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Teams Finalized for 2003 AJGA Canon
Cup
Rosters completed as captains make final
selections
Teams are now set for the 14th annual AJGA Canon Cup, the
American Junior Golf Association announced Wednesday. The
2003 event will be played at Sea Island Golf Club’s
Seaside Course in Sea Island, Ga., August 4 - 7.
The Canon Cup pits East vs. West (divided by the Mississippi
River) in a team match play format over three days. The first
two days of competition include foursome and four-ball matches,
and the final day is reserved for singles matches. Teams (10
boys and 10 girls) were selected based on a point system and
include four captains’ picks per squad.
Of the 40 participants this year, 32 are Polo Golf Junior
All-Americans, while nine boys and nine girls who are ranked
in the top 20 of the Golfweek/Titleist Junior Rankings
(as of July 13) will represent their respective teams.
Matt Cuccaro, the East Team captain and AJGA director of
tournament development, has five players returning from last
year’s squad, including second-team Polo Golf Junior
All-American Mallory Code of Tampa, Fla., who is set for her
fourth Canon Cup. The East side also features the top-ranked
boy in the Golfweek/Titleist Rankings, Brian Harman
of Savannah, Ga., who has captured two major championships
in 2003. The East Boys are strong as eight of the 15 top-ranked
boys are competing for Cuccaro.
Six players return from last year for the defending champion
West squad. Among the returnees for Captain Gus Montano, AJGA
director of education, are the reigning Polo Golf Boys Junior
Player of the Year Seung Su Han of Chino Hills, Calif., and
first-team Polo Golf Junior All-American Jonathan Moore of
Portland, Ore., who finished the event last year with a perfect
4-0 record.
“Canon is very proud to sponsor the AJGA’s premier
match play competition,“ said Debra Epstein, vice president
and general manager, Canon U.S.A., Inc. “The Canon Cup
allows aspiring young golfers the opportunity to experience
the importance of teamwork and good sportsmanship through
this unique team competition.”
The West squad will look to retain the title and improve
its 5-7-1 record against the East after winning last year
35.5-14.5. The West team won two of the first three Canon
Cups before the East team ran off five straight wins and a
tie from 1993-98. Past Canon Cup participants include Tiger
Woods, Stewart Cink, David Gossett, Charles Howell III, Ty
Tryon, Beth Bauer, Cristie Kerr, Kelli Kuehne and Grace Park.
“I really enjoyed playing in the Canon Cup,”
said David Gossett, PGA TOUR player. “It was fun and
they treated us so nice. I remember working hard all summer
long so I could get on the Canon Cup team. It’s the
best juniors in the country so the competition is high.”
The Canon Cup is part of Canon’s overall commitment
to support youth programs. Canon recently launched the Canon4Kids
program with PGA TOUR player Briny Baird to help find missing
children. Baird displays a different child’s image on
his golf bag each week he plays on the PGA TOUR. In addition,
Canon donates money to the National Center for Missing and
Exploited Children for every birdie, eagle and hole-in-one
he makes during the tournaments in which he plays. Canon makes
a similar donation to NCMEC for birdies, eagles, and holes-in-one
made by LPGA Tour player Michelle McGann.
Canon U.S.A., Inc. delivers consumer, business-to-business,
and industrial imaging solutions. The company is listed as
one of Fortune’s Most Admired Companies in America,
and is ranked No. 43 on the Business Week list of “Top
100 Brands.” Its parent company Canon Inc. (NYSE:CAJ)
is a top patent-holder of technology, ranking second overall
in the United States in 2003, with global revenues of $24.5
billion. Canon U.S.A. employs more than 10,000 people at more
than 30 locations. For more information, visit www.usa.canon.com.
The American Junior Golf Association is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit
organization dedicated to the overall growth and development
of young men and women who aspire to earn college golf scholarships
through competitive junior golf. The AJGA, the largest Association
of its kind, has a junior membership (boys and girls ages
13-18) of approximately 5,000 junior golfers from 50 states
and 30 foreign countries.
AJGA alumni have risen to the top of amateur, collegiate
and professional golf. More than 160 former AJGA juniors currently
play on the PGA and LPGA Tours and have compiled more than
280 wins. AJGA alumni include Phil Mickelson, Tiger Woods,
Davis Love III, Mike Weir, Jim Furyk, Dottie Pepper, Grace
Park, Vicki Goetze-Ackerman and Cristie Kerr.
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