ARIZONA NATIVES IN CONTROL AT HIWAN
Khan leads Boys Division with the day's lone sub-par round
EVERGREEN, Colo. — Jonathan Khan of Tucson, Ariz., fired a 1-under-par 69 to take the lead in the Boys Division after Tuesday's first round of the Hiwan Junior presented by Stonecreek Funding. Esther Choe of Scottsdale, Ariz., leads the Girls Division with a 6-over-par 76.
Conducted by the American Junior Golf Association, the Hiwan Junior presented by Stonecreek Funding is being held at Hiwan Golf Club. The tournament field is comprised of 99 boys and girls ages 12-18 from 14 states, including 40 from Colorado.
Khan carded a 34 on the front nine and a 35 on the backside. His 69 was the only round under par for the day. The 16-year-old had an up-and-down round featuring six birdies, four of which came on the front nine, and five bogeys.
“Every time I got down, I got right back up,” he said. “I had a big putt on No. 10 for birdie that got me to 2-under and gave me a lot of momentum.”
Khan said he felt solid off the tee today, and proved it by hitting 10 of 13 fairways. His putter was not as steady — he needed 30 putts throughout his round. Despite some trouble on the greens, Khan was pleased with the way he played.
“I feel like I hit a lot of great shots and had a really solid round, especially with the way this course was playing,” he said.
Andrew Storm of Omaha, Neb., stands alone in second place after shooting a 1-over-par 71. Tied for third at 72 are Colorado natives Tyler Parsloe of Littleton and Will Logsdon of Evergreen, who is a member at Hiwan. Justin Spray of Colorado Springs, Colo., and Tyson McFarland of Rexburg, Idaho, are tied for fifth with 3-over-par 73s.
In the Girls Division,15-year-old Choe shot 38 on both the front and back nines, with one birdie. She found Hiwan's undulating greens difficult, and needed 33 putts throughout her round.
“I had a really tough time putting,” she said. “I couldn't judge distances and I had a lot of tough downhill putts that rolled past the hole.”
Choe did figure out the No. 13 green, where she drained a 15-foot putt from the just off the fringe for birdie. Despite the difficulties with her putter, Choe felt very confident with the rest of her game.
“I was able to hit my driver straight and hit a lot of fairways, and I had clean approaches,” she said. “That saved me today.”
Three players stand behind Choe tied for second place. Stephanie Kono of Honolulu, Jennie Arseneault of Grinnell, Iowa, and Amanda Jacobs of Portland, Ore., all shot 77.
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 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 the inaugural AJGA Premier Partner in 2004.
AJGA alumni have risen to the top of amateur, collegiate and professional golf. More than 200 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, Charles Howell III, Jim Furyk, Dottie Pepper, Grace Park, Cristie Kerr and Beth Bauer.
Second-round tee times will run from 7-11:48 a.m. off the No. 1 tee. For more information about the Hiwan Junior presented by Stonecreek Funding, contact tournament headquarters at (303) 674-3366, ext. 324. |
