Zhang comes all the way from China to claim title in two-day Philly Junior Tour event at Hickory Valley

 

   A youngster from China, Minghe Zhang, showed up in New Hanover Township on the western edge of Montgomery County and claimed a four-shot victory in the Philadelphia Section PGA Junior Tour’s annual two-day stop at Hickory Valley Golf Club’s 36-hole facility June 27^th and 28^th.

   Zhang came halfway around the world to match par with a 72 on Hickory Valley’s par-72 Presidential Course in the second round after opening with a 2-over 73 on the par-71 Ambassador Course in the opening round for a 2-over 145 total.

   Boyertown senior Chase Dillman didn’t travel nearly as far as Hickory Valley is only a few miles from his Gilbertsville home. He earned low-American honors with a 6-over 149 total that left him four shots behind Zhang.

   Dillman had grabbed the lead with an opening round of 1-under 70 at the Ambassador Course before struggling a little in the second round with a 7-over 79 at the Presidential Course.

   The Philly Junior Tour stop at Hickory Valley was a Junior Golf Scoreboard (JGS) event, offering points that can earn players status on some of the higher-profile junior circuits, most notably the American Junior Golf Association (AJGA).

   The JGS scoring is for players ages 13-to-18. The Philly Junior Tour breaks out its usual 16-to-18 and 13-to-15 divisions, so I’ll wrap up those divisions while referencing the overall scoring.

   In his second round at the Presidential Course, Zhang made birdies at the fourth, 14^th and 17^th holes and had 12 pars on his scorecard, including six in a row from the fifth through the 10^th holes, to overcome the three-shot deficit he faced.

   In his opening round at the Ambassador Course, Zhang made birdies at the first and 10^th holes and had 12 pars on his card, also rattling off six pars in a row from the 11^th through the 16^th holes.

   Zhang’s 2-over total for the two rounds earned him the top spot in the 16-to-18 division and in the overall scoring.

   Coming off a Philly Junior Tour victory a day earlier at nearby Raven’s Claw Golf Club, Dillman rode that momentum to a fast start in his opening round at the Ambassador Course. He made birdies at the seventh, 10^th, 11^th, 15^th and 16^th holes and had nine pars on his card. The four birdies on the incoming nine at the Ambassador Course enabled Dillman to tour that side in a sparkling 2-under 33.

   Dillman made birdies at the third and sixth holes and had eight pars on his card the next day at the Presidential Course as he earned runnerup honors in the 16-to-18 division and in the overall scoring with his 6-over total.

   The Presidential Course generally played tougher than the Ambassador did, although there were some notable exceptions.

   It was seven shots back to Perkiomen Valley junior Andrew Brendlinger as he struggled to an 82 in the second round at the Presidential Course to finish in third place among the older guys and in the overall scoring with a 156 total.

   Brendlinger had 11 pars on his card in the second round at the Presidential Course. He made back-to-back birdies at the 15^th and 16^th holes and had 11 pars on his card in a solid 3-over 74 in the opening round at the Ambassador Course.

   Alexander Hall of Schwenksville finished three shots behind Brendlinger in fourth place in the 16-to-18 division and seventh in the overall scoring with a 159 total as he added an 80 in the second round at the Presidential Course to his opening-round 79 at the Ambassador Course.

   Archbishop Carroll senior Jason DiRita opened with a 79 at the Ambassador Course, but struggled to an 88 in the second round at the Presidential Course as he finished in fifth place among the older guys with a 167 total.

   Charlie Crossed of Wayne struggled to a 90 in the second round at the Presidential Course after opening with an 80 at the Ambassador Course as he finished in sixth place in the 16-to-18 division with a 170 total.

   Harriton junior Carson Deringer and Harry Traynor of Malvern finished a shot behind Crossed in a tie for seventh place in the 16-to-18 division, each landing on 171.

   Deringer added an 86 in the second round at the Presidential Course to his opening-round 85 at the Ambassador Course. Traynor got off to a good start with a 7-over 78 at the Ambassador Course, but struggled to a 93 in the second round at the Presidential Course.

   Drake Brogan of Ocean View, N.J. added an 87 in the second round at the Presidential Course to his opening-round 90 at the Ambassador Course to finish in ninth place among the older guys with a 177 total.

   Quakertown senior Whyatt O’Rourke rounded out the top 10 in the 16-to-18 division as he finished a shot behind Brogan in 10^th place with a 178 total. O’Rourke struggled in the opening round with a 94 at the Ambassador Course, but shaved 10 shots off that total with an 84 in the second round at a Presidential Course that was playing tougher for much of the field.

   Salesianum School sophomore Luke LaScala, Souderton sophomore Wyatt Underwood and another Asian invader, Matthew Kim of Shanghai, shared the top spot in the 13-to-15 division and finished in a tie for fourth place in the overall scoring, a shot behind Brendlinger from the 16-to-18 division, as each landed on 157.

   LaScala finished strong with a 5-over 77 in the second round at the Presidential Course. He made birdies at the first, sixth, 16^th and 18^th holes and had six pars on his scorecard. LaScala made birdies at the 10^th and 15^th holes and eight pars on his card in an opening-round 80 at the Ambassador Course.

   Underwood had a share of the lead in the 13-to-15 division as he made birdies at the seventh, 10^th, 12^th, 14^th and 15^th holes and had seven pars on his card in a solid 4-over 75 at the Ambassador Course in the opening round. The four birdies on the incoming nine enabled him to go 1-under 34 on that side at the Ambassador Course.

