Austin's Fox Shoots 65 To Win 92nd Texas Junior Amateur

HORSESHOE BAY, Texas – Austin’s Macy Fox fires a 7-under 65 in the final round to win the Girls Division of the 92^nd Texas Junior Amateur at Horseshoe Bay Resort’s Slick Rock Golf Course.

Trailing by two strokes after 36 holes, Fox teed off in the penultimate group and started her day with a birdie on No. 1. She made a bogey on No. 2 and then made par on her next six holes before another birdie on nine.

“I had chances on the front side but wasn’t making any birdie putts until No. 9,” said Fox, “The birdie on nine gave me some momentum and it carried over into the back nine.”

After making the turn at 1-under-par, Fox made a birdie on the par-5 10^th, the par-5 12^th and then four straight birdies on holes 14-17 to get to 11-under overall. She got up and down for par on the 18^th, which capped off her sensational 6-under 30 in the final nine holes of the championship.

The win earns Fox a spot on The Dorothy Franey-Langkop Trophy, which is awarded to the winner of the Girls Division of the Texas Junior Amateur. The event has a strong list of past champions, which includes Angela Stanford, Courtney Dow, Annika Clark, Hailey Jones, Kelsey Vines and Bronwyn Burke.

Kingwood’s Elise Parel finished runner-up in the Texas Junior Amateur at 9-under 207 overall. Parel posted rounds of 68-70-69 to get to 9-under overall, making 18 birdies total through the 54-hole championship.

Austin’s Bentley Cotton and Jensen Jalufka, who were paired with Parel in the final group on Wednesday, finished third and fourth in the championship. Cotton shot 1-over 73 in the final round to get to 4-under 212 overall, while Jalufka shot 3-over 75 to get to 2-under 214 overall.

Eubin Shim of Waco, Calynne Rosholt of Cedar Park and Leah Alberto of Kingwood all tied for fifth in the Girls Division at 1-under 215. Maddi Olson finished eighth, Kaylee Vesely finished ninth, while Delaney Martin, Jackie Feldman and Madelyn Jones tied for 10th.

Maggie Ni and Natalie Cao tied for 13^th at 220 overall, while Libby Singleton rounded out the top 15 at 221 overall after shooting 2-under 70 in the final round.

The Texas Junior Amateur is the largest junior golf tournament in the state. The event features 240 players spread out over four divisions. The Girls Division competed on the Slick Rock Golf Course at Horseshoe Bay Resort on July 23-25, while the Boys and Girls 14 & Under Divisions played 36 holes on the same golf course. The Boys Division played 54 holes on the Summit Rock Golf Course at Horseshoe Bay Resort.

Horseshoe Bay Resort has hosted the Texas Junior Amateur in eight of the last nine years. The Slick Rock Golf Course was designed by Robert Trent Jones Sr. and features bentgrass greens along with more than 70 bunkers and a dozen water hazards on the course. The par-72 layout was stretched out to 6,011 yards for the Girls Division this week.

The 60-player field in the Girls Division was cut to the low 27 players after Tuesday’s second round. Players that were 10-over or better after 36 holes made the cut and played on Wednesday. Of the 27 players that made the cut, 10 of them were even-par or better in the final round.

This was the first Major Tournament on the Legends Junior Tour schedule for the Girls Division. Players earned double points towards the LJT Player of the Year Standings, which determines the LJT Player of the Year along with the field for the George Hannon Junior Invitational, which is the next Major Tournament on the LJT schedule, and the teams for the Jackie Burke Cup.

For more information on the 92^nd Texas Junior Amateur, Click Here. To see all the scores from the Girls Division, click here. 

Texas Junior Am Round 1 at Slick Rock Complete

Horseshoe Bay, Texas – Elise Parel of Kingwood and Logan Zurn of Grapevine shoot 4-under 68 in the first round of the 92^nd Texas Junior Amateur and lead their divisions at the Slick Rock Golf Course. Carrollton’s Symran Shah leads the Girls 14 & Under Division at 3-under.

