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Burnett, Simpson and Logis Lead Jimmy Demaret Junior Classic
LAKEWAY – Awesome Burnett of Flower Mound carded a 1-under-par 71 in the first round of the Jimmy Demaret Junior Classic and leads the Boys 15-18 Division at Lakeway Country Club’s Live Oak Course. Raleygh Simpson of Kerrville posted a 4-over-par 76 and leads the Girls 12-18 Division by one, while Nicholas Logis of Austin leads the Boys 14 & Under Division following an opening 3-under-par 69.
Division Leaders: Burnett started his day with a bogey on the par-4 10th, but bounced right back with a birdie on the par-4 11th. He turned at even par, and carried his steady play onto the front nine. Burnett carded birdies on the par-4 fourth and par-4 sixth, before dropping a shot on the par-3 seventh. The 14-year-old, who is playing in the older division, leads the field by two strokes. In the Girls 12-18 Division, Simpson battled throughout her round. Despite six bogeys and a double, she remained poised and carded four birdies including one to close out her round on the par-4 18th. Simpson, who finished runner-up last year, leads the field by one with 18 holes to play. In the Boys 14 & Under Division, Logis carded four birdies en route to the lowest score of all three divisions. The 13-year-old finished solo third at last year’s championship. He currently leads by five strokes and will look to claim his first LJT win on Sunday.
In Contention: In the Boys 15-18 Division, Tanner Wardlaw of Dripping Springs posted a 1-over-par 73. He sits two shots behind Burnett and is solo second. Davis Grindle of Round Rock and Davis Byrd of Spring are tied third at 2-over par. Four players are tied for fifth at 3-over heading into Sunday’s final round. In the Girls 12-18 Division, Amelia Guo of Seabrook is solo second after carding a 5-over-par 77. Jenna Madden of San Antonio is third and two shots behind Simpson at 7-over par. In the Boys 14 & Under Division, two players are tied for second. The defending champion, Austin Hofferkamp of The Woodlands, and the 94th Texas Junior Amateur Boys 14 & Under champion, Brooks Simmons of Dallas, carded rounds of 2-over-par 74. Samuel Padua of Cedar Park is solo fourth and six shots behind Logis.
Course: Lakeway Country Club’s Live Oak course is hosting the Jimmy Demaret Junior Classic for the second straight year. The course was designed by Leon Howard and bends through the residential Lakeway neighborhood in Austin. The course features rolling hills with tree-lined fairways and small greens.
Tournament Format: The Jimmy Demaret Junior Classic is a 36-hole stroke play event for players with an active membership with the Texas Junior Golf Alliance. Players ages 12-18 are split into three different divisions: Boys 15-18, Girls 12-18 and Boys 14 & Undaer. The event is ranked by Junior Golf Scoreboard, Golfweek and has AJGA Performance Stars that will be handed out to the top finishers.
What’s Next: The Final Round of the Jimmy Demaret Junior Classic is scheduled for Sunday, Feb. 7 with tee times going off the No. 1 and 10 tees. To see pairings for the final round, click here.
For more information on the Jimmy Demaret Junior Classic, click here.
About the LJT: The Legends Junior Tour is part of the Texas Junior Golf Alliance, which is a joint venture between the Texas Golf Association, Northern and Southern PGA and Houston Golf Association. The tour operates as part of the Texas Golf Association and its foundation. Since its inception in 2005, the tour has provided funds to promote junior golf initiatives while conducting some of the state’s top junior championships including the Veritex Bank Byron Nelson Junior Championship, Texas Junior Amateur and the Texas Girls’ Invitational as well as the Texas Cup Invitational.
