New Jersey Junior Tour standouts have the edge on their Philadelphia counterparts to retain Jon M. Pritsch Cup

    The 14^th edition of the Jon M. Pritsch Cup brought together the top players from the Philadelphia Section PGA Junior Tour and the New Jersey Section PGA Junior Tour for a Ryder Cup-style event Friday at Forsgate Country Club’s Banks Course in Monroe Township, N.J.

   The Jersey guys and girls -- well, Central Jersey as the Philly Junior Tour includes several South Jersey standouts – retained possession of the Pritsch Cup with a 12-6 victory. A year ago at Saucon Valley Country Club’s Weyhill Course, the teams battled to a 9-9 tie with New Jersey, having won it in 2018, retaining possession of the Pritsch Cup with the deadlock.

   The rosters are made up of the top point-getters from the respective Junior Tour’s wraparound 2019-2020 season.

   A couple of last year’s top performers in the PIAA postseason, Conestoga senior Morgan Lofland and Plymouth-Whitemarsh senior Dylan Gooneratne, led the way for the Philly Junior Tour team.

   Lofland, the Class AAA East Regional champion at Golden Oaks Golf Club last fall, rolled to a 6 and 5 decision over Michael Foley and Gooneratne, who shared second place in last fall’s District One Class AAA Championship, pulled out a 2-up victory over Joseph Giamanco.

   In the concurrent four-ball match, Lofland, who was coming off a tie for 17^th place in the American Junior Golf Association’s KJ Choi Foundation Junior Championship by SK Telecom, which concluded Thursday at Fiddler’s Elbow Country Club, and Gooneratne claimed a 2 and 1 victory over Foley and Giamanco.

   The first matches out were tight battles as Devon Prep senior Ryan McCabe, a top-three finisher in each of the last two PIAA Class AA Championships, and Spring-Ford senior Luke Watson each earned a half a point with ties in their individual matchups.

   McCabe, a product of the junior program at The Springhaven Club, halved his match with Ethan Lee while Watson ended up even with Arjun Malik.

   In both matches, the Jersey guys battled back from late deficits to pull out a tie. Lee won the 17^th and 18^th holes to rally for a deadlock with McCabe and Malik won the 16^th and 17^th holes to salvage a half-point against Watson.

   Those late heroics enabled Lee and Malik to pull out a pivotal 2-up victory over McCabe and Watson and grab the four-ball point.

   Nathan Guertler of Merchantville, N.J., a consistent performer in the 13-to-15 division on the Philly Junior Tour this summer, had one of the more impressive singles showings as he rolled to a 7 and 6 victory over Jun Chun.

   Another standout in the Philly Junior Tour’s 13-to-15 division, Matthew Normand of Lumberton, N.J., suffered a 4 and 3 defeat at the hands of Kevin Ha.

   Chun and Ha then pulled out a half-point in their four-ball match with the South Jersey standouts, Guertler and Normand, as the two pairs were tied after 18 holes.

   Strath Haven sophomore Tyler Debusschere, another product of the junior program at Springhaven, dropped a 3 and 1 decision to Hunter Po. Debusschere’s four-ball partner, Scott Hughes, took Priyam Nayak to the final hole before falling, 1-up.

   But Debusschere and Hughes did salvage a half-point by getting a tie with Po and Nayak in their four-ball match.

   New Jersey, however, pulled away by sweeping six points out of the final two foursomes.

   New Jersey’s Shane Quinn handed Elijah Ruppert, a senior at Brandywine Heights who finished in a tie for third in the PIAA Class AA Championship last fall, a 3 and 2 setback. Reed Greyserman rolled to a 7 and 6 decision over Ethan Martin.

   Quinn and Greyserman earned a full point for their 7 and 6 four-ball victory over Ruppert and Martin.

   It was more of the same in the girls foursome as Ava Lozito earned a 5 and 4 victory over Olivia Strigh of Hammonton, N.J. and Samantha Galantini captured a 2 and 1 win over Evelyn Wong of Macungie.

   Lozito and Galantini then made it a sweep of all three available points in the foursome with a 4 and 3 four-ball victory over Strigh and Wong.

