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Hurd, Lynch, and Portlock Win at Jimmy Demaret Junior Classic

 

BURNET – Austin’s Sterling Hurd cards final round 6-over par 78 to win the Boys 15-18 Division with a two-day total of two-over-par 146 and his third consecutive win in this event. Lydia Portlock of San Antonio won the Girls 12-18 Division by three shots with a two-day total of two-over-par 146. JP Lynch of Austin captured the Boys 14 & Under Division title with a two-day total of nine-over-par 153.

 

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Champions: Hurd continued his steady play on Sunday to three-peat as champion of the Boys 15-18 Division at the Jimmy Demaret Junior Classic. Hurd’s stellar play over the weekend included six birdies, and a hole-in-one albatross on the par-4 seventeenth hole. His two-day total of two-over par 146 was good enough to win the division by two strokes.

 

Portlock played consistent golf throughout the entirety of her round, going out on the back at 2-over par and coming in at 2-over par to grind it out in tough conditions and post a final round score of 4-over par 76. Portlock’s two round total of two-over-par 146 was enough to win the division by three strokes. This was Portlock’s first LJT victory.

 

Austin’s JP Lynch played consistent golf throughout the weekend, battling tough conditions to find his way to first place on Sunday.  His second round three-over-par 75 included three birdies. His two-day total of nine-over-par 153 was enough to win the Boys 14 & Under Division by two strokes.

 

In Contention: In the Boys 15-18 Division, Montgomery’s Tyler Sanford, Garland’s Garrett McMellon, and Kellen Young of Midland all tied for second with two-day totals of four-over-par 148.

 

In the Girls 12-18 Division, Isabel Emanuels of Austin shot a five-over-par 77 to finish second at 5-over 149 overall. Southlake’s Stephanie De Marco shot a ten-over-par 72 to finish third at eight-over-par 152 for the championship.

 

In the Boys 14 & Under Division, Cedar Park’s Hakon Hundhausen shot three-over-par 75 on the day to finish in second place with a two-day total of eleven-over-par 155. Oliver McFadden of Austin carded a nine-over-par 81 on Sunday, leaving him in third place at fourteen-over-par 158.

 

Weather: Temperatures for the final round at Delaware Springs Golf Course started in the low 50’s and reached the mid 60’s towards the end of play. Wind played a large factor in today’s final round with 15-25mph winds and gusts reaching upwards of 40 mph.

 

Course: Delaware Springs Golf Club is located in the heart of Hill Country in Burnet, TX. The course is cradled by the trees and gentle rolling hills near the Highland Lakes.  Picturesque and challenging, this course played from 6,800 yards for the Boy’s Division, 6,300 for the Boy’s 14 and Under Division and 5,900 yards for the Girl’s Division.

 

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 & Under.  The event is ranked by Junior Golf Scoreboard, Golfweek and has AJGA Performance Stars that will be handed out to the top finishers.

 

Player of the Year Points: Lydia Portlock, Sterling Hurd and JP Lynch all earned 1000 points in the Player of the Year Point Race.  Points are awarded at each tournament to the top half of each age division.

 

What’s Next: The LJT will host the Texas Girls’ Invitational on February 17-19 at Eagle’s Bluff Country Club.  For information about the tournament, 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 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 more than $250,000 to promote junior golf initiatives and exposure to the game to those who might not otherwise have the opportunity across the state.

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Funkhouser, De Marco, Portlock, and Lehner Lead Jimmy Demaret Junior Classic

Burnet – College Station’s Jackson Funkhouser leads the Boys 15-18 Division following the first round of the 2024 Jimmy Demaret Junior Classic. He carded an impressive 6-under-par 66. Stephanie De Marco of Southlake and Lydia Portlock of San Antonio both posted rounds of 2-under-par 70 and lead the Girls 12-18 Division. Edward Lehner of Dallas leads the Boys 14 & Under Division following an opening 2-over-par 74.

