The Hurricane Junior Golf Tour will feature a slate of four tournaments this weekend. These Junior Opens will all take place in the Southeast region with two in Florida, one in Georgia and one in South Carolina. With further ado, here is the Junior Open Preview for February 10-11.
Grand Strand Open at True Blue
The first tournament of the weekend is taking place at True Blue Golf Club in Pawleys Island, South Carolina. According to the club website, “annually ranked in Major Golf Publications like Golf Magazine, Golfweek and other “Top 100 Lists,” True Blue Golf Club represents the class of the expansive golf offerings on The Waccamaw Golf Trail located just minutes south of central Myrtle Beach in Pawleys Island. The dramatic, fun layout is known for its vast fairways, undulating greens, and impressive elevation changes. The rolling terrain and native vegetation of this “Nationally Recognized” Mike Strantz design makes for one of the most spectacular settings in golf. And with an 18-acre practice facility, fully stocked pro shop and inviting grill room.”
The tournament field is one of the smaller ones for the weekend, but that just provides the opportunity for one of these great junior golfers to add a tour win to their resume. The weather this weekend in Pawleys Island, South Carolina will be a little mixed. Saturday will be fairly nice with partly cloudy conditions with a high of 70 and a low of 57. Sunday will bring some rain to the area with continuing cloudy conditions. The high for Sunday is 71 with a low of 57. So, while it will be a little wet on Sunday, it will stay warm, which will be good for the players. For those of you traveling to South Carolina, pack light because of the heat but don’t forget that umbrella for Sunday.
Lanier Islands Junior Open at Legacy
The second tournament of the weekend is taking place at Lanier Golf Club in Buford, Georgia. According to the website, “Our golf course in Georgia is a brilliant throwback to classically designed courses not dependent on length to challenge golfers. It is everything great courses are known for: beautiful to the eyes, challenging to the skills and memorable to the spirit…and when you get done, you will be yearning to return!”
The tournament itself is full in the boys 16-18 age range, but the other groups will be a little light on players. Which may provide some other players with a terrific opportunity to pick up a win on the tour. The weather this weekend for Buford, Georgia will be not ideal. There will be light rain both Saturday and Sunday. Saturday’s high will be 67 with a low of 55, not too cold but the rain will play a factor on the course. Sunday will cool off with a high of 62 and a low of 54. For all of you going out to Buford this weekend, bundle up and take an umbrella. It will be wet the whole weekend but still not too cold.
Miami Shores Junior Open
The third tournament of the weekend is taking place at the Miami Shores Golf Club in Miami, Florida. The course opened in the fall of 1939. Two major hazards bisect the golf course, the Biscayne Canal Number C-8 and the Florida East Coast railroad, the latter of which is now deemed out of bounds. In 2011, the golf course underwent a major renovation which included installing Mini Verde Bermuda on the greens.
This tournament is mostly full within each division and promises to bring some competitive golf to Miami. The course is located less than 15 minutes from downtown Miami, Miami Beach, and the Miami International Airport. The weather for Miami this weekend, Saturday will be partly cloudy with a high of 77 and a low of 71. Sunday will be a high of 78 and a low of 72. If you are headed out to Miami Shores this weekend, bring lots of water for a very warm weekend. UV index is only 3, but do not let that fool you, wear a hat and bring sunscreen.
Mission Inn Junior Open
The final tournament of the weekend is taking place at the Mission Inn Country Club in Howey-in-the-Hills, Florida. The field for the boys 16-18 age bracket is completely full and sure to bring some stiff competition this weekend. The girls 14-18 age bracket is also full, with a great competitive weekend coming up. The resort is in Howey-in-the-Hills and the Mission Inn Resort & Club is on a lake, within a 15-minute drive of Lake Dora and Lakeridge Winery. This family-friendly hotel is 10 miles from Eustis Village Shopping Center and 12.1 miles from Venetian Garden. The weather this weekend will be sunny on Saturday with a high of 77 and a low of 62. Sunday will be more of the same, but a little warmer with a high of 80 and a low of 64. The UV index is going to be 5, so for all players and parents definitely pack sunscreen this weekend for Howey-in-the-Hills.