In a field of 56 players — 35 on the boys side and 21 on the girls — 16-year-old Jacob Mason of Westminster shot a 2-under-par 69 for the boys lead and 3A state high school champion Jackson Klutznick of Denver posted a 1-under 70 to also finish in red numbers.

Meanwhile Caroline Jordaan of Lakewood, who has committed to play her college golf at the University of Denver, carded an even-par 71 to take a three-stroke lead in the girls competition at the fourth and final JGAC Tour major of 2018.

Mason, the winner of a JGAC Tour event at Legacy Ridge in July, placed sixth individually on Tuesday at the 3A state high school meet while competing for Holy Family. He made four birdies and two bogeys on a cool Saturday at DCC.

Klutznick also carried over his strong play from the 3A state tournament, carding three birdies and two bogeys in round 1.

Billy Howenstein of Boulder, who tied Mason for sixth play at the 3A meet, holds third place at even-par 71 after a one-birdie, one-bogey day.

In the girls tournament, Caroline Jordaan and her younger sister, Marie, are 1-2 on the scoreboard, with 2016 JGAC Tour Championship winner Charlotte Hillary of Englewood sharing second place with the younger Jordaan.

Caroline Jordaan, runner-up in the 3A state tournament in the spring, recorded five birdies and five bogeys in round 1. She had three “2s” on her card.

Marie Jordaan and Hillary finished with one birdie and four bogeys each on Saturday.

Defending champion Hailey Schalk of Erie and 2018 JGAC Girls Junior Tour points leader Lauren Lehigh of Loveland each opened with a 77.

The 36-hole tournaments for both the boys and girls will conclude on Sunday.

For scores from the JGAC Tour Championship, click on the following: BOYS, GIRLS
 

In the boys tournament, Jake Welch of Highlands Ranch shot a 4-under-par 68 at Todd Creek Golf Club in Thornton to take a one-stroke lead into Wednesday’s final round. But eight players are either one or two shots out of the lead, and another four are four back.

Welch finished with six birdies and a double bogey in round 2 to check in at 4-under 140 overall.

Five players share second place at 141, including first-round leader TJ Shehee of Mead (75 on Tuesday), Walker Franklin of Broomfield (70), Jack Hughes of Aspen (71), Ryan Liao of Littleton (72) and Connor Jones of Westminster (69).

Among those at 142 is Dillon Stewart of Fort Collins, winner of the AJGA Hale Irwin Colorado Junior last month, who carded a second-round 68.

In the girls competition, three players share the lead at 8-over-par 152 — Meghan Vogt of Broomfield, Marie Jordaan of Lakewood and Josie Baker of Sherman Oaks, Calif.

Vogt, who qualified last month for the U.S. Girls’ Junior, shot a second-round 75, while Jordaan had a 76 and Baker a 77.

First-round leader Katie Berrian of Castle Rock holds fourth place at 154 after posting an 82 on Tuesday. Emma Bryant of Aurora, the 5A girls state high school champion, is another stroke back after a second-round 78.

For the scores from the Colorado Junior Amateur, click BOYS, GIRLS.

In the second season for three separate classifications, all three events are set for Monday and Tuesday (May 21-22), with the 5A tournament at Boulder Country Club, 4A at the Country Club of Colorado in Colorado Springs, and 3A at Elmwood Golf Course in Pueblo.

Here are some things worth noting for next week:

— Last year, Hailey Schalk of Holy Family became the first freshman to win a Colorado girls state high school individual title since Ashley Tait managed the feat in 2002 en route to a record-tying three state prep championships.

Schalk, the 2017 Junior Golf Alliance of Colorado Girls Player of the Year, has won every high school tournament in which she’s competed so far in her career. She’ll put that record on the line at the 3A meet in Pueblo.

— This year will mark the first time since 2007 that all of the individual state champions will be back to defend their titles. That includes Grandview junior Amy Chitkoksoong (5A), Loveland junior Lauren Lehigh (4A) and Holy Family sophomore Schalk (3A). Lehigh has verbally committed to play her college golf at the University of New Mexico.

