Around the Green

Burt, O’Rear, Parmar, Sathish Lead at George Hannon Junior Invitational

Briefly: Blake Burt and Rhett O’Rear both fired a 3-under 68 in the opening round of the George Hannon Junior Invitational leading the Boys 15-18 Division by two strokes. Aadi Parmar leads the Boys 14 & Under Division at University of Texas Golf Club, and Swetha Sathish stayed focused and finished Round 1 as the sole leader of the Girls Division.  

Tournament Leaderboard 

Leaders: Austin’s Blake Burt and Plano’s Rhett O’Rear both shot 3-under par 68, on Monday at the UT Golf Club. Both O’Rear and Burt played consistently posting five and six birdies, respectively. Burt’s 3-under consisted of 5 total birdies, with four of them coming in his first 10 holes. O’Rear’s 3-under, 68 consisted of consisted of 6 total birdies, with four on the back nine at the UT Golf Club.  

Oakville’s Swetha Sathish fought hard to stand alone as the leader of the Girls 12-18 Division. Her round consisted of 4 birdies beginning on hole 9, and pulled her one-shot ahead of her competitors.   

in the Boys 14 & Under Division, Aadi Parmar from Selma attributed his even-par 71, to his putting. His first round consisted of 3 birdies and steady play.   

In Contention: There are seven players tied for third place in the Boy’s Division at 1-under par 70 including Burleson’s’ Blake Keen, Dallas’ Luke Harper and Jack Clancy, Richmond’s’ Grayson Sebastian, Highland Villages’ Tyson Embry, Plano’s’ Ryan Lee and McAllen’s’ Dylan Villarreal Trailing Parmar by two strokes in the Boys 14 & Under is Division is Luke Olive from Dallas, Henry Jackson from Lantana, Ainslie Stanford III from Edmond. Lydia Portlock from San Antonio is hot on Swetha’s heels in the Girls 12-18 Division shooting 2-over, 73, only 1-shot behind Swetha Sathish. Austin’s Caroline Dasch sits in fifth place in the division at 3-over. In the Boys 14 & Under Division, Dallas’ Brooks Harper is in second at 2-over, while Duff Mckay of Dallas and Luke Colton of Frisco are tied for third at 3-over. Nicholas Logis and Austin Hofferkamp are tied for fifth at 4-over.  

Golf Course: The University of Texas Golf Club was designed by Bechtol Russell and opened in 2003. The course is set along the Colorado River and features stunning Texas Hill Country views along with a challenging par-71 layout. The course overlooks Lake Austin and borders the Balcones Natural Wildlife Preserve and has hosted the George Hannon Junior Invitational six times now, including the last four years.  

Weather: Temperatures started in the low 80s without a cloud in the sky on Monday and peaked above 100 degrees. Winds were light and out of the south at 10  – 15 mph. 

Tournament Format: The George Hannon Junior Invitational is a 36-hole stroke play event for players that have earned an exemption through the Texas Junior Golf Alliance or the Hannon Society. The 90-player field is one of the strongest in the state as they play 18 holes each day.   

Player of the Year Points: 1500 points in the 2023 Player of the Year Point Race are up for grabs to the winners this week at the George Hannon Junior Invitational.  Points are awarded at each tournament to the top half of each age division.  2023 LJT Player of the Year Points Standings 

About George Hannon: George Hannon, who was affectionately called “Coach”, coached the University of Texas golf team for 18 seasons. Coach Hannon saw his Longhorns win two National Championships in 1971 and 1972, 12 Southwest Conference Titles and three individual titles. Hannon’s Horns included Ben Crenshaw, Tom Kite, Mark Brooks, Phil Blackmar, Brandel Chamblee, Rik Massengale and Paul Thomas. 

Hannon Cup Association: The Hannon Cup Association contributes to golf scholarships, supports the Austin Junior Golf Academy and hosts the George Hannon Junior Invitational and Hannon Cup Matches. Mark Coward and Brent Buckman were instrumental in conceiving the idea and in organizing and forming the initial committee for the Hannon Cup. Support was provided by a group of individuals and businesses that became known as the Hannon Society. To date the Association has distributed more than $145,000 worth of secondary education scholarships through the Southern Texas PGA Foundation. 

About Texas Mutual: Texas Mutual is the presenting sponsor of the George Hannon Junior Invitational and has been caring for hardworking Texans for more than 25 years. Taking care of people is what Texas Mutual does and that’s why they invest time, energy and resources into increasing safety, wellness and education for all Texans. Texas Mutual has been the presenting sponsor of this event for the last three years.  

Texas Junior Golf Alliance: The Alliance is a joint venture between the Texas Golf Association, Northern and Southern Texas PGA and Houston Golf Association. The goal of the Alliance was to allow junior golfers a clear path to the best tournaments in Texas. Each of the three tier-two organizations (STPGA, NTPGA, HGA) conduct events that serve as qualifiers into the statewide tier-one events run by the Legends Junior Tour (LJT). This allows players to compete in local events in which they can earn spots to play in statewide tournaments.  

Next Up: The Final Round of the George Hannon Junior Invitational is scheduled for Tuesday with tee times starting at 7:30 am off the No. 1 and 10 tees. Following Tuesday’s Final Round, awards will be handed to the top five in the Boys Division and top three in the Girls and Boys 14 & Under Divisions.  

For more information on the George Hannon Junior Invitational, click here. To see all the scores from UT Golf Club, click here.