler Zhang, Lone Tree, Colo. 71-77–148
Zach Gomez, Westminster, Colo. 74-74–148
Wes Moran, Colorado Springs, Colo. 71-78–149
Alec Poorman, Boulder, Colo. 77-73–150
Austin Hardman, Highlands Ranch, Colo. 73-77–150
Jack Castiglia, Lakewood, Colo. 73-77–150
Jackson Crist, Highlands Ranch, Colo. 74-76–150
Chadd Vasquez, Colorado Springs, Colo. 77-74–151
Ryan Pearson, Highlands Ranch, Colo. 76-75–151
Ryan Zetwick, Castle Rock, Colo. 80-72–152
David Leede, Greenwood Village, Colo. 75-79–154
Jake Welch, Highlands Ranch, Colo. 77-77–154
Subin Lee, Englewood, Colo. 79-75–154
Micah Stangebye, Montrose, Colo. 79-77–156
Dillon Baker, Castle Rock, Colorado 81-78–159
Isaac Calden, Estes Park, Colorado 77-82–159
Kyle Pearson, Highlands Ranch, Colo. 78-82–160
Christopher Kennedy, Aurora, Colo. 76-86–162
Cameron Chapman, Highlands Ranch, Colo. 79-92–171
Linc Kleager, Glenwood Springs, Colo. 93-81–174
Michael Perea, Golden, Colo. 81-WD
Girls (Par-72)
Mary Weinstein, Highlands Ranch, Colo. 73-73–146
Morgan Sahm, Centennial, Colo. 78-72–150
Jaclyn Murray, Grand Junction, Colo. 73-77–150
Amy Chitkoksoong, Aurora, Colo. 83-71–154
Lauren Murphy, Carbondale, Colo. 78-77–155
Delaney Elliott, Superior, Colo. 75-81–156
Erin Sargent, Longmont, Colo. 82-74–156
Alexis Chan, Castle Pines, Colo. 76-82–158
Kacey Godwin, Denver, Colo. 83-82–165
Andrea Hoos, Thornton, Colo. 79-87–166
Jordan Remley, Lakewood, Colo. 80-86–166
Lauren Lehigh, Loveland, Colo. 88-85–173