— Fairview senior Kelsey Webster, who will play golf for the University of Colorado beginning in the fall, will compete in her final state tournament on her home course, Boulder Country Club. Webster, who won the 5A Central Regional with a 3-under-par 69 at South Suburban earlier this month, finished ninth at state last year. Webster’s 69 was one of two scores in the 60s at the regional state qualifying tournaments. Caroline Jordaan of Colorado Academy, who tied for third in last year’s 3A state meet, fired a regional-best 67 at the 3A Region 2 tournament at CommonGround this month. Webster shot a 66 in a March tournament at Harmony Club.

— Two players who teamed up in the recent U.S. Women’s Amateur Four-Ball Championship — and advanced to the match play round of 32 — will compete against one another in the 3A tournament in Pueblo. That would be Schalk and Charlotte Hillary of Kent Denver, both sophomores who finished 1-2 in last year’s 3A meet.

Both players won regional tournaments, and earlier this week Hillary finished seventh out of 48 players in the 36-hole U.S. Women’s Open Qualifying at The Ranch Country Club.

— Two other regional champions will similarly square off in the 5A tournament in Boulder after meeting in last year’s Colorado Junior Match Play final. Eaglecrest freshman Emma Bryant defeated Chitkoksoong 1 up in that match to claim the title.

— In Junior Golf Alliance of Colorado Tour events held so far this spring, girls champions have included Chitkoksoong (twice) and Marie Jordaan of Colorado Academy. Chitkoksoong defeated Jenna Chun of Highlands Ranch in a 5A playoff last year and was runner-up at the state tournament as a freshman. Chun will play her college golf at the University of Northern Colorado beginning in the fall.

— Speaking of Colorado Academy, it’s won four state team titles since 2007, including last year’s 3A crown. CA and 4A Windsor posted the lowest team scores at regionals this month, 227. In 5A, Ralston Valley will defend its title after winning a girls golf state championship last year for the first time. Also back to defend after winning its first girls golf state title last year is Loveland in 4A.

For Monday’s state tournament tee times, CLICK HERE.

Here are the teams and players that won regional tournaments earlier this month to qualify for state:

5A Northern Regional at Collindale GC — Team: Fossil Ridge 242; Individual: Emma Bryant, Eaglecrest, 75.

5A Southern Regional at Colorado Springs CC — Team: Grandview 240; Individual: Amy Chitkoksoong, Grandview, and Morgan Ryan, Grandview, 79.

5A Central Regional at South Suburban GC — Team: Highlands Ranch 236; Individual: Kelsey Webster, Fairview, 69.

5A Western Regional at Fox Hollow GC — Team: Cherry Creek 229; Individual: Brooke Kramer, Cherokee Trail, 73.

4A Region 1 at Garden of the Gods Club — Team: Coronado 254; Individual: Zoey Rodriguez, Pueblo South, and Maxine Choi, Cheyenne Mountain, 78.

4A Region 2 at Eisenhower GC’s Silver Course — Team: Valor Christian 277; Individual: Isabell Deak, Air Academy, 84.

4A Region 3 at Pelican Lakes GC — Team: Windsor 227; Individual: Jessica Zapf, Windsor, and Kinsey Smith, Windsor, 74.

4A Region 4 at Highland Hills GC — Team: Loveland 254; Individual: Lauren Lehigh, Loveland, 74.

3A Region 1 at Hollydot GC — Team: The Classical Academy 271; Individual: Hailey Schalk, Holy Family, 70.

3A Region 2 at CommonGround GC — Team: Colorado Academy 227; Individual: Caroline Jordaan, Colorado Academy, 67.

3A Region 3 at Olde Course at Loveland — Team: Jefferson Academy 240; Individual: Charlotte Hillary, Kent Denver, 70.

3A Region 4 at Rifle Creek GC — Team: Rifle 242; Individual: Masi Smith, Rifle, 72.
 

Ott (left), winner of the Colorado Junior PGA last month, defeated Connor Jones of Westminster 5 and 4 in his quest for two consecutive junior major titles in 2016. And Braden Bentley of Colorado Springs, the winner of the Colorado Junior Amateur in June, scored an 8-and-7 victory over Beam Boonta of Centennial.

But Perea upended Stewart, who finished eighth Friday in the boys 14-15 division of the Optimist International Junior Golf Championships in Florida.

