From Saturday, April 20 – Sunday, April 21, the Hurricane Junior Golf Tour held the Orange County National Junior Open at Orange County National Golf Club in Winter Garden, FL. The tournament was made up of a 36-hole, two-day format and the field was made from six divisions that included the Tiger Woods Division Boys 16-18, Will Smith Division Boys 14-15, Ernie Els Division Boys 11-13, Bryson DeChambeau Division Boys 10 and Under, Justin Timberlake Division Girls 14-18, and the Justin Rose Division Girls 13 and Under.
Tiger Woods Boys 16-18
It was a very tight race in the Tiger Woods Division, but Bradley Hull of Windermere, FL took the top spot with 144 strokes. Just two strokes behind him, there was a two-way tie for second. Lucas Cena of Winter Garden, FL and Chase Gullikson of Orlando, FL finished with 146 strokes each.
Will Smith Boys 14-15
It was another close call in the Will Smith Division, but Xirong Cheng of Bradenton, FL earned the gold with 146 strokes. One stroke behind him fell second-place finisher Chih Yu Lin of New Taipei, Taiwan with 147 strokes. Michael Thomas of Lutz, FL rounded out the division just two strokes behind Lin.
Ernie Els 11-13
Leading off the Ernie Els Division is Shawn Coultoff of Winter Garden, FL, as he finished out the two-day tournament with 145 strokes. The silver medal went to Ryan Banas of Winnetka, IL with 148 strokes. Jiacheng Xu of Winter Garden, FL earned the final spot on the podium with 153 strokes.
Justin Timberlake Girls 14-18
It was a close call in the Justin Timberlake Division, but Mi Li of Orlando, FL gave it her all, as she captured the first-place title with 149 strokes. Carla Alvarez Perez of Panama earned the silver, as she finished just one stroke shy of Li. There was a two-way tie for third, as Caroline Nemes of Orlando, FL and Alise Knudson of East Greenwich, RI rounded out the division as they both finished just one stroke shy of the second-place finisher.
Justin Rose Girls U13
The champion of the Justin Rose Division was the one and only Menglu Zhu of Beijing, China, as she finished with a competitive two-day total of 150 strokes. There was a tie for second, as Sammy Chao of Orlando, FL and Elan Zhang of Orlando, FL each finished with 161 strokes.
Boys 10 Under
Staying consistent throughout the weekend was key for Santiago Navarro of Caracas, FL to earn the gold in the Bryson DeChambeau division. Camilo Quast of Willemstad, Curaçao, Netherlands Antilles earned the silver with 235 strokes.
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Tournament Yardages
About Hurricane Junior Golf Tour
In 2017, The Hurricane Junior Golf Tour announced a partnership with Nexus, an international hospitality and entertainment company backed by financier Joe Lewis and Tavistock Group, golfing great Tiger Woods and musician and entertainer Justin Timberlake, which will further our collective goal of growing the game of golf, broadening the Tour’s reach across the U.S. and around the world.
The Hurricane Junior Golf Tour (HJGT) was founded in 2007 with the intent of providing junior golfers between the ages of 11-18, and now 10 and under, an opportunity to play exceptional courses in a competitive environment. Golfers who participate on the tour will compete in one of six age divisions: Boys 16-18, Boys 14-15, Boys 11-13, Boys U10, Girls 14-18, and Girls U13. Based out of Jacksonville, FL, the HJGT administers events all across the nation, with stops in Alabama, Connecticut, Florida, Georgia, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Mississippi, Missouri, Nebraska, New Jersey, New York, North Carolina, Ohio, Pennsylvania, South Carolina, Tennessee and Virginia. In 2016, we have now expanded to the west coast and cover California, Texas, Arizona, Colorado, Washington, Nevada, and Oregon.
For more information regarding the 2017 HJGT Tour, please visit our website at www.hjgt.org, call the Hurricane Junior Golf Tour headquarters at (407) 614-2962, or email info@hjgt.org.
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