LOCAL PRODUCT KAPLAN FIRES 3-UNDER 69 EARNING MEDALIST HONORS
Jenny Lee set bar at even par for the girls
HUMBLE, Texas — Justin Kaplan, playing just miles from his hometown of Houston, turned in the lowest score for the boys qualifier shooting a 3-under-par 69, besting the field by two strokes. Jenny Lee of La Canada, Calif., earned medalist honors for the girls shooting an even-par 72. Kaplan and Lee, joined eleven additional juniors in qualifying for the Fidelity Investments Junior Championship.
Kaplan, qualifying for his second AJGA tournament, was excited after his round at the prospect of playing in this tournament.
“I was hitting my driver pretty well and hit almost every fairway,” he said. “And I hit almost every green. The two greens I did miss I got up and down on.
“I wanted to qualify, and to go out there and play a bogey-free round,” he continued. “It felt good to play so well here in Houston. I just want to keep on playing the way I'm playing, keep a level head and just go out there and see if I can win.”
Others who qualified for the Fidelity Investments Junior Championship in the Boys Division were: Jamie Garcia of Houston at 71; John Henry Faulk of Lake Charles, La., at 72; Riley Pumphrey of Georgetown, Texas, at 73; Charlie Michalka of Klein, Texas, at 74; Drew Evans of Dallas, at 74 (Evans opted out of tournament); Cory Vincent of Sulphur, La., at 74; and qualifying via a sudden death playoff at 75 were Ryan Sirman of Tyler, Texas; Jamey Taylor of Friendswood, Texas; Stephen Jones of Katy, Texas; and Cody Vincent of Sulphur, La..
Jenny Lee, playing in her first AJGA event, qualified for the tournament with the lowest score in the girls division. Lee's score was five strokes better than any other girl.
“The course is pretty hard and narrow, but I liked it,” Lee had to say about her first round at Redstone Golf Club. “I just wanted to earn an exemption and play my best out there.”
Others qualifying in the Srixon Qualifier Series for tournament play beginning Thursday in the Girls Division, were: Mei Liu of Austin, Texas at 77; and qualifying via sudden death playoff was Indira Soltero of Houston at 80.
SRIXON Sports USA, Inc., based in Norcross, Ga., has been distributing premium golf balls and equipment in the U.S. since 1997 and is a subsidiary of SRI Sports. SRI Sports is one of the world's leading patent holders in golf ball technology and manufactures several golf balls played in the United States. SRI Sports-made balls have won 73 PGA TOUR events since 1989, including seven majors. For more information about SRIXON, please visit www.srixon.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 largest Association of its kind, the AJGA 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, which enters its third decade of support, became the inaugural AJGA Premier Partner in 2004.
For more information about the Fidelity Investments Junior Championship, contact tournament headquarters at (281) 459-7819. |
