Meet the 2010 Rolex Junior All-America Teams

Jordan Spieth, Emiliano Grillo, Yueer Cindy Feng and Victoria Tanco all earned repeat first-team Rolex Junior All-America honors.

Photo gallery of the 2010 First-Team Rolex Junior All-Americans

Anthony Paolucci of Rancho Santa Fe, Calif., headlines the 12 boys on the Rolex Junior All-America First Team. A four-time Rolex Junior All-American, Paolucci posted six top-five finishes in 2010, including victories at the Thunderbird International Junior and the Rolex Tournament of Champions. Paolucci twice represented the U.S. in international competition – he finished T7 at the Duke of York Young Champions Trophy in Hoylake, England, and in September he helped the U.S. retain the Junior Ryder Cup in Gleneagles, Scotland. Ranked No. 1 in the Polo Golf Rankings, he has verbally committed to Southern Cal.

Jordan Spieth of Dallas, the 2009 Rolex Junior Player of the Year, earned a spot on the Rolex Junior All-America First Team for the third year in a row, while Emiliano Grillo of Bradenton, Fla., and Gavin Hall of Pittsford, N.Y., are first-team selections for the second consecutive year.

Previous Rolex Junior All-Americans earning first-team accolades for the first time are Tanner Kesterson of Plano, Texas, Jim Liu of Smithtown, N.Y., Patrick Rodgers of Avon, Ind., Oliver Schniederjans of Powder Springs, Ga., and Justin Thomas of Goshen, Ky.

Additionally, three first-time Rolex Junior All-Americans are making their debut on the first team: Beau Hossler of Rancho Santa Margarita, Calif.; Michael Johnson of Birmingham, Ala.; and Denny McCarthy of Burtonsville, Md.

Introduced by the AJGA in 1978, the Rolex Junior All-America Teams annually recognize players who have established themselves as the world’s premier junior golfers. This year’s selections distinguished themselves through their outstanding play in 77 national events, 60 of which were conducted by the AJGA. The Rolex Junior All-America Teams were determined exclusively through the Polo Golf Rankings as of Oct. 20.

The teams are comprised of 96 junior golfers, ages 13-18, from 23 states and six foreign countries (Canada, Israel, Mexico, Northern Ireland, the Philippines and Thailand). These standouts will be honored at the Rolex Junior All-America Awards Banquet, Nov. 21, at PGA National Resort & Spa in Palm Beach Gardens, Fla.

Read about the Rolex Junior All-America Girls' Team

First-team Rolex Junior All-Americans

Emiliano Grillo, Bradenton, Fla.

An Argentina native who resides in Bradenton, Grillo is a first-team selection for the second consecutive year. Grillo carded four top-five finishes during the 2010 season, including back-to-back runner-up finishes at The Junior PLAYERS Championship and The PING Invitational. He is currently No. 10 in the Polo Golf Rankings.

Gavin Hall, Pittsford, N.Y.

Hall is a two-time member of the Rolex Junior All-America First Team and is currently ranked No. 9 in the Polo Golf Rankings. His 2010 season included a tie for third at the Thunderbird International Junior and another top-five showing at The PING Invitational. Hall also reached the quarterfinals at the U.S. Junior Amateur.

Beau Hossler, Rancho Santa Margarita, Calif.

Hossler climbed over 400 spots in the Polo Golf Rankings during 2010 and is currently No. 11 in the Polo Golf Rankings. He earned back-to-back victories at the Trader Joe’s Junior Championship hosted by Pat Hurst and the Stockton Sports Commission Junior Open. To top off the 2010 season, he placed third at The PING Invitational. He is being named a Rolex Junior All-American for the first time in his career.

Michael Johnson, Birmingham, Ala.

Johnson rose to No. 7 in the Polo Golf Rankings after earning his first AJGA Invitational victory at The Junior PLAYERS Championship over Labor Day weekend.  He earned an additional victory at the 2010 Deutsche Bank Partners for Charity Junior Shoot Out in July and placed inside the top 10 at five of the six events in which he competed this season. Johnson has verbally committed to play at Auburn next year.

Tanner Kesterson, Plano, Texas

Kesterson finished the 2010 season No. 12 in the Polo Golf Rankings. A win at the FootJoy Invitational earned him a sponsor's exemption to the PGA TOUR's Wyndham Championship, where he shot 72-74 – 146 and missed the cut. An honorable mention Rolex Junior All-American in 2009, Kesterson has verbally committed to Oklahoma State.

Jim Liu, Smithtown, N.Y.