Meanwhile, the top eight seeds in the girls tournament received first-round byes on Monday. The top seed to play on Monday’s round of 32, No. 9 Marie Jordaan of Cherry Hills Village, fell to No. 24 seed Jenna Chun of Englewood in 19 holes.

To see the brackets for each tournament, click on the following: BOYS, GIRLS.

What is it about Texas A&M recruits and shooting extremely low final rounds to win major Colorado-based junior tournaments?

Last year, A&M recruit Reese Ramsey set the course record with a 10-under-par 61 at CommonGround in the last round to win the AJGA Hale Irwin Colorado Junior.

And on Friday, Aggie recruit Walker Lee fired a bogey-free 9-under-par 63 at Eisenhower Golf Club at the Air Force Academy to rally to win a national PGA Junior Series event. Lee and Ramsey will be freshman teammates at Texas A&M in the fall of 2017.

“That’s crazy good,” Lee (pictured) said of the 63. “But I feel like I should be much closer to that more often. But everything was going great. Everything was going my way.

“The first day (of the 54-hole tournament) my putting was good but my ball-striking wasn’t. The second day it was vice-versa. And I knew if I could get both those to click I’d be in pretty good shape.”

The 63 Friday for Lee was the lowest tournament round in the life of the golfer from Houston, which came at an ideal time for him.

But it wasn’t so ideal for AJ Ott of Fort Collins, who led after the first and second rounds. Despite being up by three going into Friday and shooting an even-par 72, Ott amazingly finished six shots behind the champion.

The result was yet another runner-up finish for the Colorado State University-bound golfer, who also placed second in the 2015 CGA Junior Stroke Play, the 2015 5A state high school meet and the 2016 AJGA Hale Irwin Colorado Junior.

“I’ve just got to learn how to finish,” said Ott (left), the 2015 CJGA Tournament of Champions winner. “There really isn’t any other answer to it. Second place is fine, but it’s not really going to go anywhere. It’s been solid, but I think I need to learn how to finish off a little better.”

But even if Ott had played better on Friday, it would have been difficult to keep up with Lee. The champion’s closing 63 gave him a three-round total of 14-under-par 202. To put that into perspective, the record-low 54-hole total for the winner of the Gene Miranda Falcon Invitational college tournament that’s held annually at Eisenhower Golf Club is 203.

“It was fun to watch,” said Ott, who was paired with Lee all three days. “I was kind of rooting him on there toward the end.”

Ott, like Lee a left-hander, checked in at 208 for second place, while 2015 U.S. Junior Amateur qualifier Davis Bryant of Aurora came in third at 212 after carding a bogey-free 68 in round 3. Oliver Jack of Denver placed fourth at 214.

Lee, a past winner of an AJGA tournament in Texas, made nine birdies Friday and played his final 11 holes in 7 under par.

“I haven’t won in a long time,” the 18-year-old said. “It’s good to get that off my back. I’ll take some confidence from this.

“My goal today was 4 under on the front nine (which he shot) just in case the rain came and they cut it down to nine holes. I wanted to get at least tied with (Ott) after nine. I did that, and put some pressure on.”

Lee said this was his first time playing golf in Colorado — or anywhere with significant altitude.

“I like it,” he said with a smile. “I talked to a bunch of friends who have played up here and they said, ‘Turn your range finder to meters and it’s about the same’. It worked pretty well.”

After Ott went 67-69 the first two rounds, making two eagles on Thursday, Friday wasn’t as good, though he was steady, with two birdies and two bogeys.

“I didn’t hit the ball as well today and I didn’t putt as well,” said the 18-year-old Ott. “I had six three-putts this week so that cost me a little bit.”

In the girls tournament, Thai national team member Tunrada Piddon (left) also posted a stellar final-round score — in her case, a 66 — to win by four strokes. The 15-year-old, who had never before carded a 6-under-par round, finished at 1-under-par 215.

Dominique Galloway of Rio Rancho, N.M. was second at 219 while Sophie Guo of China ended up third at 224. The top Coloradan in the girls 15-18 division was Sarah Hwang of Monument, who placed sixth at 232.

“She’s happy,” Piddon said through a translator. “Today everything just came together. She drove the ball really well and putted really well.”

With their victories on Friday, Lee and Piddon qualified for the Junior PGA Championship, set for Aug. 9-12 in Rumford, R.I.

