Chad Kemmerer of Malvern turned it on on the back nine,
finishing his round with an eagle at the par-5 18th hole at Wild
Quail Golf & Country Club in Dover, Del. Wednesday that gave him a one-shot
victory over a talented group of 16-to-18 players gathered for a Philadelphia
Boys Junior PGA Championship qualifier.
It was the third qualifier in the last four days as the
Philadelphia Section PGA Junior Tour emerged from its coronavirus-enforced
sabbatical from competitive golf. Only nine berths were available for the
Philadelphia Boys Junior PGA Championship, which will tee off June 22 at
Bellewood Country Club in Pottstown, and all nine came out of the older
16-to-18 division.
The field at Bellewood just got quite a bit tougher with the
infusion of talent that emerged out of the par-72 Wild Quail layout. The players
at Bellewood will not, however, be competing for a ticket to the Boys Junior
PGA Championship since the PGA of America’s top junior event, scheduled to be
held next month at the PGA Golf Club in Port St. Lucie, Fla., was cancelled because
of the coronavirus pandemic.
And Kemmerer was the best of them all as his 18th-hole
eagle capped a blistering 32 on the inward nine that enabled him to post an
even-par 72.
Darren Nolan of Glenside -- pretty sure he’s a junior at Catholic
League power La Salle – and Evan Barbin, the youngest of the golfing Barbins of
Elkton, Md., shared second place, each carding a 1-over 73, just a shot behind
Kemmerer. Nolan and Barbin each made birdie at the par-3 17th hole
as they tried to catch Kemmerer.
Penn Charter senior Patrick Isztwan, who led the Inter-Ac
League’s regular-season points race last fall, headed a group of three players
tied for fourth place, each posting a 2-over 74.
Isztwan was joined at that figure by Ryan D’Ariano, a West
Chester Rustin junior who finished seventh in the District One Class AAA
Championship last fall, and Jacob Haberstumpf of Bethlehem.
Haverford School senior Tyler Zimmer, who was the runnerup
to Isztwan in the Inter-Ac regular-season points race while leading the Fords
to their third straight league crown last fall, finished alone in seventh place
at Wild Quail with a 4-over 76. Zimmer was also the runnerup to Germantown
Academy’s Luke Marvin in the Bert Linton Inter-Ac League Championship at Gulph
Mills Golf Club.
The final two tickets to Bellewood went to Unionville senior
Roy Anderson, who, like Rustin’s D’Ariano, was a Class AAA East Regional
qualifier last fall, and Collin McDonald of Lower Gwynedd, each of whom carded
a 77 to finish in a tie for eighth place.
Rounding out the top 10 in the 16-to-18 division were Kevin
Smith, who led Strath Haven to Central League and District One Class AAA titles
in his senior season last fall, and West Chester Henderson’s Dylan Kochis, the
Ches-Mont League’s individual champion as a sophomore last fall. Each signed
for a solid 78, which left them in a tie for 10th place.
But it was not good enough to earn them a spot in the
Philadelphia Boys Junior PGA Championship, a testament to the talent that was
assembled at Wild Quail.
None of the 13-to-15 competitors could crack the top nine in
the overall 13-to-18 scoring, but Griffin Gaughan of Avondale topped the
younger group with an 84. Gaughan parred three of the last four holes on the
front nine to cap a solid 42 going out.
Zachary Sandler of Gladwyne made a birdie at the 10th
hole on his way to an 86 that earned him runnerup honors. Evan Gebhart of
Magnolia, Del. was another shot behind Sandler in third place with an 87.
Alec Thiele of Philadelphia finished in fourth place with an
88, Shane Powelson of Kennett Square was fifth with a 92 and J.P. Hoban of
Havertown took sixth with a 93.
A couple of Delaware guys, Darius Laws of Wilmington and
Hayden Barr of Harrington, shared seventh place as each registered a 99. Joseph
Sheeler of Phoenixville rounded out the 13-to-15 field as he carded a 119 to
end up alone in ninth place.
Two Delaware girls, Josephine Wellons of Montchanin and
Avery McCrery of Wilmington, battled to the finish for the day’s best round
among the gals. Wellons made birdies at the seventh and 15th holes
on her way to an 83 that edged McCrery by a shot for the top spot in the
13-to-15 division. McCrery matched Wellons’ birdie at the 15th hole
on her way to an 84.
Regan Garnsey of Dover, Del. posted a 115 to finish third in
the 13-to-15 division.
Kayla Brosius of Magnolia, Del. was the only entry in the
16-to-18 division and finished with a 111 that included back-to-back pars at
the 16th and 17th holes.
Davis Conaway of West Chester topped the field of
nine-holers by making five pars on his way to a 6-over 42. It was the second
time this week Conaway has won the coed 12-and-under division, having finished
first Sunday at the Pine Meadows Golf Complex in Lebanon County.
Avery O’Neill of Romansville was the runnerup with a 44 that
featured pars on three of the first five holes. Declan Conner of Swarthmore
birdied the par-3 fourth hole on his way to a 46 that left him alone in third
place.
Kylie Yiengst of Wyoming, Del. finished in fourth place with
a 49, Chase Wilson of Talleyville, Del. was fifth with a 51, Meredith Finger of
Wilmington, Del. was sixth with a 54 and Jake Hollerback of Milsboro, Del. was
seventh with a 55.
Colin Burke of Wilmington, Del. took eighth place with a 60
and Kemble Wellons of Team Wellons of Montchanin, Del. rounded out the field of
nine-holers by finishing ninth with a 66.
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