Glenelg Golf Club will have it’s largest contingent ever representing the Club in the 2016 Australian Junior Amateur Championships being played in Tasmania this week.
Ten of our junior boys and two of our junior girls will compete in the 72-hole events being played at Ulverstone Golf Club (Boys’ Amateur) and Devonport Golf Club (Girls’ Amateur) from Wednesday to Friday, thanks in part to the generous support of the [intlink id=”2063″ type=”page”]Glenelg Golf Club Foundation[/intlink].
2015 SA Amateur Champion, Lachlan Barker, headlines the Glenelg contingent in the Boys’ Amateur, alongside fellow state team representatives Ben Layton and Jackson Kalz, with Emma Sutton and Charley Jacobs competing in the Girls’ championship. Other Glenelg representatives include brothers Aaron and Jack Buchanan, Jake Rillotta, Brodie Whitbread, Frank Vucic, Liam Kennewell and 2015 Club Champion, Jack Tanner.
The boys’ competition promises to be fiercely contested with Queenslander Charlie Pillon the top-ranked contender. Pillon, 17, was the medallist at the Australian Amateur Championship in January and packs a game that’s being steadily honed by the QAS and at his Hills International School base. But he will face a battle royale to live up to the billing with a strong West Australian attack sure to come from Freddy Lee and Ben Ferguson, second and fourth in the rankings, respectively.
Another West Australian Min Woo Lee (7) and his GA national squadmate, Victorian Cameron John (3) are also primed for the event, while Sydney’s Jason Hong (5), Melbourne’s Matias Sanchez (6) and exciting Canberra prospect Joshua Armstrong (10) each have designs on following Ryan Ruffels’ footsteps.
The reigning girls’ champion is back and Celina Yuan will start among the favourites to become just the third player since 1990 to defend her crown.
Victorian Mi Sun Cho achieved the feat in 2004 and 2005, following New South Wales star Gloria Park, who won three consecutive titles from 1996-98.
Sydneysider Yuan, 17, who represents The Australian Golf Club, was a semi-finalist in the Australian Amateur Championship at Metropolitan in January and has continued to churn out good results since. But on the well-kept surrounds of the Devonport Golf Club this week, she will likely renew a rivalry that reached its zenith at this time last year when she beat Queenslander Karis Davidson on the third hole of a playoff at Tea Tree Gully in South Australia.
Davidson, 17, who represents Sanctuary Cove Golf Club, has taken her game to a new level recently and currently tops the Australian junior girls’ rankings after beating Australian No.1 Hannah Green in the West Australian Amateur title last month.
The power-packed New South Wales contingent features four players in the top 20 of the national rankings, including Doey Choi (12) and the emerging Hannah Park (14).
Other top contenders for the girls’ title include Queensland’s Becky Kay (13), a member of the Golf Australia national squad, West Australian Kathryn Norris (9) and Victorian duo Alizza Hetherington (11) and Gabriela Ruffels (28), who is eager to continue her rapid improvement.
Both events are played over 72 holes – 18 on Wednesday and Thursday before a cut to the top 60 and ties, then 36 holes to determine the champion on Friday.
The Boys’ and Girls’ Interstate Championships are then played separately for three days from Sunday, with Victoria defending both titles.
Content courtesy of Golf Australia
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About the Glenelg Golf Club Foundation
Through the Glenelg Golf Club Foundation, we have identified junior golf as one of our key areas of importance.
As a result, the Club has focused on funding the ongoing development, training and promotion of junior golf with proceeds raised through the Foundation as a part of the Junior Golf & Elite Player Development project. This results in an outstanding, fully funded Junior Development Program at Glenelg Golf Club.
Click here for more information on the Glenelg Golf Club Foundation.
Click here for more information on the Club’s Junior Development Program
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