Parel got her day going early with back-to-back birdies on her second and third hole after starting on No. 10. She made a bogey on the par-4 16^th but bounced back with three birdies in her final nine holes, including the par-4 ninth to finish at 4-under.

Tied for second in the Girls Division are Jensen Jalufka of Austin and Eubin Shim of Waco. The duo fired matching 3-under 69s on Monday and will head into Tuesday’s second round one back. Austin’s Kaylee Vesely is tied with fellow Austin-native Ally Black in fourth at 2-under 70, while Jackie Feldman Macy Fox and Leah Alberto are tied for sixth at 1-under 71

The Girls Division of the Texas Junior Amateur is scheduled for 54 holes of stroke play competition on the Slick Rock Course at Horseshoe Bay Resort. Following Tuesday’s second round, the division will be cut down to the low 27 players and ties for Wednesday’s final round.

Zurn leads the Boys 14 & Under Division, which is competing in 36 holes of stroke play competition on the Slick Rock Golf Course.  He made five birdies in the afternoon heat, which reached temperatures upwards of 110 degrees on Monday, including back-to-back birdies on holes 13 and 14.

Keller’s Jase Summy and Dallas’ Andrew Petruzzelli are tied for second in the Boys 14 & Under Division at 2-under 70. Five players are tied for fourth in the division and are three strokes back heading into Tuesday’s final round for the division.

Shah holds a four-stroke advantage in the Girls 14 & Under Division after the first round. She made six birdies on the day, including the par-3 second hole and the picturesque par-4 14^th, which features a scenic water fall in front of players tee shots.

Spicewood’s Brooke McDonough, Austin’s Darrelyn Webster and Cedar Park’s Briana Lemaire are tied for second in the division, while Harper Edwards, Ella Fisher and Lauren Rios are tied for fifth at 4-over.

The Girls 14 & Under Division is competing at the Slick Rock Golf Course over 36 holes of stroke play competition.

Horseshoe Bay Resort is hosting the Texas Junior Amateur for the eighth time in the last nine years. The event moved to The Woodlands Country Club for 2016, but has returned to the renovated Slick Rock Golf Course. Slick Rock was designed by Robert Trent Jones Sr. and features more than 70 bunkers and 12 water hazards including the water fall on the par-4 14^th.

Pairings for Tuesday’s play will start at 7:30 am off both the No. 1 and No. 10 tees. The Boys and Girls 14 & Under Divisions will stretch from 7:30 to 9:00 am, while the Girls Division will take on the heat in the 12:00 to 1:30 pm wave.

For more information on the Texas Junior Amateur, click here. 
 

Horseshoe Bay Resort Hosting Texas Junior Amateur

DALLAS – Horseshoe Bay Resort is hosting the Texas Junior Amateur on July 23-25 as the state’s largest championship is set for its 92^nd year.

Horseshoe Bay Resort has hosted the Texas Junior Amateur in seven of the last eight years. After spending 2016 at The Woodlands Country Club, the event returned to Horseshoe Bay on the Summit Rock and Slick Rock golf courses last year. This will be the second year that Summit Rock has hosted the Boys Division, while the other three divisions return to the renovated Slick Rock.

Summit Rock is a Jack Nicklaus signature course and opened in October 2012. The Hill Country style venue features a rocky terrain surrounded by native grass on each hole. The course has Bermuda fairways and bent grass greens, which will challenge all the golfers in the Boys Division.

“We’re happy to be coming back to Summit Rock for the Boys Division,” Kellen Kubasak, LJT Director of Operations, said. “The course offers a great test for our field along with Slick Rock for our Girls and younger Boys and Girls.”

Slick Rock was built in 1971 and designed by Robert Trent Jones Sr. The course is known as a “hard par, easy bogey” course and features 71 bunkers throughout the 18-hole layout with a dozen water hazards.  The par-4 14^th at Slick Rock is a picturesque hole that has golfers tee off over a stunning waterfall and onto the fairway. The course was renovated in 2016 and updated with bent grass greens.

