Coleman Surges at Greenwood Junior Challenge
Dodson Pulls Away to Win at Greenwood
Greenwood, SC (June 1-2) – The Hurricane Junior Golf Tour journeyed to Greenwood Country Club for the Greenwood Junior Challenge. The weather on Saturday was less than desirable with heat in the high 80s. It cooled down for Sunday, but storms looked to be on the horizon for most of the day. Luckily the storms held off and the players could not have asked for much better weather. Both days had little wind which allowed the competitors to play this beautiful course to its fullest. This course was full of great holes that challenged the golfers to play to the best of their abilities. This tournament was ranked by both the American Junior Golf Association (AJGA) and Junior Golf Scoreboard (JGS). The top twenty in all four divisions earned South Carolina Junior Golf Association Heritage Points while the top ten in each division accrued Tarheel Youth Golf Association Points. Winners also receive an automatic bid to the 2013 Tour Championship. Winners of the boys 15-18 and girls 15-18 divisions also received four AJGA performance stars as well as performance points which were awarded to the top 10 finishers in each age division. These points will go towards end of the year honors including HJGT State teams and the Hurricane Cup.
The Boys 15-18 Division was close up through the very end of Sunday. After the fourteenth hole on Sunday, Ryoto Furuya of Wesley Chapel, FL was leading by one stroke over Coleman Self of Greenwood, SC, but once Furuya made double bogey on fifteen, that lead was gone and Coleman never looked back eventually winning by three strokes. Coleman tied for the best score on day one and shot the best second round score as well. Self was spurred to victory by leading the field in pars or better. He made an impressive 88.9 percent of pars or better which was nearly 3 percent better than any other competitor. Self also tied for the most birdies and par breakers while tying for third with 23 pars. Capping off an impressive effort, Self was also one of only two players to average a score below par on par four holes. The other player was Bryson Nimmer of Bluffton, SC who finished second in the tournament. Nimmer and Furuya tied for second after Nimmer shot one under on Sunday. Other than hole 15 on the second day, Furuya had a fantastic tournament and finished first or tied for first with the most birdies, par breakers, and best par five performance. Nimmer finished in the top five for most birdies as well as finishing with the best par four performance. Cason Chapman of Williamstown, SC won the Golf Pride Comeback Player of the Week award improving by 14 strokes from Saturday to Sunday.
The Girls 15-18 Division was close heading into Sunday, but Taylor Dodson of Aiken, SC pulled away early and never looked back. Going into Sunday Dodson was tied with Victoria Huskey of Greenville, SC who tied for second, but ended up winning by six strokes. Dodson dominated the field posting the best score on each day and cruised through the last few holes to seal the win carding a birdie on eighteen. She had the most birdies and pars while finishing with the best par four and par five performances. Dodson will be attending college next year at Gardner Webb so she’ll have plenty of opportunities to win more tournaments in her bright future. There was a tie for second place between Huskey and Grace Massengill of Hickory, NC. Huskey finished first in par three performance while finishing in the top 3 in par four performance, birdies, and pars. Massengill also had a strong tournament finishing in the top four in birdies, pars, par three, par four, and par five performances. Mckenzie Hedrick of Bishop, GA won the Golf Pride Comeback Player of the Week after improving her score by eight strokes.
The Boys 11-14 Division was the closest division of the weekend coming down to the final two holes. The top two finishers, Alex Markham of Dacula, GA and Hudson Davis of Greenville, SC, dominated the tournament. Both were at seven over after the first round and were neck and neck heading into the final two holes, but a bogey on seventeen for Davis and a birdie on eighteen for Markham sealed the victory for Alex Markham. Markham had the most pars in the tournament, had the best par five performance, and carded the only eagle for the weekend on hole fifteen. Davis had the most birdies and best par three and par four performances, but was brought down by two double bogeys on Sunday. The third place finisher was Colby Bradley of Graniteville, SC. Bradley finished in the top three in pars, birdies, par three performance, and par five performance. Alex Markham also won the Golf Pride Comeback Player of the Week after improving his score by six strokes.
The Girls 11-14 Division was dominated by the Hoskins sisters. They were the only competitors to finish under ten over. Though she is the younger sister, it was Sydney Hoskins of Orlando, FL who prevailed over her older sister Sabrina Hoskins. After the first day, Sydney held a one stroke lead over Sabrina and Annika Blanton of Dacula, GA. On Sunday, she shot the best score of the weekend solidifying her win. Sydney’s par four performance propelled her to victory as she nearly half a stroke better than any of her competitors. Sydney also tied with her sister for most pars on the day and tied with Blanton for most birdies. Sabrina finished second, three strokes behind her sister at nine over. She had the best performance on par three and par five holes, but could not touch her sister on par fours. Sophie Guo of Bluffton, SC finished third and was one of the most consistent players finishing just behind the Hoskins sisters with 14 pars for the tournament. Sarah Kennedy of Greenville, SC won the Golf Pride Comeback Player of the Week after improving his score by six strokes.
Weather Saturday: Sunny, high 80s, winds 10-20 mph Sunday: Cloudy, early light mist, mid 70s to low 80s, winds 10-20 mph Tournament Yardages Boys 15-18: 6,760 yards Girls 15-18: 5,877 yards Boys 11-14: 6,201 yards Girls 11-14: 5,219 yards Tournament AwardsEFX Birdie Challenge
Boys 15-18: Ryoto Furuya, Weston Sanders, and Coleman Self Girls 15-18: Taylor Dodson, Victoria Huskey, and Grace Massengill Boys 11-14: Hudson Davis Girls 11-14: Annika Blanton and Sydney Hoskins Golf Pride Comeback Player of the Week Boys 15-18: Cason Chapman Girls 15-18: Mckenzie Hedrick Boys 11-14: Alex Markham Girls 11-14: Sarah Kennedy About Us: The Hurricane Junior Golf Tour (HJGT) was founded in 2008 with the intention of providing junior golfers between the ages of 11-18 an opportunity to play exceptional courses in a competitive environment. Golfers who participate on tour will compete in one of four age divisions: Boys 15-18 Division, Boys 11-14 and Girls 15-18 Division and 11-14 Division. Based out of Jacksonville, FL, the HJGT administers events all across the southeast as well as Ohio, Kentucky and Tennessee.