 

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Division Leaders: Funkhouser was the definition of consistency en route to his first-round lead of the Boys 15-18 Division. He carded a bogey-free round with six birdies, including two on par-3’s. Funkhouser, who is looking to build momentum going into his final LJT season, leads his division by two strokes with 18 holes left to play. In the Girls 12-18 Division, De Marco battled her way to the top of the field. She carded five birdies and three bogeys to put herself in contention. Portlock played consistent golf throughout the round, carding one birdie per nine to put herself in a tie for the lead with De Marco at 2-under-par. In the Boys 14 & Under Division, Lehner carded two birdies in his first round to jump out to a commanding three-stroke lead headed into Sunday’s final round.

 

In Contention: In the Boys 15-18 Division, Austin’s Sterling Hurd and posted a 4-under-par 68. He sits one shot off the lead thanks to five opening round birdies and a hole in one albatross on the par-4 seventeenth hole from 297 yards out. San Antonio’s Preston Hiller also sits one shot off the lead carding a 4-under-par 68, consisting of six birdies and two bogeys. In the Girls 12-18 Division, there is a two-player tie for second place. Austin’s Isabel Emanuels and Mansfield’s Lauren Madson both sit two strokes off the lead following first round scores of even-par 72. In the Boys 14 & Under Division, Oliver McFadden of Austin sits three strokes off the lead in second place. His opening round 5-over-par 77 included just one birdie. There is a three-player tie for third place in the division after Kerrville’s Braxton Simpson, Austin’s JP Lynch, and Evan Hofferkamp of The Woodlands all carded 6-over-par 78’s.

 

Course: Delaware Springs Golf Club is located in the heart of Hill Country in Burnet, TX. The course is cradled by the trees and gentle rolling hills near the Highland Lakes.  Picturesque and challenging, this course played from 6,800 yards for the Boys Division, 6,300 for the Boy’s 14 and Under Division and 5,900 yards for the Girl’s Division.

 

Weather: Moderate rain showers rolled through overnight which brought cloudy skies and temperatures in the mid 50’s for the duration of the morning.  Afternoon temperatures brought slightly warmer weather with sunshine, partly cloudy skies, and highs in the mid 60’s. Winds ranged from 5 to 15 miles per hour throughout the round.

 

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 & Under.  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, February 4th 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.

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Miller, Jackson, and Brown win at Bluebonnet Championship

Briefly: Nathan Miller won the Boys 15-18 Division of the Bluebonnet Championship at 9-under-par. Shyla Brown won the Girls 12-18 Division at 2-under, while Henry Jackson won the Boys 14 & Under Division also at 1-under-par at Brownwood Country Club.

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Winners: Nathan Miller secured the title at the 22nd Bluebonnet Championship. Dallas’ Miller started two shots back of the lead and carded five birdies and an eagle to tie the final low round score of 5-under 67. Miller totaled thirteen birdies and one eagle across both rounds. In the Girls 12-18 Division, Shyla Brown of Dallas captured her second LJT victory of the season after getting to 2-under 142 overall and two strokes ahead of the field. Shyla played in her first Legends Junior Tour event at the Spring Preview in February and won on the fourth playoff hole. With a win today, she is now two-for-two in Legends Junior Tour events. Lantana’s Henry Jackson won the Boys 14 & Under Division at 1-under par, edging out Selma’s Aadi Parmar on the second playoff hole. The current Spring Preview champion made five birdies on Sunday for a total of nine over two rounds. Jackson made another birdie on the second hole of the playoff to bring his total to ten for the championship.

In Contention: Reese Roberts of Dallas shot a final round score of 5-under 67 to finish tied for second with Frisco’s Luke Colton at 7-under overall. Caden Cox of the Woodlands and Gage Doyle of Colleyville both carded final round scores of 1-under par to put them in a tie for fourth place at 6-under for the championship. Irving’s Swetha Sathish finished runner-up in the Girls 12-18 Division after a final round score of 2-under 70 for a tournament total of 144. Lauren Madson of Mansfield, Michelle Lee of San Antonio, and Adrienne Ahn of Dallas tied for third in the division at 3-over, while Veronika Exposito of The Woodlands and Lydia Portlock of San Antonio tied for sixth at 4-over. Aadi Parmar of Selma finished runner-up after rounds of even par 72 and 1-under 71. Jeronimo Sanchez Montalvo of Arlington finished in solo third after posting rounds of 1-over 73 and 1-under 71, placing him at even par for the championship.