San Angelo’s Jansen Smith won the Boys Division last year after making an eagle on the final hole of the tournament. Smith holed out from 72 yards on the 54^th hole to win by one stroke over San Antonio’s John Keefer. The win was Smith’s second of the year and he would go on to win Player of the Year honors in the Boys 15-18 Division.

Austin’s Sadie Englemann won the Girls Division at Slick Rock by one stroke over Dallas’ Hailey Jones, who was looking for her third straight win in the tournament. Englemann, who has committed to play golf at Stanford, posted rounds of 66-64-71 to get to 15-under 201 overall after 54 holes.

Argyle’s Gaven Lane won the Boys 14 & Under Division at 3-under after posting rounds of 69-72 in the 36-hole tournament at Slick Rock. Katy’s Lauren Nguyen won the Girls 14 & Under Division at 1-under 143 overall.

Other past champions of this event include Ben Crenshaw, Bruce Lietzke, Jeff Maggert, Stratton Nolen, Will Griffin, Angela Stanford, Annika Clark, Courtney Dow, Kaitlyn Papp and Jordan Spieth.

The Boys Division and the Girls Division will each play 54 holes with a cut after 36 holes, while the Boys and Girls 14 & Under Divisions will play 36 holes. The first round for all four divisions will begin on Monday, July 23.

Players earned their way into the Boys Division by earning an exemption or competing in one of 12 qualifying events across the state. Players in the Girls Division and the Boys and Girls 14 & Under Division were added based on the LJT Priority Entry System. 

The Texas State Junior Championship is Golfweek and Junior Golf Scoreboard ranked, while the older Boys and Girls Divisions are recognized by the World Amateur Golf Ranking. Exemptions into future LJT Invitational Tournaments will be up for grabs along with AJGA Performance Stars.

For more information on the 92^nd Texas Junior Amateur, click here.
 
 

The Texas Junior Amateur Emerges for 92nd Playing

After serving the state for more than 90 years, the Texas State Junior Championship has earned a makeover. The Texas Junior Amateur is set to return to Horseshoe Bay Resort on July 23-25 with a new name and logo.

“We felt one of the country’s oldest and largest state championships deserved a rebranding,” Kellen Kubasak, the Legends Junior Tour Director of Operations, said. “Consistency with other leading golf organizations such as the Texas Golf Association and the USGA was one of the leading factors of changing the name.”

The championship, which has been conducted by the Legends Junior Tour since 2005, has been one of the strongest fields in recent years and produced some great champions. Last year’s winner, Jansen Smith, won in dramatic fashion after holing a 72-yard approach shot on the 18^th hole at Horseshoe Bay Resort’s Summit Rock Golf Course, his 54^th and final hole of the tournament.

San Angelo’s Smith won by one stroke in the 2017 installment of the event, which returned to Horseshoe Bay Resort for the seventh time in the last eight years. Austin’s Sadie Englemann won the Girls Division, holding off Dallas’ Hailey Jones, who was looking to win her third straight championship at the Slick Rock Golf Course.

The Championship was played at The Woodlands Country Club in 2016. The rain-shortened event saw a three-way tie atop the Boys Division on Friday. Logan Pate, Pierceson Coody and Parker Coody were tied at 4-under overall at The Tournament Course at The Woodlands. All three players went into a sudden-death playoff, which resulted in Pate winning with a par on the par-4 18^th.

In 2015, Mason Greenberg posted rounds of 71-64-72 to win by nine strokes at Horseshoe Bay’s Ram Rock Golf Course. The second-round score of 7-under was three strokes better than the next best score in the field that week.