Marie Jordaan of Cherry Hills Village was best among the four players in the girls 12-14 division. She carded an 83 Friday for a 244 total, good for a one-stroke victory over Amisha Singh of Greenwood Village.

Aaron Kuznik of Orono, Minn., went wire-to-wire to win the boys 12-14 division. His final-round 78 gave him a 19-over-par 235 total. Carson Hackmann of Laurel, Mont., came in second at 245, while Supawich Boonta of Aurora placed third at 246.

For scores: boys 15-18, girls 15-18, boys 12-14, girls 12-14
 

Ott, the 2015 CJGA Tournament of Champions winner, backed up his first-round 67 with a 3-under-par 69 on Thursday, giving him an 8-under 136 total with just Friday’s final round remaining.

The Colorado State University signee (pictured) supplemented his two eagles — on the fifth and 16th holes — with two birdies and three bogeys on Thursday. The 18-year-old is three up on Walker Lee of Houston (70-69) and seven up on Luke Travins of Colorado Springs (71-72). Among the five players tied for fourth at 144 are Davis Bryant of Aurora, Oliver Jack of Denver and David Leede of Greenwood Village.

Meanwhile, in the girls 15-18 division, two players from the Thailand contingent are among the top three golfers after Thursday. Nicha Vorrasanpisut of Thailand (74-74) shares the lead with Sophie Guo of China (74-74), while Thai national team member Tunrada Piddon is third, one stroke back, after going 78-71.

The top Coloradan in the girls 15-18 division is Caroline Jordaan of Cherry Hills Village, who’s seventh at 153 (76-77).

The winners in the top boys and girls divisions will earn spots in the Junior PGA Championship, set for Aug. 9-12 in Rumford, R.I.

Marie Jordaan of Cherry Hills Village, Caroline’s sister, maintained her lead in the girls 12-14 division, going 80-81–161. That’s two better than Amisha Singh of Greenwood Village (83-80) in the four-player field.

In boys 12-14, Aaron Kuznik of Orono, Minn., kept his lead, posting rounds of 76-81 for a 13-over-par 157 total. That’s two better than Carson Hackmann of Laurel, Mont. (80-79–159) and six better than third-place Trey Jones of Colorado Springs (79-84–159)

For scores: boys 15-18, girls 15-18, boys 12-14, girls 12-14

The Colorado State University signee, who tied for second earlier this month at the AJGA Hale Irwin Colorado Junior, made seven birdies and two bogeys in the first of three rounds at Eisenhower.

Colton Tanner of Park City, Utah holds second place at 69, while Jackson Crist of Highlands Ranch, Walker Lee of Houston and Kirby Coe-Kirkham of Sheridan, Wyo., share third at 70.

In the girls division, sisters Dominique and Jacquelyn Galloway of Rio Rancho, N.M., took the lead by matching 1-over-par 73s. Sophie Guo of China and Nicha Vorrasanpisut of Thailand posted 74s to share third place.

Caroline Jordaan of Cherry Hills Village and Sarah Hwang of Monument are tied for fifth place at 76 with Shannon Gould of O’Fallon, Mo., and Natai Apichonlati of Thailand.

Meanwhile, in the 12-14 age group, Marie Jordaan leads the four-player girls field with an 80, while Amisha Singh of Greenwood Village is second at 83. Aaron Kuznik of Orono, Minn., is setting the pace for the boys at 76, while Trey Jones of Colorado Springs is second at 79.

The tournament for all divisions will continue through Friday.

For scores: boys 15-18, girls 15-18, boys 12-14, girls 12-14

The prestigious Junior World Championships are scheduled for July 12-15 in the San Diego area.

— Jordan Jennings of Montrose and Beam Boonta of Centennial earned the two spots in the boys 13-14 age division. Jennings shot a 1-under-par 71, while Boonta fired a 74 and prevailed in a three-person playoff by making a par on the second extra hole, leaving TJ Hicks of Denver and Walter Franklin of Broomfield as alternates.

— In the girls 13-14 division, three players — Emma Bryant of Aurora, Marie Jordaan of Cherry Hills Village and Amisha Singh of Greenwood Village — tied for the low score with 3-over-par 75s. Then Bryant and Jordaan gained the Junior World spots via a playoff, where both of them parred both extra holes.