Weather:  Conditions on Saturday morning were pleasant with little to no wind and highs right around 85 degrees. However, afternoon thunderstorms interrupted play during Saturday’s round, forcing the Boys 14 & Under and Girls 12-18 Divisions to resume round one play early Sunday morning. Round two brought a slightly different forecast with cloudy skies and minimal wind for most of the morning before much windier conditions arose during the afternoon portion of play.

Golf Course: Brownwood Country Club, which opened in 1929, has hosted the Bluebonnet Championship every year since its inception in 2001. The club sits in central Texas and features ample opportunities for players to go low and make birdies. The par-72 layout was designed by Leon Howard and stretches to 6,300 yards for the boys and 5,800 yards for the girls.

Tournament History: The Bluebonnet Championship is a 36-hole stroke play event for players ages 12-19 that have an active membership within the Texas Junior Golf Alliance. The championship was started by Brownwood businessman Bart Johnson in 2001 and has an impressive list of past champions that include Patrick Reed, Cody Gribble, Scottie Scheffler, Pierceson Coody, Maddie Szeryk, Noah Goodwin, Hailey Jones and Hailee Cooper. The Legends Junior Tour took over the event in 2007 and the field has grown to 144 players from all over the state.

POY Points Race: Competitors who finish in the top half of the field will gain points towards the LJT Player of the Year Standings. By winning, Miller, Jackson, and Brown are awarded 1500 points towards the Legend Junior Tour’s Player of the Year standings.

What’s Next: The Legends Junior Tour returns to Dallas and Lakewood Country Club for the Veritex -Bank Byron Nelson Junior Championship on June 6-8, 2023. The championship is the second Major Event for the Boys Division of the year with the top players from Texas vying to etch their name on a trophy along with Jordan Spieth, Pierceson Coody, Cody Gribble and many more. For more information about the championship, 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.

For More information about the Bluebonnet Championship, click here. To see all the scores from Brownwood Country Club, click here.

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O’Rear leads Boys 15-18 Division, Boys 14 & Under and Girls 12-18 Divisions Suspended due to Lightning

Brownwood — Rhett O’Rear leads the Boys 15-18 Division of the Bluebonnet Championship after shooting a 6-under 66 at Brownwood Country Club.  Aadi Parmar currently sits atop the Boys 14 & Under Division leaderboard at even par, while three groups have yet to finish due to a series of afternoon thunderstorms. The Girls 12-18 Division did not have any groups complete their round and only managed to get through roughly thirteen holes.

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Leaders: Rhett O’Rear of Plano leads the Boys 15-18 Division after shooting 6-under 66 in the opening round. O’Rear started with two early bogeys and followed it up with eight birdies throughout his round. In the Boys 14 & Under division, Aadi Parmar of Selma currently sits atop the leaderboard at even par 72. Parmar played a steady eighteen holes carding just two bogeys and two birdies to play both the front and back nines at even par. Shyla Brown of Dallas currently sits atop the leaderboard for the Girls 12-18 Division at 3-under par through 13 holes. She played the front nine in 1-under par and got off to a hot start on the back nine with birdies on holes ten and twelve.

In Contention: Three players, Gage Doyle, Luke Colton, and Caden Cox, are all one stroke back of the leader in the Boys 15-18 Division after a round of 5-under on Saturday. Joseph Wolfe of Fort Worth and Nathan Miller of Dallas are tied for fifth at 4-under, while there is a five-way tie between A.J Adams, Daniel Macias, Abhay Duggal, Blake Burt, and Blake Goodnight for seventh at 3-under par. In the boys 14 & Under Division, Grant Clapp of Prosper is currently 2-under par through fifteen holes and will have a chance to take the lead from Parmar when play resumes tomorrow morning. Gia Ahlowalia of Southlake is just one stroke behind the leader at 2-under par but is only through nine holes. Claire Wan of Austin and Lauren Madson of Mansfield are tied for third at 1-under par through thirteen holes of play.

Weather: Thunderstorms halted play at 5:15 PM local time. The first round will resume Sunday morning at 8:00 AM.

Course: Brownwood Country Club has hosted the Bluebonnet Championship every year since its inception in 2000. The club sits in central Texas and features ample opportunities for players to go low and make birdies. The par-72 layout stretches to 6,300 yards for the boys and 5,800 yards for the girls.