Other past champions of the Texas Junior Amateur include Ben Crenshaw, Jordan Spieth, Jeff Maggert, Scott Verplank, Omar Uresti, Angela Stanford, Hunter Haas, Stratton Nolen, Kelsey Vines, Alex Moon, Heather Haas, Lindsey McCurdy, Morris Williams Jr and Nancy Hager.

For the Boys division, the Texas Junior Amateur is open to all residents of Texas with players earning an exemption through the Texas Junior Golf Alliance or by competing in one of 12 qualifiers for the championship. Qualifiers are spread throughout the state and feature 18 holes of stroke play competition to get into the championship, which returns to Summit Rock Golf Course for a second straight year.

Players in the Girls Division as well as the Boys and Girls 14 & Under Divisions are entered based on the LJT Priority Entry System, which awards players that have played well in LJT events as well as Texas Junior Golf Alliance Events. The Alliance is made up of the Northern and Southern Texas PGAs along with the Houston Golf Association.  

Horseshoe Bay Resort is hosting again in 2018, with the Boys Division competing on the scenic Summit Rock Golf Course and the other three divisions playing on the Slick Rock Golf Course.

The Boys and Girls Divisions are 54 holes of stroke play competition while the Boys and Girls 14 & Under Divisions are 36 holes of stroke play. All four events are ranked by Junior Golf Scoreboard and Golfweek, while the Boys and Girls Divisions are World Amateur Golf Ranked. American Junior Golf Association Performance Stars are handed out to the top finishers of each division as well as double LJT Player of the Year Points.

Registration for the Texas Junior Amateur opens on March 7, 2018. To view all the past champions of this venerable event, click here.

Englemann Shoots 6-under to Lead Girls 15-18 Division

HORSESHOE BAY, TX – Austin’s Sadie Englemann carded a 6-under-par 66 in Wednesday’s first round action at Slick Rock Golf Course to lead the Girls 15-18 Division of the 91^st Texas State Junior Championship. Katy’s Lauren Nguyen leads the Girls 14 & Under Division, while Gaven Lane leads the Boys 14 & Under Division.

Englemann played a bogey-free round of golf on Wednesday, making five birdies in her final eight holes. The 2016 Winter Classic champ made birdie on the 330-yard 11^th, carded three straight birdies on holes 13-15 and added another on 17. The 66 puts her three strokes ahead of two-time defending Texas State Junior Champion Hailey Jones, who shot 3-under 69 in her opening round.

Jones made four birdies in her first nine holes including the 345-yard ninth hole. The Dallas native shot 1-over on the back to get to 3-under overall for the tournament. The two-time LJT Girls 15-18 Player of the Year is seeking her third win on the Legends Junior Tour in 2017, claiming victories at the Winter Classic in January and the Alamo Shootout in June.

San Antonio’s Camryn Carreon was the third player to score under par in the first round. Carreon shot 1-under 71 at Slick Rock and sits in third place heading into Thursday’s second round. Elise Parel and Kennedy Pedigo are tied for fourth at even-par, while seven other players are tied for sixth at 1-over.

The shot of the day in the Girls 15-18 Division came from Rockport’s Murphy McDermott, who aced the 140-yard second hole. McDermott hit a seven iron for her first ever hole in one.

In the Girls 14 & Under Division, Nguyen posted a 2-under 70 and leads Austin’s Ally Black by two strokes heading into Thursday’s final round. Nguyen made five birdies on the day, including the par-4 18^th, which was her last hole. Black made five birdies as well on the day, including three in a row on holes 12-14.

Spicewood’s Brooke McDonough sits in third in the division, while Natalie Cao and Emma Costa round out the top five.
In the Boys 14 & Under Division, Gaven Lane leads after shooting 3-under 69. The Argyle native made four birdies to only one bogey on Wednesday and leads by three strokes over a trio at even-par.

Zach Kingsland, Jase Summy and Shaheen Momin are tied for second after shooting 72 in the first round. Jacob Cole, Sebastian Moss, Greg Seo and Jackson Naeger are tied for fifth heading into the second and final round in the Boys 14 & Under Division.