— Brayden Bozak of Phoenix blew away the field in the boys 11-12 division by carding a 5-under-par 67. The second and final Junior World spot went to Luke Olkowski of Grand Junction, who shot a 76 and beat Parker Paxton of Riverton, Wyo., in a playoff. Olkowski went birdie, birdie in the playoff.

— In the girls 11-12 division, Katelyn Lehigh of Loveland and Sofia Choi of Littleton gained the two available Junior World spots. Lehigh posted an 11-over-par 83, while Choi had an 86.

On Wedneday, three Coloradans in the 15-17 age division qualified for the Junior Worlds: Dillon Stewart of Fort Collins, Amy Chitkoksoong of Aurora and Lauren Lehigh of Loveland.

For scores from Thursday’s four qualifiers, CLICK HERE.

There was good-natured roughhousing among some of the boys, plenty of laughing and giggling by both the girls and boys, and pretty good golf along the way too.

Such is the nature of the CJGA 10 & Under Junior Series Championship. While there’s certainly a competitive tournament going on, there was no lack of youthful playfulness Wednesday at the Fowler Par-3 Course at Boulder Country Club.

“These tournaments are fun, and I play with all my friends,” noted 9-year-old Anna Jordaan from Cherry Hills Country Club.

Among some of the highlights of the day:

— In addition to sharing some laughs with some of her young golf buddies, Jordaan (left) won the girls 10 & Under Junior Series title two years after older sister Marie claimed the same championship.

Asked what Marie’s reaction might be to Anna duplicating her feat, the younger Jordaan said, “I’m moving up and she would probably get mad. She’ll probably think (she still has bragging rights because) she won it first.”

Jordaan posted the victory Wednesday — her fourth of the CJGA season — by shooting a 76. Sofia Choi of Highlands Ranch Golf Club took second place at 78, while Katelyn Lehigh of the Olde Course at Loveland finished third at 84.

— After playing with Brayden Bozak the last two years as Bozak won back-to-back 10 & Under Junior Series titles, Traejan Andrews (left) of Boomerang Golf Links prevailed by five strokes in the boys competition Wednesday.

“I’ve always wanted to win this event,” said the 10-year-old Andrews, who notched his third win of the year on the CJGA circuit. “I played with Brayden Bozak the two years before this and he won both times, so I’m really happy I won this year. I’m just really proud of myself.”

And, for the record, the Windsor resident finished a stroke lower than Bozak’s totals each of the last two years.

Andrews claimed the boys championship by shooting a 7-over-par 61 at the Fowler Course. Gage Messingham of The Heritage at Westmoor and Jake Chesler of the CJGA Club tied for second at 66.

— One of the most successful players ever in the Junior Series Championship, three-time 14-18 winner Somin Lee, returned to the event, albeit as an interested observer. Lee had planned to caddie for Andrew Jang, who takes lessons from Lee’s dad, but when she learned that wasn’t allowed, she became a rapt spectator. In case you’re wondering, Jang (left, with Lee) shot 70 and finished seventh in the boys tournament.

Lee, a two-time CWGA Player of the Year, will soon depart for her senior season as a golfer at Pepperdine University.

Wednesday’s tournament marked the third and final CJGA Junior Series Championship of 2014. On Tuesday, Ross Macdonald of the Country Club at Castle Pines and Jennifer Kupcho of CommonGround Golf Course won the 14-18 championships. And last week, Jack Castiglia of Fossil Trace Golf Club and Amy Chitkoksoong of Murphy Creek Golf Course claimed the 11-13 titles.
 

