The AJGA Hale Irwin Colorado Junior, presented by MusclePharm, started with three-time U.S. Open champion Hale Irwin putting on a clinic at CommonGround Golf Course. Then AJGA competitors promptly went out the next day and made three holes-in-one in a single round.
It all seemed pretty hard to top.
Yet the inaugural tournament at CommonGround seemed to do just that on Thursday.
Reese Ramsey of Austin, Texas not only set a course record at CommonGround but he tied the low round in the 37-year history of the AJGA Thursday with a 10-under-par 61 that vaulted the 16-year-old to victory. (He’s pictured above receiving the trophy from CGA executive director Ed Mate.)
“It’s crazy that it actually happened,” he said. “I didn’t really expect that it would, but it did. It was just a special day and a special moment, so I’m going to savor it. It was a round I’ll never forget.”
Ramsey, who has verbally committed to play college golf at Texas A&M starting in 2017, came from eight strokes behind entering the final round to post his first AJGA victory. The high school junior-to-be made eight birdies to go along with an eagle on No. 11, where he sank a 15-foot putt.
Ramsey broke the course record by one at CommonGround, which opened in 2009. Nick Mason previously had the low competitive round, a 62 shot in a local mini-tour event in 2012.
As for the AJGA, it’s been around since 1978, and none of the luminaries who have played over the years — including Tiger Woods, Phil Mickelson, Jordan Spieth, Rickie Fowler, Bubba Watson and Sergio Garcia — have had a better round on that junior circuit than Ramsey did on Thursday.
“Oh my gosh, that’s impressive,” AJ Ott (left) of Fort Collins said of Ramsey’s 61. “I’m going to go shake that kid’s hand. That’s pretty sweet.”
The Texan teed off more than two hours ahead of the second-round leaders and finished three-plus hours before them, considering there was a late-afternoon suspension of play for lightning. The closing 61 gave Ramsey a 9-under-par 204 total and a two-stroke victory over Sam Tidd of Meridian, Idaho.
On a day when three players shot 65 or lower, the two besides Ramsey tied for third place. Jackson Solem of Longmont, the day after posting a quintuple-bogey 9 on a hole, closed with a 65, while Joshua Gliege of Eagle, Idaho managed a 63. They shared third place at 207 with Ott (70 Thursday) and second-round leader Tripp Kinney of West Des Moines, Iowa (72).
In the girls competition, three-time Oklahoma state high school champion Sydney Youngblood, of Durant, prevailed by two strokes after being no worse than co-leader following the first two rounds.
Ramsey’s previous low round in tournament play was a 63. This week, he went 75-68-61. Does that mean if the tournament had been a four-rounder, he would have shot 54 on Friday? Just a thought.
Ramsey needed just 26 putts on Thursday and made more than his share of 10- and 15-footers. “Everything was kind of working my way,” he said.
So what does it mean to shoot a score that no one has beaten in AJGA history?
“It is just super cool,” he said. “It hasn’t really sunk in yet.”
As for the top Colorado finishers, Solem and Ott put together strong showings but each had a little feeling of “what if?”
Had Solem (left) made a par instead of a 9 on the par-4 13th hole Wednesday, he would have won by two. As it was, he lost a ball on the hole, left a shot in a bunker, then pitched out and three-putted.
“There’s nothing I can do about it now,” he said Thursday. “It was kind of a fluke thing. I haven’t had a 9 since I think I was 13. It’s been a while. It’s in the ‘would be nice’ category. But this is a good finish for my first AJGA. It’s definitely a confidence-booster going into the rest of the year.”
As for Ott, a 2014 U.S. Junior Amateur qualifier, he was on the heels of the leaders at 8 under par overall through 48 holes, but he went 2 over the rest of the way.
“I’ve been struggling a little lately, but I found something this week and it was nice to kind of feel in contention,” said the left-hander, who has committed to Colorado State. “But I’ve got to play better down the stretch.”
In the girls tournament, Youngblood (left) closed with an even-par 71 to post a 1-under-par 212 total. Placing second was a 13-year-old, Ellie Szeryk of Allen Texas, who shot a 73 Thursday for 214 overall. Jennifer Kupcho of Westminster, who last month won her second straight Colorado high school championship, tied for third place with Bibilani Liu of Cupertino, Calif., at 216. Kupcho carded a 71 on Thursday and Liu a 72.
Youngblood, a 17-year-old who has committed to play college golf at the University of Oklahoma beginning in the fall of 2016, scored her first AJGA victory. She made two birdies and two bogeys in a steady final round. On Tuesday, she shot a 66, her low round ever.
“I’m really honored to be able to win an AJGA event,” said Youngblood, who ranks this win above any of her Oklahoma state high school titles. “The competition in these events is always really tough; all the players are amazing. It’s always a tight race. I’m blessed to have been able to come out on top. I’ve always had a blast playing AJGA.”
Kupcho (left) had a blemish-free scorecard through 14 holes with two birdies and a dozen pars. But her hopes of winning the first and last AJGA event she’ll play realistically ended with back-to-back bogeys on Nos. 15 and 16.
“I was playing great, but couldn’t keep it going,” the 2014 CWGA Player of the Year said. “But it was a great experience to be able to play against that kind of competition in my home state.”
The 2016 AJGA Hale Irwin Colorado Junior will be played at Highlands Ranch Golf Club, which was designed by Irwin himself. Future sites are to be determined.