Play continues Thursday at Slick Rock Golf Course for the championship. Boys and Girls 14 & Under will tee off in the morning wave, starting at 7:30 am. The Girls 15-18 Division will tee off in the afternoon wave, starting at 12:00 am.

Horseshoe Bay Resort is hosting the Texas State Junior Championship for the fifth time in the last six years. Slick Rock has hosted the Girls 15-18 Division and the Boys and Girls 14 & Under Divisions during that span.

For more information about the Girls 15-18 Division at the Texas State Junior Championship, click here. For more information about the Boys and Girls 14 & Under Divisions at the championship, click here. 

Texas State Junior Championship Returns to Horseshoe Bay Resort

DALLAS — The Legends Junior Tour returns to Horseshoe Bay Resort for the 91^st playing of the Texas State Junior Championship on July 24-28. The tournament features some of the top players in the state competing in four divisions: Boys 15-18, Girls 15-18, Boys 14 & Under and Girls 14 & Under.

Horseshoe Bay Resort has hosted the Texas State Junior Championship in six of the last seven years. After spending 2016 at The Woodlands Country Club, the event returns to compete on the Summit Rock and Slick Rock golf courses at Horseshoe Bay. This will be the first year that Summit Rock has hosted the Boys 15-18 Division, while the other three divisions return to the renovated Slick Rock.

Summit Rock is a Jack Nicklaus signature course and opened in October 2012. The Hill Country style venue features a rocky terrain surrounded by native grass on each hole. The course has Bermuda fairways and bent grass greens, which will challenge all the golfers in the Boys 15-18 field.

“Horseshoe Bay Resort is a great venue to host one of the oldest state championships,” Kellen Kubasak, LJT Director of Operations, said. “Moving the Boys 15-18 division to Summit Rock, which is one of the best courses in the state, was a no-brainer and will challenge the best players in Texas.”

Slick Rock was built in 1971 and designed by Robert Trent Jones Sr. The course is known as a “hard par, easy bogey” course and features 71 bunkers throughout the 18-hole layout with a dozen water hazards.  The par-4 14^th at Slick Rock is a picturesque hole that has golfers tee off over a stunning waterfall and onto the fairway. The course was renovated in 2016 and updated with bent grass greens.

Richmond’s Logan Pate won the weather shortened Boys 15-18 Division last year in a playoff. Pate posted rounds of 68-72 to get to 140 overall and won the tournament with a par of the first playoff hole. Heavy rain and lightning in the area caused the final round to get canceled.

Dallas’ Hailey Jones won the Girls 15-18 Division by five strokes in 2016. Jones got to 8-under overall for the championship with rounds of 67-68-73 over 54 holes. Kennedy Pedigo finished runner-up, while Christine Wang finished third.

Austin’s Evan Vo won the Boys 14 & Under Division after shooting 4-under 68 in the final round. Vo made five birdies in his final round to win by two strokes. Gabriella Tomanka of Grapevine won the Girls 14 & Under Division by three strokes after shooting rounds of 70-75 to get to 1-over 145 overall.

Other past champions of this event include Ben Crenshaw, Bruce Lietzke, Jeff Maggert, Stratton Nolen, Will Griffin, Angela Stanford, Annika Clark, Courtney Dow, Kaitlyn Papp and Jordan Spieth.

The Boys 15-18 Division and the Girls 15-18 Division will each play 54 holes with a cut after the first 36 holes. The Boys 15-18 Division’s first round will begin on Monday, July 24, while the Girls 15-18 Division’s first round will begin on Wednesday, July 26. The Boys and Girls 14 & Under Divisions will play 36 holes starting on Wednesday, July 26.

The Texas State Junior Championship is Golfweek and Junior Golf Scoreboard ranked, while the older Boys and Girls Divisions are recognized by the World Amateur Golf Ranking. Exemptions into future LJT Invitational Tournaments will be up for grabs along with AJGA Performance Stars.

