Ringler: New AJGA
system If you've traveled in junior golf circles the last decade you have
played or desired to play American Junior Golf Association events. Last
week, the Braselton, Ga.-based organization unveiled a complex plan to
make participation easier. Or did they?
The AJGA has clearly been the place to play if you're a junior and the
tournaments they produce have been models of organization for the last 20
years.
creates new set of problems
- For more, visit www.golfweek.com/juniorgolf/
TOURNAMENT RECAP David Yoon of Irvine, Calif., shot a final-round, even-par 70 Jan. 26
to win the boys 13-19 division by three strokes at the IJGT at Ojai Valley
tournament.
Yoon, who had a first-round 66, finished at 4-under 136. Carl Smith of
Laguna Beach, Calif., posted an even-par 70 along with his opening 69 to
finish in second.
In the girls 15-19 division, Megan McLeod of Fallbrook, Calif., came
from behind to defeat Hawaii's Kayla Morinaga by two strokes. McLeod shot
a final-round 69 for a 4-over 146 total.
* IJGT at
Ojai (Calif.) Valley Golf Resort
- For complete results, visit
www.golfweek.com/amateur/
NEWS AND
NOTES The new system, a complex 12-page outline the AJGA has been developing
for more than a year, awards access into open events based on finishes in
specific tournaments. It also puts an official end to the organization's
oft-maligned resume system, a subjected method the AJGA had been phasing
out slowly. * Drew Kittleson had a once-and-a-lifetime experience the week leading
up to the Phoenix Open.
Kittleson, No. 302 in the Golfweek/Titleist Performance Index, caddied
for Rich Beem, walked a practice round with Andrew Magee, went out to
dinner with Mark O'Meara and even played a round at the TPC at Scottsdale
with Phil Mickelson.
Last December, Kittleson's mother, Janis, died of colon cancer. At his
wife's request, Kittleson's father, Curt, didn't tell Drew until after the
13-year-old had won his age group in a playoff at the Doral Publix Junior
Classic.
Mickelson and O'Meara learned of his story through a friend of the
Kittleson family at Acushnet Co., the parent company of their sponsor,
Titleist.
* Nike Golf and the AJGA are teaming for a multi-year relationship
beginning in 2003 to present the AJGA Nike Golf Junior All-Star Series.
Seven events are planned for 2003, including a season-ending
championship near Nike Golf's World Headquarters in Beaverton, Ore., over
Labor Day Weekend. The Series is slated to expand over the next few years
and eventually grow to 20 events by 2006.
* For the third consecutive week a Florida teen-ager dominated the
field at a women's amateur event.
Seventeen-year-old Nicole Hage downed Morgan Pressel, 4 and 2, Jan. 25
to claim the Ione D. Jones/Doherty Cup.
For this pair, however, the pressures of playing in a prestigious
amateur event were nothing new. At the age of 12, Pressel qualified for
the 2001 U.S. Women's Open, while Hage played in last year's Women's Open
at Prairie Dunes Country Club. * The U.S. Golf Association Foundation Jan. 29 announced the first of
three groups of grants for 2003. Sixty-three grants totaling $1,928,151
were awarded as part of the ''For the Good of the Game'' initiative. This
10-year, $50 million initiative has traditionally focused on programs for
economically disadvantaged youth and individuals with disabilities.
Included in this month's grants is a three-year $225,000 commitment for
the Mid-South Junior Golf Association in Memphis, Tenn., the
second-largest single grant for a junior golf program to date. The grant
will go toward junior golf instruction, course access and education. The
MSJGA operates its own nine-hole golf course and is currently building a
second nine-hole site. * Short Shots: Mizuno Canada will expand its relationship with
the Canadian Junior Golf Association in 2003 the organization announced
Jan. 29. In addition to sponsoring the Mizuno All-Canadian Award, the
manufacturer has agreed to title sponsor the 2003 Mizuno CJGA National
Golf Championship, which is scheduled to be played Aug. 19-22 at St.
Andrews Valley Golf and Country Club in Aurora, Ontario. . . . . Matthew
Richardson was named to the GB&I Walker Cup squad on Jan. 27. ''We
have a very exciting group of young golfers coming through, people like
the World Junior champion (Richardson), and we believe that any one of
these players could take a step forward to compete for a place in the
team,'' GB&I captain Garth McGimpsey said. The 10-player Great Britain
& Ireland Walker Cup team will be selected from the squad. . . . .
John Gilles of Santa Barbara, Calif., aced the par-3, 186-yard fifth hole
using a 5-iron at the IJGT event's at Ojai Valley last weekend.
* The road to American Junior Golf Association participation
became much more inviting Jan. 24 with the release of the organization's
much-awaited Performance Based Entry system.