Tournament History: The Legends Junior Tour continues its tradition of hosting the annual Bluebonnet Championship with the 22nd playing of the event this year.  The Bluebonnet Championship was started by local businessman Bart Johnson in 2002 and has been played at Brownwood Country Club since its inception. The 36-hole championship features three separate divisions: Boys 15-18, Girls 12-18 and Boys 14 & under. This championship is ranked by both Junior Golf Scoreboard and Golfweek. The top three finishers (and ties) in the Boys 15-18 Division will earn a spot in the 2022 Veritex Bank Byron Nelson Junior Championship and the top five finishers for the 96th Texas Junior Amateur. The winners of the Boys 14 & Under Division and the Girls 12-18 Division will each earn an exemption into the 2022 Texas Junior Golf Alliance Invitational and 2022 George Hannon Junior Invitational. Along with rankings on the Legends Junior Tour, the top finishers in each division will earn AJGA stars based on their finishes.

POY Points Race: Competitors who finish in the top half of the field will gain points towards the LJT Player of the Year Standings. The champions will each get 1500 points towards the statewide honor followed by 1200 for runner-up, 1050 for third, 900 for fourth and 750 for fifth. For the full LJT POY points breakdown, click here.

What’s Next: The final round of the Bluebonnet Championship will begin early Sunday morning with T-times continuing through early afternoon.  Champions in all three divisions will be crowned following the completion of play.

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.

For More information about the Bluebonnet Championship, click here. To see all the scores from Brownwood Country Club, click here.

 

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Zamarano and Massa win North Four-Ball

Briefly: First round leaders Ryan Zamorano and Bobby Massa of Dallas win the North Four-Ball at the Courses at Watters Creek. Massa, our 2022 North Four-Ball Champion, had a new partner this year. Teaming up with Ryan Zamorano proved to be a solid strategic move that resulted in a wire-to-wire championship win.   

Zamorano and Massa outlasted the teams of Colby Pickavance and Logan Liam of Dallas, and Sean Heidrick of McKinney and Kolton Crawford of Azle. These two teams finished at 16-under-par for the championship. 

Golf Course: Opened in 1986, the Traditions Course at Watters Creek, located in Plano, was originally designed by Robert von Hagge and Bruce Devlin. It was remodeled by D.A. Weibring and Golf Resources Group in 2012. 

Weather: Players were greeted with less-than-ideal conditions during Saturday’s round. The wind was relatively calm out of the North/Northwest as temperatures hovered around the low to mid 40’s with heavy cloud coverage throughout the day. Sunday’s round saw different playing conditions with slightly stronger winds out of the south and the temperature steadily rising from mid 50’s the upper 60’s by the afternoon. 

Top Finishers: Zamorano and Massa played consistent golf over the two rounds carding just a singular bogey on the scorecard between the two combined for a 36-hole total of 19-under-par 125. This is Massa’s second straight North Four-Ball title but first with Zamorano.  

The duos of Colby Pickavance and Liam Logan and Sean Heidrick and Kolton Crawford finished their second-round tying Zamorano and Massa for the low round of the day with a 9-under-par 63. Both teams played strong on Sunday, but with Zamorano and Massa’s first round of 62, they were extremely tough to catch.  

Finishing in a four-way tie for fourth place at 9-under-par, were the teams of Zach Atkinson and Brad Gibson, Alden Crissey and Will Strickler, Colby Amparan and Gary Ezmerlian, and Gant Bills and Scott Maurer. 

Regional POY: North Player of the Year points will be awarded to the top finishers at the 2023 North Four-Ball. The winning team will receive 400 points, followed by 250 for second, 200 for third, 150 for fourth, and 100 for fifth. Points will be awarded to both players on the team individually. For Regional POY information, click here. 

What’s Next: The North Regional Series will head to Rockwall Golf & Athletic Club for the 2023 North Mid-Amateur. The event will be played March 24-26.

Registration for the 114th Texas Amateur is currently open and will close on March 29 at 5:00 PM. For more information and to register for the Texas Amateur, click here 

More Info: The Texas Golf Association extends its sincere appreciation to the staff and members of The Courses at Watters Creek as well as our volunteers for their integral part in making the North Four-Ball a memorable and successful event. For more information on the North Four-Ball, click here.