For more information on the 91^st Texas State Junior Championship, click here.
 
 

Jones Wins Girls 90th Texas State Junior

THE WOODLANDS – Hailey Jones, 15, of Dallas went wire-to-wire to win the Girls 15-18 division in the 2016 Texas State Junior Championship presented by Merrill Lynch on a rain-soaked day at the Woodlands Resort. This is now the second consecutive year Jones has won this prestigious title.
 
Jones’ first two rounds on the Panther Trail Course were nearly perfect. She had 11 birdies and only one double bogey heading into the final round. She not only led the field, she dominated it with a six shot lead to begin her day. However, the forecasted storms did not disappoint and play was forced to be suspended not once but twice making Hailey’s final round score of a 1-over 73 very honorable.
 “The round was okay. I didn’t play as well as I did yesterday,” Jones said. “I had a bunch of par saves that I really needed but I hit my irons really well again. Struggled a little bit but got it in so it’s okay.”
She had four birdies mixed with five bogeys to give her that 1-over 73. It was an up-and-down round for her on a very up-and-down day of intense rain and dark clouds. The first suspension came at 10:30 a.m. and lasted until 12:08 p.m. Even when the players made their way out after that first delay, it was very evident that there would be another delay as more storms loomed in the distance. The second delay came at 1:30 p.m. and went until 3:10 p.m. Although there were no other suspensions, thunder rolled in the background and somehow did not deter Jones in the slightest. She said even with the unpredictability of the weather she was able to stay relaxed. A trait of a developing champion.   
 
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Jones Goes Wire-to-Wire to Win Girls 15-18 Division

THE WOODLANDS- Hailey Jones, 15, of Dallas went wire-to-wire to win the Girls 15-18 division in the 2016 Texas State Junior Championship Presented by Merrill Lynch on a rain-soaked day at the Woodlands Resort. This is now the second consecutive year Jones has won this prestigious title.

Jones’ first two rounds on the Panther Trail Course were nearly perfect. She had 11 birdies and only one double bogey heading into the final round. She not only led the field, she dominated it with a six shot lead to begin her day. However, the forecasted storms did not disappoint and play was forced to be suspended not once but twice making Hailey’s final round score of a 1-over 73 very honorable.

 “The round was okay. I didn’t play as well as I did yesterday,” Jones said. “I had a bunch of par saves that I really needed but I hit my irons really well again. Struggled a little bit but got it in so it’s okay.”

She had four birdies mixed with five bogeys to give her that 1-over 73. It was an up-and-down round for her on a very up-and-down day of intense rain and dark clouds. The first suspension came at 10:30 a.m. and lasted until 12:08 p.m. Even when the players made their way out after that first delay, it was very evident that there would be another delay as more storms loomed in the distance. The second delay came at 1:30 p.m. and went until 3:10 p.m. Although there were no other suspensions, thunder rolled in the background and somehow did not deter Jones in the slightest. She said even with the unpredictability of the weather she was able to stay relaxed. A trait of a developing champion.   

“During the delays I didn’t really think about anything I just played games on my phone and just kind of chilled,” Jones said with a laugh.

Jones finished with style holding a five shot lead over runner-up Kennedy Pedigo of Fort Worth. Pedigo was 1-under for the day and 3-under for the tournament. Pedigo’s sister, Rylee Pedigo an Oklahoma Univeristy junior, is currently the top seed at the WTGA State Amateur Championship at Brook Hollow GC making it a hectic yet exciting time for the Pedigo family.  

In third was Christine Wang of Houston who was 2-under for the tournament and behind her was a tie for fourth Valerie Patino of Katy and Sadie Englemann of Austin were both 1-over.

The Legends Junior Tour would like to thank all of the staff and volunteers of the Woodlands Resort. It was the first time the Texas State Junior Championship was played at this venue and despite the rain the tournament was a great success.  

For more information about the Girls 15-18 division, click here.

For more information about the Boys 15-18 division, click here.
 

