ELLIOTT: JUNIORS GIVE IT A RUN
AT U.S. OPEN LOCAL QUALIFIERS

Over the next few weeks several top juniors will join more than 8,000 professional and amateur men (7,820) and women (929) teeing it up in the hopes of qualifying for a national championship.

Next month's U.S. Open and the Women's Open in July always feature the world's best professionals. This year, if recent history is any indication, don't be surprised to see several juniors shoulder-to-shoulder with the world's best when the Opens get under way.
- For more, visit www.golfweek.com/articles/2003/juniorgolf/boys/33089.asp

NEWS AND NOTES

* Lennar Communities of Southern California has agreed to sponsor the American Junior Golf Association's Lennar Junior at Mission Hills. The AJGA announced May 13 the event, which features one of the top fields in junior golf, will be played June 23-26 at Mission Hills Country Club in Rancho Mirage, Calif.

* Teddy Collins of Louisville, Ky., shot a final-round, 8-under 63, which was a 16 shot swing from his first-round 79, to finish the IJGT at Hershey Lodge and Convention Center event with an even-par 142 total. Collins finished six shots ahead of Doug Hurson of Bethesda, Md. Collins' 63 would have been a course record had it been played from another set of tees that added 350 yards to the layout.

* Morgan Pressel, the Florida teen-ager who became the youngest qualifier in the history of the U.S. Women's Open two years ago, passed the first stage in trying to get back there.

The 14-year-old from Boca Raton shot a 2-over-par 74 at The Naples Beach Hotel & Golf Club May 12 to advance to sectional qualifying. She will be joined at sectionals by top-ranked Paula Creamer and No. 4 Nicole Hage, who both shot 73 at Naples.
- For more, visit www.golfweek.com/articles/2003/juniorgolf/girls/33103.asp

PLAYER TO WATCH
Name: Eddie Peckels
Age: 16
Golfweek/Titleist Ranking: 12^th
Residence: Delray Beach, Fla.
The Skinny: Peckels started playing golf when he was 10. ''My mom (Kelly) and dad (Ed) play and they would take me out and my uncle (John) would play a lot and I would join him,'' he said.

Peckels recently finished tied for eighth at the AJGA's TaylorMade-adidas Golf Junior at Chateau Elan, and held the top spot in the Golfweek/Titleist Performance Index earlier this season.

''I won the AJGA postseason event (Ashworth Postseason Junior at Celebration) and that was pretty cool,'' said Peckels, who in ranked No. 12. ''That was my biggest accomplishment in golf so far.''

Outside of golf, he enjoys playing basketball, football and hanging out with his friends. His favorite player is Tiger Woods because: ''He is so good and he makes it look so easy.''

THIS WEEK'S SCHEDULE

INDEPENDENT
May 16-18 -- Scott Robertson Memorial, Roanoke (Va.) CC

IJGT
May 16-18 -- Pumpkin Ridge, North Plains, Ore.

PJGT
May 17-18 -- PJGT Tour Championship

NUMBER CRUNCHING
Here is a list of last week's winners and their movement in the Golfweek/Titleist Performance Index:

No ranked events last week.

RECRUITING CENTRAL
The campus visit is the most important factor in the college recruiting/selection process for student-athletes and non-athletes, however, there is some valuable information about colleges and universities that prospective students can gather during campus visits or from a distance.

First, does a school have what you want to study and can you meet the standards to be admitted? Are there alternative courses of study if you decide to change majors? Some students are interested in the backgrounds of the professors, the academic reputation of the institution and the size of the library while others are more concerned with academic support staff and programs. Are tutors available if you get in over your head?

Do your homework before applying to any schools. It will help you in asking questions during your campus visits and can help you decide if an institution should even be on your list.
- For more college recruiting information, visit the Ping American College Golf Guide at www.collegegolf.com/.

THIS WEEK IN GOLFWEEK
Check the May 17 issue of Golfweek for a complete review of the NCAA Division I Women's Regionals.

POLL QUESTION
How will Annika Sorenstam fare at next week's Colonial?

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.

Have a question about the Golfweek/Titleist Performance Index? E-mail rankings@golfweek.com.