VALERO TEXAS OPEN JUNIOR SHOOTOUT
The Dominion Country Club
San Antonio, Texas
July 12-15, 2004
PRESSEL, HEDGE COAST TO VICTORY AT THE DOMINION COUNTRY CLUB
Pressel’s 16-stroke margin of victory ties Girls Division record
SAN ANTONIO – Morgan Pressel of Boca Raton, Fla., picked up her seventh AJGA victory in dominant fashion Thursday, shooting a tournament total of 4-under-par 212 and tying the AJGA Girls Division record for margin of victory with a 16-stroke win at the Valero Texas Open Junior Shootout. In the Boys Division, Josh Hedge of Billings, Mont., put the finishing touches on a brilliant week, shooting a 1-over-par 73 and capturing his first win in an AJGA Open tournament by four strokes.
Conducted by the American Junior Golf Association, the Valero Texas Open Junior Shootout was a 54-hole, stroke play event featuring junior golfers from nine states and Mexico. 101 Texans were among the 120 juniors, who range in age from 12-18. 2004 marked the 13th year the AJGA has staged the event in the San Antonio area.
Pressel, who led the field by 12 strokes after two days, shot even-par 72 in Thursday’s final round, capping off an impressive stretch for one of the AJGA’s hottest players. Last week, Pressel won the Rolex Tournament of Champions in Sunriver, Ore., her first major victory.
“Today I just tried to put the ball on the fairway and on the green,” Pressel said. “I actually ended up hitting only seven fairways but I was able to score.
“I hope I can keep the ball rolling – my goal is to win every tournament I play in. I’m not making too many mistakes and if I do, I try to handle them well and not make huge numbers.”
Caney Hines of San Antonio finished in second place with a tournament total of 228, and Tamara Campbell of Lawton, Okla., placed third with a tournament total of 232.
In the Boys Division, Hedge, who led by six strokes entering Thursday’s final round with a two-day total of 10-under-par 134, never relinquished the lead, shooting a steady even-par 36 on the front nine and carding a 1-over-par 37 on the back side.
“I never really felt pressure out there or heat from the groups ahead of me,” Hedge said. “I still played really aggressive but never felt like it was closing up.”
The win was Hedge’s best finish in an AJGA event since placing 12th at the Las Vegas Founders Junior Golf Championship in June.
“This was a very surprising victory. But the way I’ve been hitting it, I’m not surprised at how I scored,” Hedge said. “The first two days I played two of the better rounds I’ve ever played – I felt like I was rolling, the putter was really working, and it was just a lot of fun.”
Robby Ormand of Austin, Texas, shot a 2-under-par 70 to finish second with a tournament total of 5-under-par 211. Tying for third place were K.T. Livingston of Midland, Texas, and Geoff Howard of San Antonio, each carding tournament totals of even-par 216. Nick Olivarri of San Antonio came in fifth place with a tournament total of 217.
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 has a membership (boys and girls ages 12-18) of approximately 5,000 junior golfers from 50 states and 30 foreign countries.
Titleist, the AJGA’s National Sponsor, has been the catalyst and driving force behind the Association’s success since 1989. Rolex Watch USA, a supporter of the AJGA since 1983, became an AJGA Premier Partner in 2004.
For more information on the Valero Texas Open Junior Shootout, contact AJGA National headquarters at (770) 868-4200.