Dallas' Jones Continues Stellar Play at 90th Texas State Junior Championship

The Woodlands – Hailey Jones continued her stellar play at the 90^th Texas State Junior Championship presented by Merrill Lynch after posting a 4-under 68 in the second round to move to 9-under 135 overall.

Jones, a native of Dallas, made six birdies on Tuesday to bring her total to 11 birdies through 36 holes. The defending champion of the Girls 15-18 Division has already won three times on the Legends Junior Tour in 2016, capturing titles at the Winter Classic in January, the James A. Ragan Memorial in February and the Collegiate Preview in March.

“I’m excited for tomorrow’s round,” said Jones about the possibility of winning back-to-back Texas State Junior Championships, “My plan is to not change anything and enjoy the day tomorrow.”

Trailing Jones heading into Wednesday’s final round is Houston’s Christine Wang, who shot a 3-under 69 in the second round. Wang trails Jones by six strokes and is paired with the leader along with Fort Worth’s Kennedy Pedigo, who is at 2-under overall.

Valeria Patino of Katy and Sadie Englemann of Austin round out the top five in the Girls 15-18 Division, while Yifei Bao sits sixth and Michelle Huynh, Anne Chen and Randi Romack are tied for seventh.

The field was cut after the second round. Twenty-nine players at 10-over or better made the cut for the final round of the championship.

The final round begins at 7:30 AM off the No. 1 tee at the Panther Trail golf course on Wednesday.

For more information about the Texas State Junior Championship’s Girls 15-18 Division, click here.
 

Jones Leads 2016 Texas State Junior Championship Girls 15-18 Division

THE WOODLANDS- Hailey Jones of Dallas fired a 5-under 67 during first round play at the 2016 Texas State Junior Championship presented by Merrill Lynch in the Girls 15-18 division.

This year’s tournament is being played at the prestigious Panther Trail course at The Woodlands Resort. The Girls 15-18 division teed off first and was immediately followed by the Girls and Boys 14 & Under divisions. The Boys 15-18 division will begin play Wednesday, July 27, at the Tournament Course.

Jones secured the 18-hole lead after firing five birdies with no bogeys. She said that the key to her solid round was her spot on iron play.

“Honestly I just hit my irons really well and had about 20 feet in just about every time and I just made some putts,” Jones said.

Jones is no stranger to this kind of success at the Texas State Junior Championship. She won it last year in a playoff at Horseshoe Bay Resort. She said that the win there gave her a nice boost in her confidence as well as some extra fire for her rounds this year.

“They are different courses but they’re about the same yardage as last year so I knew that if I hit my irons very well then I have a good chance at making birdies,” Jones said.

Right behind Jones is Kennedy Pedigo of Fort Worth. She shot 4-under 68 with five birdies and one bogey for her round. Pedigo played in the same group as Jones which is fitting since they are the only two girls who remained under par after completion of first round play in the Girls 15-18 division. A handful of players are tied for third at even par.  

Most of the girls in the 15-18 division were able to finish before the first bout of storms forced play to be suspended at 2:10 p.m. However, all of the Girls and Boys 14 and under divisions had to pause their play while the small storm passed. Play began again at 3:40 p.m.

The Girls 14 & Under division were then able to complete their first rounds. Gabriella Tomanka of Grapevine shot a 2-under 70 to lead the division by one stroke. Behind her is Zoe Slaughter of Houston who shot a 1-under 71.

The Boys 14-and-under division was unable to complete their rounds as surrounding storms once again forced play to be suspended at 6:25 p.m. Unfortunately, this time play was suspended for the day.

Those players yet to finish their rounds will have a shotgun start at 8 a.m. from their locations prior to the suspension. Tee times will be pushed back 30 minutes to accommodate those that have yet to finish their first round.

For more information about the Girls 15-18 division, click here.

For more information about the Girls 14 and under division, click here.

For more information about the Boys 14 and under division, click here.