De La Garza sits atop Boys Division after carding a 6-under-par 66
Wu, Ferreira and Boydston all tied for first at 1-under-71

LUBBOCK, Texas — Daniel De La Garza of Monterrey, Mexico, fired a 6-under-par 66 to lead the Boys Division in the opening round of the AJGA Lubbock Junior. Bethany Wu of Diamond Bar, Calif., Jordan Ferreira of University Place, Wash., and Mackenzie Boydston of Keller, Texas, each recorded a 1-under-par 71 and are tied for the lead in the Girls Division.

Conducted by the American Junior Golf Association, the AJGA Lubbock Junior is a 54-hole stroke play event at The Rawls Course at Texas Tech University in Lubbock, Texas. The tournament field consists of 72 boys and 24 girls, ages 12-18 from 12 states, Mexico and Colombia. The Boys Division plays the par-72 course at 7,041 yards and the Girls Division plays at 6,224 yards.

De La Garza credits solid ball striking and excellent putting to his early lead in the Boys Division at The Rawls Course at Texas Tech University.

“The birdie on the first hole, I made a 15 foot putt and that really got my day going in the right direction,” De La Garza said. “It feels very good to be leading after the first round, but we will see how the rest of the tournament turns out.”

Tad Darland of Henderson, Nev., sits in second place after shooting 5-under-par 67. Tied for third is Sean Walsh of Keller, Texas, Simon Miller of Albuquerque, N.M., and Li Wang of Sammamish, Wash., all carding 4-under-par 68.

Wu's birdies on Nos. 16, 17 and 18 were the fuel that pushed her to secure a 1-under-par 71.

“My driver was working really well for me today, I also just tried to stay consistent with my putting throughout the round,” Wu said.

Also carding a 1-under-par 71, Ferreira of University Place, Wash., deemed her eagle on No. 2 to be the key that pushed her through her round.

“Today I stayed in the present and took it one shot at a time,” Ferreira said. “It feels pretty good and I am looking forward to tomorrow's round.”

Mackenzie Boydston of Keller, Texas, shares the lead in the Girls Division after shooting a 1-under-par 71.

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 more than 40 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, 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 500 victories on the PGA and LPGA Tours. AJGA alumni include Stewart Cink, Matt Kuchar, Hunter Mahan, Phil Mickelson, Tiger Woods, Paula Creamer, Cristie Kerr, Inbee Park and Morgan Pressel.

The second round of the AJGA Lubbock Junior will tee off No. 1 from 7:50 — 9:40 a.m. and off of No. 10 from 7:45 — 9:46 a.m. For more information, please contact Tournament Director, Katie Jared at (678) 485-1135 or visit tournament headquarters located behind the cart barn.