CJGA 10 & Under Junior Series Championship
At Par-54 Fowler Par-3 Course at Boulder CC

BOYS
Traejan Andrews, Boomerang GL – 31-30–61
Gage Messingham, Heritage at Westmoor – 33-33–66
Jake Chesler, Cjga Club – 33-33–66
Maxwell Lange, Rolling Hills CC – 34-33–67
Alex Chitkoksoong, CommonGround GC – 33-35–68
Luke Olkowski, Bookcliff CC – 33-36–69
Andrew Jang, Family Sports GC – 34-36–70
Trey Kirschner, West Woods – 37-33–70
Camden Braidech, Lone Tree Golf Club – 34-37–71
Liam Wood, Cjga Club – 36-35–71
Mason Macias, Family Sports GC – 35-39–74
Jack Rottschafer, South Suburban GC – 34-42–76
Yusuke Ogi, Fox Hollow – 38-40–78
Bielly Phasay, Riverdale GC – 39-40–79
Greg Woodley, Cjga Club – 40-39–79
Trey Grube, Meridian GC – 42-41–83
Elijah Knudsen, Fox Hill CC – 44-40–84
Benjamin Chin, Meridian GC – 43-44–87
Zane Aiken, Cjga Club – 44-47–91

GIRLS
Anna Jordaan, Cherry Hills CC – 37-39–76
Sofia Choi, Highlands Ranch GC – 41-37–78
Katelyn Lehigh, Olde Course at Loveland – 44-40–84
Ashleigh Wilson, Highlands Ranch GC – 44-42–86
Chunya Bead Boonta, Commond Ground GC – 45-44–89
Sarah Murphy, Cjga Club – 45-45–90
Joie Chun, Lonetree GC – 52-60–112
 

Brayden Bozak of Red Rocks Country Club and Marie Jordaan of Cherry Hills Country Club won their respective divisions Wednesday in the CJGA’s 10 & Under Junior Series Championship at Boulder Country Club’s Les Fowler Par-3 Course.

And for the second straight year, the tournament included a hole-in-one, this time by Hailey Schalk of Colorado National Golf Club, who aced the 85-yard third hole.

Bozak (pictured above), 8, shot an 8-over-par 62 to win the boys title by two strokes over Christian Agelopoulos of South Suburban Family Sports Golf Course.

In the girls division, the 10-year-old Jordaan (pictured at left) carded a 14-over-par 68 to edge Schalk by one shot.    
 
The Junior Series Championship for 14-18 year-olds took place last week, with Jimmy Makloski of Pueblo Country Club and Jennifer Kupcho of CommonGround Golf Course claiming the titles. Coby Welch of The Links Golf Course and Zarena Brown of Lake Arbor Golf Club won the 11-13 championships on Tuesday.

CJGA 10 & Under Junior Series Championship


At Par-54 Les Fowler Course at Boulder CC

BOYS
Brayden Bozak, Red Rocks Country Club – 29-33–62
Christian Agelopoulos, Family Sports Golf Course – 33-31–64
John Marble, Raccoon Creek  – 35-30–65
Jeffrey Zhou, Highlands Ranch Golf Club – 33-34–67
Ryan Sangchompuphen, CommonGround Golf Course – 36-32–68
Maxwell Lange, Rolling Hills Country Club – 35-34–69
Brady Wilson, West Woods Golf Club – 35-35–70
Ryan Liao, Family Sports – 33-38–71
Zaden Gomez, Indian Tree Golf Course – 36-35–71
Toby Salinas, Desert Hawk GC – 41-32–73
Trey Jones, Gleneagle Golf Club – 36-37–73
Suchit Sharma, Thorncreek Golf Course – 38-38–76
Jack Whitehead, Southglenn Country Club – 33-44–77
Riley Rottschafer, South Suburban – 34-43–77
Medhaj Shrestha, Applewood Golf Course – 40-38–78
William Kandel, Denver Country Club – 39-39–78
Traejan Andrews, Boomerang – 37-43–80
Jack Rottschafer, South Suburban – 37-47–84
Owen Mackin, Castle Pines Country Club  – 45-40–85
Clay L Cutter, Meridian GC – 43-45–88

GIRLS
Marie Jordaan, Cherry Hills Country Club – 35-33–68
Hailey Schalk, Colorado National Golf Club – 36-33–69
Katie Berrian, The CC at Castle Pines – 38-32–70
Taylor Tucker, The Meadows – 36-36–72
Brittlynn Jade O’Dell, Bookcliff CC Wga – 36-37–73
Lauren Tucker, The Meadows – 42-31–73
Emma Bryant, Green Valley Ranch Golf Club – 41-41–82
Sasha Parker, Aurora Hills Golf Course – 45-39–84
Sanika N Kulkarni, South Suburban  – 41-44–85
Lindsey Benson, Valley CC Wga – 46-43–89