- For more, visit www.golfweek.com/juniorgolf/
- For more, visit www.golfweek.com/juniorgolf/
- For more, visit www.golfweek.com/juniorgolf/
PLAYER TO
WATCH Larrazabal has competed in four IJGT tournaments and has won two (IJGT
at Berkeley Hall, IJGT at Pinehurst) and came in second in the other two
(IJGT at ChampionsGate, IJGT at TPC Sawgrass).
He started playing golf at age 6 and simply loves everything about the
game. ''I like to practice because I enjoy playing all day long,'' he
said.
When asked about his plans for the future, Larrazabal explains that he
will continue to practice and hopefully earn his PGA Tour card after
college. This April he is going to caddie for his older brother, British
Amateur champion Alejandro Larrazabal, at the Masters and several PGA
European Tour events.
Name: Pablo Larrazabal
Age: 19
Golfweek/Titleist
Ranking: 21st (as of Jan. 26)
Residence: Barcelona,
Spain
The Skinny: Larrazabal appeared on the scene in September 2002
when he won the first IJGT tournament in which he competed, The IJGT at
Berkeley Hall. Larrazabal, a student at the International Junior Golf
Academy, is a senior at The Heritage Academy on Hilton Head Island, S.C.
THIS WEEK'S
SCHEDULE
Jan. 31-Feb 2 -- FCWT Junior Classic at Seaside, St.
Simons Island, S.C.
Feb. 1-2 -- The Junior Heritage, Hilton Head, S.C.
Feb. 1-2 -- SEIKO Piedmont Cup, Duke University GC, Durham, N.C.
Golfweek/Titleist
Performance Index (as of Jan. 26) GIRLS
BOYS
1. Tyler
Leon 69.69
2. Robert Gates Jr. 69.90
3. Benjamin
Alvarado 70.61
4. Brendon Todd 70.87
5. Chanin
Puntawong 71.17
6. Lance Lopez 71.25
7. Ryan
Cairns 71.40
8. Trent Leon 71.60
9. Greg Rodgers
71.64
10. Jonathan Moore 71.65
11. Martin Ureta
71.81
12. Cornelius Carroll 71.82
13. Philip Pettitt
Jr. 71.86
14. Mark Perry 72.04
15. Colin Wilcox
72.08
16. Sean Moore 72.24
17. Song Jeon 72.29
18.
Chris Kirk 72.30
19. Hector Diaz-Ceballos 72.40
20.
Tyler Brown 72.42
- For complete rankings, visit www.golfweek.com/juniorgolf/ratings/boys.asp
1. Paula Creamer 69.63
2. Emma Cabrera
72.49
3. In-Bee Park 72.59
4. Nicole Hage 73.10
5.
Julieta Granada 73.16
6. Jane Park 73.16
7. Ashley
Knoll 73.39
8. Carmen Alonso 73.41
9. Elisa
Serramia 73.54
10. Brittany Lincicome 73.57
11. Hannah
Jun 73.94
12. Jennie Lee 73.94
13. Elizabeth
Dotson 74.20
14. Astrid Gulesserian 74.22
15. Taylor
Leon 74.46
16. Jennifer Hong 74.55
17. Morgan
Pressel 74.62
18. Stefanie Page 75.03
19. Ki-Shui
Liao 75.04
20. Monique Gesualdi 75.35
- For complete
rankings, visit www.golfweek.com/juniorgolf/ratings/girls.asp
RECRUITING
CENTRAL Included in the approved reform package is an increase in the
core-course requirement from 13 to 14 courses beginning in August.
However, the sliding scale for the SAT/ACT requirement corresponding to
core-course GPA was eased resulting in more emphasis on GPA and less on
the test scores.
The new standard may affect current high school students. However, for
the next two years prospective student-athletes may achieve eligibility
using either the old standard or the new guidelines depending on which
rules benefit the student. Prospective student-athletes will not be
allowed to ''mix and match'' old and new standards during the two-year
implementation period in trying to meet their freshman eligibility for
divisions I and II. These rules do not apply at division III schools.
Academic requirements for NCAA division I freshman
eligibility are more strict than the requirements for Division II, but the
even more strict reforms approved last year impact prospective
student-athletes at both Division I and II institutions.
- For more college recruiting information, visit the Ping American
College Golf Guide at www.collegegolf.com.
THIS WEEK IN
GOLFWEEK
In the Feb. 1 issue of Golfweek, check for complete
coverage from the NCAA College Coaches Convention as well as an in-depth
review of the PGA Merchandise Show.
POLL
QUESTION
Log on to golfweek.com and participate in the ''It's Your
Honor'' poll question. This week: On a course that suits her game, how
would Annika Sorenstam fare if she played in a PGA Tour event?
Have a question about the Golfweek/Titleist Performance Index? E-mail
rankings@golfweek.com.
Have an
interesting junior note to report, or know an interesting junior we can
profile? E-mail Golfweek scoreboard editor Graham Elliott at gelliott@golfweek.com.