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Kuwitzky, Jones, Momin Win Jimmy Demaret JC
SPICEWOOD, Texas – Jake Kuwitzy, Madelyn Jones and Shaheen Momin all came away victorious Friday afternoon at the Jimmy Demaret Junior Classic, all capturing victories for the first time on the Legends Junior Tour. McKinney’s Kuwitzky captured his first Legends Junior Tour victory in the Boys 15-18 division after carding a 3-under 68 at Lakecliff Country Club.
Austin’s Jones capped off an impressive tournament Friday, carding a 1-under 70 to win by two strokes. Sugarland’s Momin won the Boys 14 & Under division with an even-par 71 in the final round.
Conducted by the Legends Junior Tour, the ninth annual Jimmy Demaret Junior Classic featured 84 players from across Texas, playing the Arnold Palmer designed Lakecliff Country Club in Spicewood, Texas. Nestled in Texas’ hill country along Lake Travis, Lakecliff features wide fairways with bent grass greens, allowing players numerous scoring opportunities. The Boys 15-18 division played 6,676 yards, the Boys 14 & Under division played 6,157 yards and all girls played 5,888 yards.
Kuwitzky, who played earlier in the week at the Collegiate Preview and finished tied for 12th, started out hot, carding birdies on two of his first four holes. He had three more birdies throughout his round, but a double bogey on the short par-3, 17th hole allowed players to get back in the tournament. He calmly made a par on the 462-yard par-4 18th hole to secure his one-shot victory.
Mission’s Jun Min Lee finished in second place after a 2-under 96 Friday. The two were tied for the lead with Tucker Allen and Garrett Martin after Thursday’s first round. Allen finished in a tie for fourth with Mark Reppe, four shots back. Brandon Hoff, the 2016 champion of the event, had the round of the day, 5-under 66, which vaulted him all the way into third place.
Vishnu Sadagopan, Damin Strydom and Brendan Powers finished tied for sixth at 3-under 139. Jansen Smith, Ben Dunne and Garrett Martin finished tied for ninth at 2-under 140.
In the Girls 12-18 division, Jones had a rough start to her second round, making a bogey on the difficult, into-the-wind, par-4 10th hole. She got the stroke back on the par-5 13th, making a birdie. She had three birdies on her back nine, holding off all chasers. Those three birdies on holes two, four and five gave her cushion and finished a 6-under 136 for the tournament.
She held off reigning two-time LJT Girls Player of the Year Hailey Jones Friday afternoon. Jones carded a second 2-under 69 for a 4-under 138 tournament total. Kingwood’s Jackie Barry, co-leader with Madelyn after Thursday’s first round, finished in third after a 3-over 74 in the second round. Zoe Slaughter and Sara Camarena finished tied for fourth.
In the Boys 14 & Under division, Momin, 13, cruised to a three shot victory. He carded a bogey on his first hole, but remained steady, carding eight straight pars. He then birdied three of his first four holes on his back nine, Lakecliff’s easier front nine to put the competitors in his rearview mirror for good.
Momin’s three-shot victory was over Shoichiro Kato, of San Antonio. Kato played consistently, shooting 70-70 for a 2-under 142 tournament total. Lubbock’s Eli Tran finished in third place, six shots back of Momin. Andrew Spaulding carded a 1-under 70 Friday to vault himself into a fourth place finish. Truett Burns rounded out the top five.
The Legends Junior Tour would like to thank Lakecliff Country Club for hosting the ninth annual Jimmy Demaret Junior Classic. For more information on the tournament or the Legends Junior Tour, please click here.
For full results, please click here.
