Smith Takes First-Round Lead At Cleveland Junior Open
Harper at the top of Girls Division at Red Tail Golf Club

AVON, Ohio — Scott Smith of Pepper Pike, Ohio leads the Boys Division after the first round of the Cleveland Junior Open with a 1-under-par 71. In the Girls Division, Allison Harper of Columbus, Ohio delivered the low first-round score with a 1-over-par 73.

Conducted by the American Junior Golf Association, the Cleveland Junior Open is a 54-hole stroke play event held at Red Tail Golf Club in Avon, Ohio. The field features 88 boys and 29 girls, ages 12-18, from 15 states, Canada, Guatemala, Mexico, El Salvador and Colombia. The par-72 course is played from 6,954 yards in the Boys Division and 6,151 yards in the Girls Division.

After starting out the round with some bunker trouble on No. 1, Smith finished Tuesday's round with three birdies. There was no need for highlights in Smith's round, instead he just played consistent golf. Smith is an accomplished Ohio player, holding the title of all-Ohio for two years.

“I haven't been playing well recently and I decided to go into this tournament with a new focus to just have fun and not worry about the score,” said Smith. “My focus tomorrow will be to have fun. It's hard not to have fun when you're on a golf course.”

Following Smith was Francesco Ruffino of Bloomfield Hills, Mich. in a close second with a even-par 72. Andrew Wong of Deerfield Beach, Fla. is third at 1-over-par 73. Tied for fourth are Boo Timko of Girard, Ohio, Sebastian Barnoya of Guatemala, Guatemala and Alec Tahy of Dayton, Ohio at 2-over-par 74.

Harper had an excellent round hitting almost every green and fairway, she said, en route to sweeping five birdies. Harper swiped three birdies on the front nine and two on the back nine and thanked her drives for that.

“My drives were on today,” said Harper. “My goal was to just keep the tempo. I was not concerned with hitting the ball too hard, and instead, just keeping the ball straight.”

Tied for second in the Girls Division are Minjia Luo of San Diego, Calif. and Linda Luo of Lakewood Ranch, Fla. at a 2-over-par 74.

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 provides valuable exposure for college golf scholarships, and has an annual junior membership (boys and girls ages 12-18) of approximately 5,000 junior golfers from 49 states and 30 countries. To ensure scholarship opportunities for all junior golfers who have the skill, the AJGA created the Achieving Competitive Excellence (ACE) Grant program to provide financial assistance to young players in need.

Titleist, the AJGA's National Sponsor, has been the catalyst and driving force behind the Association's success since 1989. Rolex Watch USA, which is in its third decade of AJGA support, became the inaugural AJGA Premier Partner in 2004. In 2007, after 12 years of support, Polo Ralph Lauren became the AJGA's second Premier Partner.

AJGA alumni have risen to the top of amateur, collegiate and professional golf. Former AJGA juniors have compiled more than 400 victories on the PGA and LPGA Tours. AJGA alumni include Tiger Woods, Phil Mickelson, Stewart Cink, Cristie Kerr, Paula Creamer and Morgan Pressel.

Second round tee times for the Cleveland Junior Open will run from 7 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. off the No. 1 tee. For more information, please contact Tournament Director Kelli Holloway at 678-315-3446 or visit.