   The matches are held to honor the memory of Jon M. Pritsch, who died tragically at age 17 in 1991 of heart disease. Pritsch was the No. 8-ranked junior player in the country at the time of his death and dreamed of playing professional golf.

   Pritsch’s parents started the Jon M. Pritsch Memorial Fund to help youngsters achieve the dream their son never got a chance to realize. The Jon M. Pritsch Memorial Fund has donated more than $200,000 in scholarships to junior golfers hoping to pursue a career in a golf-related field. All of the Pritsch Cup competitors are eligible to apply for one of the Jon M. Pritsch Memorial Fund scholarships.

 

 

Ryan, Sanderson share second place in KJ Choi Foundation Junior Championship at Fiddler's Elbow

    Josh Ryan and Calen Sanderson, two of the top returning players for a scholastic golf season that might never happen, finished in a tie for second in the American Junior Golf Association’s KJ Choi Foundation Junior Championship by SK Telecom, which wrapped up Thursday at Fiddler’s Elbow Country Club’s River Course in Bedminster Township, N.J.

   Ryan, who is home-schooled by Commonwealth Connections Academy and represents Norristown High on the golf course, was the District One Class AAA champion as a junior last fall at Turtle Creek Golf Club. Ryan went on to finish in a tie for third place in the PIAA Class AAA Championship at the Heritage Hills Golf Resort.

   Sanderson, a junior at Holy Ghost Prep, finished in a tie for second at the Turtle last fall before abandoning the PIAA postseason trail to tee it up in national junior tournament.

   The strong showings for Ryan and Sanderson at Fiddler’s Elbow are just the latest in what have been some impressive performances by the two youngsters this summer.

   Ryan captured the Golf Association of Philadelphia’s Junior Boys’ Championship at The 1912 Club and followed it up with a stunning run to the title in the Pennsylvania Golf Association’s R. Jay Sigel Match Championship at the Country Club of York.

   Earlier this month, Sanderson was right there after two rounds of the Pennsylvania Open at the Pittsburgh area’s iconic Oakmont Country Club, a shot out of the lead after carding one of the day’s best rounds, a 1-under 70 at the renowned Henry Fownes design.

   Sanderson faded a little with a final-round 80 that left him in the group tied for 25^th place at 10-over 283, but if he was intimidated by playing against the best professional and amateur golfers the state has to offer on one of America’s most difficult golf courses, it didn’t show.

   Sanderson flashed his talent in the opening round at Fiddler’s Elbow, grabbing the lead with a spectacular 5-under 67 over the 7,004-yard, par-72 River Course layout.

   He ripped off four birdies in a five-hole stretch on the front nine and added two more birdies against his lone bogey of the day at the 12^th hole on the back nine to finish at 5-under.

   Sanderson backed off with a 5-over 77 in the second round and trailed the eventual winner, Luke Sample of New York, N.Y., by two shots entering the final round.

   Sample posted a pair of 1-under 71s in Tuesday and Wednesday’s first and second rounds and closed with a roller-coaster ride of a 2-under 70 to capture the title with a 4-under 212 total.

   Sample’s final round featured seven birdies, four bogeys and a double bogey. Doesn’t sound like any lack of aggressiveness on his part on his way to the victory.

   Ryan trailed Sanderson by three shots after opening with a 2-under 70 before adding a 2-over 74 that left him in a tie for second with Sanderson at even-par 144 after two rounds, two shots behind Sample.

   With Sample pulling away, Ryan didn’t lose focus in Thursday’s final round as he made eight straight pars before closing with a birdie on the River Course’s incoming nine. Ryan signed for a 1-over 73 and a 1-over 217 total that left him five shots behind Sample.

   Sanderson also couldn’t make a move on Sample in the final round as he, too, closed with a 1-over 73 to get a share of runnerup honors with Ryan at 1-over 217.

   Billy Pabst Jr. of Roaring Brook Township closed with a solid 2-under 70 to finish alone in fourth place, two shots behind Ryan and Sanderson at 3-over 219.

   It was another strong showing for Conestoga senior Morgan Lofland at Fiddler’s Elbow in a summer filled with them as he posted a final round of 2-over 74 to join a large group tied for 17^th place at 229.

