Around the Green

Jimmy Demaret Junior Classic Set for Eighth Year

DALLAS—The Legends Junior Tour will complete its stretch of three tournaments in three weeks with the 2016 Jimmy Demaret Junior Classic at The Hills Country Club’s Flintrock Falls Golf Course in Austin on March 15-16.  

The event is named after one of Texas’ true golfing legends, Jimmy Demaret, who won three Masters Tournaments and 31 PGA Tour events in a career that spanned from 1935-57. He became the first three-time winner of the Masters after his victory in 1950 and was elected into the World Golf Hall of Fame in 1983. The inaugural event was held at Onion Creek Club in 2008.

The tournament is scheduled for 36 holes of stroke play, 18 holes on both Tuesday and Wednesday. The event features 84 golfers playing in three different divisions: Boys 15-18, Boys 14 & Under and the Girls 12-18 Divisions.

In addition to being ranked by Golfweek and Junior Golf Scoreboard, players compete for AJGA Performance Stars as well as exemptions into Legends Junior Tour invitationals like the Byron Nelson Junior Championship, Texas Cup Invitational, and Texas Girls’ Invitational.

In the heart of the Austin Hill Country, The Hills Country Club offers two Jack Nicklaus designed courses. Flintrock Falls compliments the existing Signature Course with a dynamic new layout designed by Nicklaus and his son Jack Nicklaus II.
Both courses create challenging but rewarding opportunities for players of all skill levels.

Houston’s Cole Hammer won last year’s Jimmy Demaret Junior Classic with an overall score of 3-under 141. Hammer opened up with a 4-under 68 on Tuesday’s first round and won by three strokes over Temple’s Dalton Hankamer. Mission’s Junmin Lee won the Boys 14 & Under Division by two strokes over Austin’s Trey Bosco. Lee posted rounds of 71-73 to win his first event of the year. In the Girl’s 12-18 Division, Houston’s Christine Wang won by two strokes over four players. Wang finished at 6-over 150 overall, while Erin Fahey, Sadie Englemann, Randi Romack and Hailey Jones tied for runner-up.

This will be the fifth tournament put on by the LJT in 2016 and the first of two events held in the Austin area this year. The George Hannon Junior Invitational is being played at Barton Creek Country Club in August.

About the Legends Junior Tour

The Legends Junior Tour is part of the Texas Junior Golf Alliance, a joint venture between the Texas Golf Association, Northern and Southern Texas PGA and Houston Golf Association. The Tour operates as part of the Texas Golf Association and its Foundation, a 501(c)(3) organization. Since its inception in 2005, the Tour has provided over $250,000 to promote junior golf initiatives and exposure to the game to those who might not otherwise have the opportunity across the state. The Legends Junior Tour is home to such prestigious events as the Byron Nelson Junior Championship, Texas Cup Invitational, Jackie Burke Cup and Texas State Junior Championship.