Meth Strings Together Birdies to Take Lead in Second Round at Stockton Sports Commission Junior Open
Vu takes over lead in Girls Division at The Reserve at Spanos Park

STOCKTON, Calif. — Byron Meth of San Diego carded five birdies and an eagle on his way to shooting a 7-under-par 66 in the second round of the Stockton Sports Commission Junior Open, bringing his tournament total to 10-under-par 134. Lilia Vu of Fountain Valley, Calif., moved up one spot, sitting atop of the girls leaderboard at 2-under-par 142.

Conducted by the American Junior Golf Association, the Stockton Sports Commission Junior Open is a 54-hole stroke-play event held at The Reserve at Spanos Park. The 99-player field features 72 boys and 27 girls, ages 12-18, from seven states, Mexico and Thailand. The Boys Division is playing the par-72 course from 7,037 yards and the Girls Division is playing from 6,241 yards.

In the Boys Division, Meth credits his low score to his putting and short game, recording only nine putts on the back nine of today's round.

“On No. 11, I hit a 3-wood from 256 yards to just inside 10 feet and was able to make the putt for eagle,” Meth said. “I was also able to make a key par on No. 17, sinking a downhill slider from 12 feet.”

Yi Keun Chang of Diamond Bar, Calif., Jonathan Lai of Arcadia Calif., and Brendan Connolly of Castle Rock, Colo., sit in second place at 4-under-par 140. Jonathan De Los Reyes of Antioch, Calif., Beau Hossler of Rancho Santa Margarita, Calif., John Davenport of Newport Beach, Calif., and Andrew Morgan of Long Beach, Calif., share a four-way tie for fifth place at 3-under-par 141.

In the Girls Division, Vu fired a 1-under-par 71 on the day. She hopes to putt well and go low in tomorrow's final round.

“I birdied the first three holes to kick start my round,” Vu said. “The wind picked up on the back nine making it hard to control the ball, but I was able to make a late birdie on No. 16 and finish strong."

Hannah O'Sullivan of Fountain Valley, Calif., and Blair Lewis of La Mesa, Calif., are tied in second place at even-par 144.

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.

Final-round tee times for the Stockton Sports Commission Junior Open will run from 7:30 a.m. — 12:50 p.m. For more information about the Stockton Sports Commission Junior Open, please contact Tournament Headquarters at (678) 327-6982.