   Wissahickon junior Christian Matt and Spring Grove senior Karl Frisk, a PIAA Class AAA qualifier a year ago, shared 28^th place at 233. Matt and Frisk both had their best rounds of the week in Thursday’s final round as they registered matching 4-over 76s.

   James Ulsh of Carlisle sandwiched a second-round 80 with a pair of 78s to finish in a tie for 34^th place at 236.

   Episcopal Academy senior Shane Lawler followed up a pair of 80s in the first two rounds with a final-round 77 to end up in a tie for 36^th place at 227.

Conestoga’s Lofland and EA’s Lawler saw their respective leagues, the Central and the Inter-Ac, announce last week that there will be no fall sports in this, the year of the coronavirus pandemic.

   It would seem that the spring would be a logical option, but what happens to a guy like Lofland if the PIAA goes ahead with its fall postseason because some leagues – Wissahickon and the Suburban One League said last week that they plan to conduct fall sports – play their fall schedules?

   John Bradbeer of Rosemont had his best round of the week in the final round, a solid 2-over 75 to finish in a tie for 43^rd place at 240. Jack Ross of Medford Lakes, N.J. was alone in 46^th place at 256 after a final-round 84. Ross’ best round was an 80 in Wednesday’s second round.

   Jack Dunsmore of Doylestown sandwiched an 86 in the second round with a pair of 82s to finish in a tie for 50^th place at 250. Manheim Township senior Connor Strine, a PIAA Class AAA qualifier a year ago, finished alone in 52^nd place at 255. Strine’s best effort came in Wednesday’s second round when he posted a 79.

   In the Girls Division, Eunice Kim of Edgewater, N.J. birdied the 18^th hole in Thursday’s final round to edge Katherine Lu of Plainsboro, N.J. by a shot for the title.

   Kim grabbed the opening-round lead after a 1-over 73 over a River Course that played to 5,969 yards for the girls and still held the lead after falling back with a 77 in Wednesday’s second round.

   The closing birdie gave her a 2-over 74 and an 8-over 224 total. An eagle at the par-5 sixth hole of her final round gave Kim a huge boost. She also had five bogeys on her scorecard.

   Lu trailed Kim by a shot after adding a 76 to her opening-round 75. Lu matched Kim’s final-round 74 to end up a shot behind Kim in second place at 9-over 225.

   Megan Meng, the Pennington, N.J. youngster who was so impressive in capturing the Pennsylvania Junior Girls’ crown at Lebanon Country Club earlier this summer, grabbed a share of third place with Katie Dzialga of Greenwich, Conn., both landing on 11-over 227, two shots behind Lu.

   Meng, who had opened with a 77, closed with a second straight 75. Dzialga sandwiched a second-round 77 with a pair of 75s.

   It was a second straight strong showing in an AJGA event for Angelina Tolentino of Mount Laurel, N.J. as she was three shots behind Meng and Dzialga in fifth place at 230.

   Tolentino claimed her second AJGA title in the Junior Golf Hub Junior All-Star presented by Explore York at Regents’ Glen. At Fiddler’s Elbow, Tolentino only trailed Kim by a shot after opening with a 2-over 74 before adding a pair of 78s.

 

 

 

 

 

Gross cruises to seven-shot victory at Toftrees for second straight AJGA win

    Downingtown West freshman Nicholas Gross, building on the momentum from his first American Junior Golf Association victory a week earlier, made it two straight with a runaway seven-shot win in the AJGA Junior All-Star at Toftrees, which wrapped up Thursday at the Toftrees Golf Resort in State College.

   Gross had cruised to a five-shot victory in the Junior Golf Hub Junior All-Star presented by Explore York at Regents’ Glen Country Club for his first career AJGA win.

   That success seemed to have carried over to Toftrees as Gross opened the tournament with a spectacular course-record 6-under-par 66 over the 6,598-yard, par-72 layout in Tuesday’s first round.

   Gross backed off in the second round with a 1-under 71 and John Hiller of New York, N.Y. caught him by finishing his round with five straight birdies. But Gross kept the pedal squarely on the floor with a final round of 2-under 70 for a 9-under 207 that left Hiller and the rest of the field in the dust.