Liu is a two-time Rolex Junior All-American and is currently No. 8 in the Polo Golf Rankings. With a win at the U.S. Junior Amateur, Liu became the youngest champion in the event's history, besting the previous record set by Tiger Woods. His 2010 season also included a win at The Verizon Junior Heritage and a T8 showing at the FootJoy Invitational.

Denny McCarthy, Burtonsville, Md.

McCarthy ascended to No. 3 in the Polo Golf Rankings after his victory at the Junior PGA Championship. His 2010 season also included a runner-up finish at the Thunderbird International Junior and a semifinal appearance in the U.S. Junior Amateur. McCarthy had five top-10 finishes in only six events and he was also a member of the 2010 U.S. Junior Ryder Cup Team.

Anthony Paolucci, Rancho Santa Fe, Calif.

Paolucci's 2010 season included two AJGA Invitational wins and successful runs at both the U.S. Junior Amateur and the Junior PGA Championship. He did not finish outside the top-three in any AJGA events in which he competed and was victorious at the Rolex Tournament of Champions and the Thunderbird International Junior. A verbal commit to Southern Cal, Paolucci is No. 1 in the Polo Golf Rankings and a four-time Rolex Junior All-American.

Patrick Rodgers, Avon, Ind.

Rodgers ascended to the No. 5 spot in the Polo Golf Rankings following a victory at the Western Junior Championship in June. He recorded seven top-10 finishes in nine events, including a runner-up finish at the prestigious Rolex Tournament of Champions. Rodgers is both a two-time HP Scholastic Junior All-American and Rolex Junior All-American and has verbally committed to Stanford.

Oliver Schniederjans, Powder Springs, Ga.

Schniederjans completed a year where he saw five top-10 finishes, including a victory at the 2009 Polo Golf Junior Classic. Ranked fourth in the Polo Golf Rankings, his season was highlighted by a third-place finish at the Junior PGA Championship, a fourth-place finish at The PING Invitational, and a fifth-place finish at the HP Boys Championship at Carlton Woods.

Jordan Spieth, Dallas, Texas

Spieth recorded five top-three finishes in AJGA competition, including his fourth career AJGA victory at The PING Invitational. He posted a 3-0-0 record for the victorious U.S. Team at the Junior Ryder Cup and finished T16 at the PGA TOUR's HP Byron Nelson Championship in May. Ranked No. 2 in the Polo Golf Rankings, Spieth was the 2009 Rolex Junior Player of the Year and has verbally committed to the University of Texas.

Justin Thomas, Goshen, Ky.

Thomas climbed to the No. 6 spot in the Polo Golf Rankings following two second-place finishes during the 2010 season. Thomas finished runner-up at the U.S. Junior Amateur and the FootJoy Invitational. In all, he posted top-10 finishes at five events this season to earn Rolex Junior All-America honors for the second consecutive year.

Second Team

Stephen Behr, Jr., Florence, S.C.

Alex Carpenter, Westerville, Ohio

Yi Keun Chang, Diamond Bar, Calif.

Wyndham Clark, Greenwood Village, Colo.

Brendan Connolly, Castle Rock, Colo.

Drew Czuchry, Auburn, Ga.

Shun Yat Hak, Lake Mary, Fla.

David Lee, Houston, Texas

AJ McInerney, Henderson, Nev.

Cody Proveaux, Leesville, S.C.

JD Tomlinson, Gainesville, Fla.

Joseph Winslow, Overland Park, Kan.

Honorable Mention

Daniel Berger, Jupiter, Fla.

Jonathan Garrick, Atherton, Calif.

Nicholas Grubnich, Crown Point, Ind.

J.J. Holen, Castaic, Calif.

Jay Hwang, San Diego, Calif.

Stewart Jolly, Birmingham, Ala.

Billy Kennerly, Alpharetta, Ga.

Michael Kim, Del Mar, Calif.

Chase Koepka, West Palm Beach, Fla.

Andrew Lister, Haymarket, Va.

Tom Lovelady, Birmingham, Ala.

Joshua Martin, Pinehurst, N.C.

Lee McCoy, Palm Harbor, Fla.

David Mills, Evansville, Ind.

Taylor Moore, Edmond, Okla.

Zachary Olsen, Cordova, Tenn.

Marcel Puyat, Indio, Calif.

Jonathan Sanders, Chatsworth, Calif.

Nicholas Scott, Union, Ohio

Cody Shafer, Evans, Ga.

Sawyer Shaw, West Palm Beach, Fla.

Zachary Wright, Phoenix, Ariz.

Motin Yeung, Orlando, Fla.

Will Zalatoris, Plano, Texas