For scores from this week’s tournament, CLICK HERE.
]]>Just since 2008, a half-dozen Coloradans have won titles at prestigious AJGA tournaments held in their home state.
The list includes Josh Seiple, Jimmy Makloski, David Oraee (twice), Wyndham Clark, Patricia Lee and Cole Nygren.
And after Thursday, maybe those six will have some company.
With the inaugural AJGA Hale Irwin Colorado Junior, presented by MusclePharm, wrapping up on Thursday, perhaps five boys and one girl from Colorado have realistic chances of claiming a title at CommonGround Golf Course.
On the boys side, three of the top five players on the leaderboard are from Colorado — AJ Ott (pictured at top) of Fort Collins, and Jake Staiano and Pierce Aichinger of Cherry Hills Village — and another two Coloradans are also within six strokes of leader Tripp Kinney of West Des Moines, Iowa: Coby Welch of Highlands Ranch and Wilson Belk of Colorado Springs.
As for the girls, two-time Colorado 4A high school champion Jennifer Kupcho of Westminster remains in striking distance at four back of the leaders, one of whom is a 13-year-old Texan.
“It’s fun to represent Colorado as a whole,” said Staiano, a Colorado State University signee who has a chance to qualify for the U.S. Open on Monday in Memphis. “I think Colorado is a little underrated for (the players it produces). It’s fun to put Colorado on the map.”
Kinney (left), a two-time Iowa junior amateur champion, fired a 4-under-par 67 Wednesday and holds a two-stroke lead after the second round of the first AJGA event held in Colorado since 2013.
Kinney chipped in from 30 feet for eagle at No. 11 and played his final 11 holes in 5 under par on Wednesday en route to a 7-under 135 total.
“Most of the time I’m used to coming (from behind). It’ll be different tomorrow,” said Kinney, who’s committed to Iowa State. “I’m sure there’s going to be a lot of pressure. I’m going to have to go with it. I guess I kind of like pressure in a way. It keeps me focused. There’s going to be pressure, but there’s going to be pressure on everybody.”
Playing in the same threesome as Kinney, Ott likewise fired a 67 on Wednesday, leaving him in second place at 137. Staiano, Ott’s future teammate at CSU, holds down third place at 138 after consecutive 69s. Staiano, like Ott, is a 2014 U.S. Junior Amateur qualifier.
The third Coloradan in the top five is Aichinger, who carded a 67 Wednesday and shares fourth place with Reese McFarlane of Cape Elizabeth, Maine. Aichinger is a University of Colorado golf signee.
Welch, who like Staiano is a member of the Hale Irwin Elite Player Program at CommonGround, is tied for sixth place at 140, while CU signee Belk shares ninth at 141.
Welch, Staiano and Aichinger were high school teammates at Valor Christian.
“Hopefully we can get some Colorado kids on the top of the leaderboard tomorrow,” said Ott, who did his part on Wednesday with two 2s and five 3s on his card.
“It was pretty stress-free,” the left-hander said. “I’m excited (to be in contention). I’m going to need to play well tomorrow and probably shoot around the same as I did today. I just want to go out and have fun.”
Staiano (left), the 2013 CGA Junior Match Play champion, and Kinney are the only two players in the field — either boys and girls — to post two straight rounds in the 60s in the Irwin Colorado Junior.
“They moved some tees back and the pins were much, much, much more difficult” on Wednesday, Staiano said. “You had to put it in the right spot today or you’re making bogey,”
Californian Joseph Crisostomo, who made a hole-in-one on Tuesday during a first-round 64, dropped back to 16th place on Wednesday following a 79.
In the girls tournament, the 13-year-old who moved into a tie for the lead is Ellie Szeryk, a resident of Allen, Texas who just completed seventh grade. She stands at 1-under-par 141 after rounds of 69-72 and shares the top spot with three-time Oklahoma state high school champion Sydney Youngblood (below) of Durant. Youngblood doubled bogeyed back-to-back holes (Nos. 15 and 16) en route to a 75 Wednesday after posting a 66 on Tuesday.
Szeryk, who qualified for the U.S. Girls’ Junior Championship last year at age 12, has made six birdies and five bogeys through two rounds.
“That I’m in the mix is pretty cool,” the AJGA “rookie” said. “It would be awesome (to win).”
Bibilani Liu of Cupertino, Calif., holds down third place at 144. Kupcho, the 2014 CWGA Player of the Year, is the top Coloradan as she stands in fourth place at 145. Her 74 on Wednesday included a snowman — a quadruple-bogey 8 — on the par-4 fifth hole to go along with four birdies and three bogeys.
“Before (the 8) I was playing great,” Kupcho said. “I just let that one get away from me. Otherwise I would have shot a great score and been down where (the leaders) are. But four strokes isn’t too bad. I definitely can make that up.”
As for Youngblood, who’s committed to the University of Oklahoma, she had a comfortable lead on Wednesday until coming to No. 15. There, a shot into the native and a three-putt resulted in a double bogey. She made another double on No. 16 when she needed two shots to get out of a fairway bunker and three-putted again.
“I’ve been hitting it real well all week,” she said. “Just two bad shots cost my round today. I can’t let that get to my head and ruin my confidence. I’ve been putting real well, so I’m going to take that into tomorrow.”
For scores from the AJGA Hale Irwin Colorado Junior, CLICK HERE.
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