   The highlight of the week was the remarkable opening round. It started with an unremarkable bogey at the first hole. But then Gross went off. In a stretch of 11 holes starting with the fifth and concluding with the 15^th, Gross ripped off eight birdies to get it to 7-under. A bogey at the last left him with a scintillating 66.

   Hiller, who had opened with a 68, had that closing burst in Wednesday’s second round that enabled him to join Gross atop the leaderboard at 7-under 137. But Hiller couldn’t keep up with Gross, a final-round 77 leaving him in second place at 2-under 214.

   Still, a pretty solid showing by Hiller, but Gross is just too tough right now. I wrapped up his summer-long roll in last week’s post on his victory at Regents’ Glen.

   “Start to finish, it was really a great tournament,” Gross told the AJGA website. “Obviously, the course record the first day was something really special.”

   With the announcement Friday that the Ches-Mont League will not allow the playing of fall sports, it looks like Gross’ scholastic debut will have to wait. But he was able to find a lot of competitive opportunities in the midst of the coronavirus pandemic this summer, so he’ll likely find some places to play this fall.

   The two AJGA wins will open up some opportunities on that national junior circuit.

   Elias Kennon of Old Greenwich, Conn. finished two shots behind Hiller in third place at even-par 216. Kennon had rounds of 71 and 70 to trail Gross and Hiller by four shots after the first two days before closing with a 3-over 75.

   Matt Vital, a PIAA Class AAA qualifier as a freshman at Bethlehem Liberty a year ago, had a solid showing at Toftrees, closing with a 2-over 74 to join the group tied for seventh place at 4-over 220.

   After opening with a 75, Vital, who captured the Boys 12-13 division in the 2019 Drive, Chip & Putt National Finals at Augusta National Golf Club, had his best round of the week, a 1-under 71 in Wednesday’s second round. Vital had 14 birdies for the week at Toftrees.

   Win Thomas of Unionville had a strong start, firing a 3-under 69 in Tuesday’s opening round. He struggled to a 79 in the second round before closing with a 2-over 74 that left him alone in 14^th place at 6-over 222.

   Devon Prep freshman Nick Ciocca closed with a 3-over 75 to finish tied for 15^th place at 223. Ciocca, whose summer was highlighted by a victory in the Philadelphia Boys Junior PGA Championship at Bellewood Country Club, was at his best in Wednesday’s second round, posting a 2-under 70.

   Ajeet Bagga of Blue Bell finished up with a 3-over 75 to land in the group tied for 21^st place at 11-over 227. Bagga opened with a 2-over 74 before adding a 78 in the second round.

   Bishop Shanahan sophomore Benjamin Saggers was a shot behind Bagga in a tie for 28^th place at 12-over 228 after a final-round 77. Saggers opened with a 75 before adding a 4-over 76 in Wednesday’s second round.

   In the Girls Division at Toftrees, Sophia Sarrazin of Westport, Conn. claimed her second career AJGA victory, holding off Maggie Ni of Cypress, Texas to claim a one-shot victory.

   Sarrazin had built a big lead with an opening round of 3-under 69 followed by a 1-under 71 for a 4-under 140 total through two rounds over a Tofrtrees layout that measured 5,587 yards for the girls.

   But Sarrazin, who birdied the par-5 eighth hole in each round, struggled a little in the final round with a 5-over 77, although her 1-over 217 total was good enough for the victory. Sarrazin had 10 birdies in registering her fourth top-5 AJGA finish.

   Ni posted a pair of 1-over 73s in the first two rounds and trailed Sarrazin by six shots after two rounds. But Ni matched par in the final round with a 72 for a 2-over 218 total that left her a shot behind Sarrazin in second place.

   Sarah Shao of Green Brook, N.J. made a big move in the final round with a 2-under 70 that enabled her to finish third at 4-over 220, two shots behind Ni.

   Abigail Lynn of Furlong finished among the group tied for eighth place at 228. Lynn opened with a solid 1-over 73 and added a 79 in the second round before closing with a 76.

   Kayla Maletto of Sinking Spring ended up in the group tied for 13^th place at 232 after closing with her best round of the week, a 4-over 76, in Thursday’s final round.