Sass goes red for two-day total
Hamilton best on both days, cruise to victory
Louisville, KY (May 12, 2013) – The Hurricane Junior Golf Tour made its second visit to the Bluegrass State for the Louisville Junior Challenge at Oxmoor Country Club. The links style course presented an unusual challenge to players for this weekend’s tournament, but low scores were still seen both days. Temperatures were a bit cooler this weekend with Saturday in the 60’s with mostly clouds and Sunday was sunny and in the 50’s with a fair amount of wind. The Junior Golf Scoreboard ranked this event and the winners of all four divisions received automatic bids to the 2013 Tour Championship, while the older division winners received AJGA Performance Stars. Lastly, top ten finishers received points towards the Hurricane Cup, state teams, and the All-HJGT teams.
In the boys 15-18 division, Louisville native Michael Sass came away victorious after posting two day scores of 70-72 (142) for a 5-stroke victory. Sass was clutch down the stretch by shooting a 34 on the back nine Sunday, which allowed him to pull away from his competitors. Sass led the field in Par 3 performance (3.12) and Par 4 performance (3.85). Finishing in second place was Blake Cartwright with a two-day total of 74-73 (147). Cartwright led the field in Par 5 performance (4.75) and also shot a 34 on the back nine Sunday. Tyler Pearson finished third with scores of 75-73 (148). Pearson led the division in birdies with 7. Pearson won the EFX Birdie Challenge bracelet along with division champion Sass, who also had 7. The most improved award belongs to Mark O’Brien who shaved off 14 strokes from his Saturday total and won the Golf Pride grips.
Louisville’s own Maddie Hamilton shot a solid 76-77 (153) for a 9-stroke victory in the girls 15-18 division. Hamilton led the division in Par 4 performance (4.15) and Par or Better with (66.7%). Coming in second place was Taylor Howerton, Mackenzie Peyton and Ellen Kehoe, all with two-day totals of 162. Howerton had the most birdies in the division with four. Peyton led the division in Par 5 performance (5.00), while Kehoe led all competitors with most pars (20). The EFX Birdie Challenge bracelet was awarded to Maddie Hamilton, Taylor Howerton and Katie Gathof all of whom had 4 birdies. Jenna McGuire shot 16 strokes better on Sunday with an 82 to win the Golf Pride Comeback Player of the Week.
Chase Landrum, champion of the College Prep Series at University of Kentucky, won again in his home state in the Boys 11-14 division by posting scores of 69-73 for a (142). Landrum posted the best score on Saturday and led the division in most pars (23) and Par 4 performance (4.00). Finishing in second place was Cullan Brown who shot a consistent 74-74 (148). Brown eagled hole ten on Sunday and was the leader in par 5 performance for the weekend (4.50). Finishing in third place were Robbie Keyes, Joseph Steier and Christian Olsen with two-day totals of 162. Olsen and Steier both led the division in Par 3 performance (3.12) and Keyes had an impressive 20 pars for the tournament. Landrum won the EFX Birdie Challenge bracelet with 6 birdies. Ben Harris improved his Saturday total by 12 strokes and was awarded the Golf Pride Comeback Player of the Week.
Kylie Lysack of Georgetown, KY won the girls 11-14 age division with scores of 85-96 (181). Lysack had the most birdies with four and led the division in Par 4 performance (4.85). Ryan Bender finished in second place after posting scores of 106-91 for a 197 total. Bender led the division with most pars (10) and Par 5 performance (6.62). Mikayla Bardwell finished in third place with scores of 102-107 (209). Bardwell finished in second in Par 3 performance (4.00). Lysack won the EFX Birdie Challenge bracelet while Ryan Bender won the Golf Pride Comeback Player of the Week by improving Sunday by 15 strokes. Weather:Saturday: Mostly cloudy, low 50’s to low 60’s with 5-10 mph winds Sunday: Mostly sunny, high 40’s to high 50’s with 15-20 mph windsTournament Yardages:
Boy’s 15-18 division: 6,709 Boys’ 11-14 division: 6,224 Girl’s 15-18 division: 5,858 Girl’s 11-14 division: 5,388 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.