   Underwood made a birdie at the sixth hole and had eight pars on his card in a second-round 82 at the Presidential Course.

   Kim made birdies at the sixth and 11^th holes and had eight pars on his card as he finished up with an 80 at the Presidential Course in the second round to get his share of the top spot in the division. Kim made 13 pars, including six in a row to close out his round, on his way to a 6-over 77 in the opening round at the Ambassador Course.

   Avon Grove sophomore Gus Stoltzfus matched Underwood’s opening round of 4-over 75 at the Ambassador Course that gave him a share of the lead in the division. He struggled to an 87 in the second round at the Presidential Course that left him in fourth place in the 13-to-15 division and eighth in the overall scoring with a 162 total.

   Carter Hippauf of Quakertown and Haverford School sophomore Jack Luterman rounded out the top 10 in the overall scoring as they finished in a tie for ninth place and were tied for fifth in the 13-to-15 division, each landing on 166.

   Hippauf added an 82 in the second round at the Presidential Course to his opening-round 84 at the Ambassador Course. Luterman, an Ardmore resident, opened with a 79 at the Ambassador Course, but couldn’t solve the Presidential Course in the second round, struggling to an 87.

   Colin Schreiber of Kunkletown added an 85 in the second round at the Presidential Course to an opening-round 82 at the Ambassador Course as he finished in seventh place in the 13-to-15 division, a shot behind Hippauf and Luterman with a 167 total.

   Henry Sokol of Villanova and Trevor Sieben of Medford, N.J. shared eighth place among the younger guys as each ended up a shot behind Schreiber with a 168 total.

   Sokol added an 83 in the second round at the Presidential Course to his opening-round 85 at the Ambassador Course. Sieben had the same splits, opening with an 85 on the Ambassador Course before finishing up with an 83 in the second round at the Presidential Course.

   Chase Andrews of Harleysville rounded out the top 10 in the 13-to-15 division as added an 89 in the second round at the Presidential Course to his opening-round 81 at the Ambassador Course for a 170 total.

   Polytech senior Kylie Yiengst was easily the best among the girls at Hickory Valley as she opened with a sparkling 1-over 73 over an Ambassador Course that is a par 72 for the girls and added an 81 in the second round at the Presidential Course for a 10-over 154 total.

   Yiengst, who finished in third place in the Delaware Interscholastic Athletic Association (DIAA) Championship at Maple Dale Country Club in May, finished first in the 16-to-18 division by 22 shots and in the overall scoring by seven shots.

   Yiengst made birdies at the first, sixth, 10^th, 12^th and 13^th holes and had nine pars on her scorecard in her fast start at the Ambassador Course. She made birdies at the second and 10^th holes and had eight pars on her card in the second round at the Presidential Course.

   Downingtown West junior Malaina Druffner earned runnerup honors among the older girls and finished in sixth place in the overall standings with a 176 total.

   Druffner, who helped the Whippets capture the Ches-Mont League title last fall, made birdies at the fifth, 14^th and 15^th holes and had six pars on her card in a solid 84 in the second round of the Presidential Course. Druffner struggled in the opening round with a birdie on the 16^th hole and three pars on her way to a 92 on the Ambassador Course.

   Upper Merion senior Alyssa Schuebel rounded out the field in the 16-to-18 division as she finished in third place with a 243 total. Schuebel made pars on the 10^th and 15^th holes on her way to a 127 in the second round on the Presidential Course and made pars on the third and 13^th holes in a 116 in the opening round at the Ambassador Course.

   Schuebel also rounded out the field in the overall standings with her ninth-place finish.

   Charlotte Reid of Cream Ridge, N.J. had the best score of the day among the girls with her 6-over 78 in the second round at the Presidential Course as she finished atop the leaderboard in the 13-to-15 division and earned runnerup honors behind Yiengst in the overall standings with a 161 total.

   Reid made birdies at the fourth, ninth and 17^th holes and had seven pars on her scorecard at the Presidential Course. Reid made an eagle at the par-5 10^th hole, made birdies at the first and 15^th holes and had five pars on her card as she opened with an 83 at the Ambassador Course.

   Perkiomen Valley sophomore Saloni Patel and Isabelle Studli of Fairfield finished 12 shots behind Reid in a tie for second place in the 13-to-15 division and in a tie for third in the overall scoring, each landing on 173.

   Patel had six pars on her card as she finished up with an 85 in the second round at the Presidential Course. She had seven pars on her card in an opening-round 88 at the Ambassador Course.

   Studli made a birdie on the sixth hole and had six pars on her card on her way to an 87 in the second round at the Presidential Course. In the opening round, Studli made a birdie at the 13^th hole and had eight pars on her card, including a run of seven straight pars from the sixth through the 12^th holes, as she signed for an 86 at the Ambassador Course.

   Exeter sophomore Giulia Weisser finished a shot behind Patel and Studli in fourth place among the younger girls and in fifth overall with a 174 total. Weisser, a PIAA Class AAA qualifier as a freshman last fall, added an 85 in the second round at the Presidential Course to her opening-round 89 at the Ambassador Course.

   Zuzu Connolly of Wilmington, Del. finished in fifth place in the 13-to-15 division and was seventh overall with a 181 total. Connolly added an 86 in the second round at the Presidential Course to her opening-round 95 at the Ambassador Course.

   Eliza Meersman of Fort Washington rounded out the field in the 13-to-15 division as she finished in sixth place and was eighth overall with a 196 total. Meersman bounced back from an opening-round 102 at the Ambassador Course with a 94 at the Presidential Course in the second round.

   Preston Minio of Lansdale topped the nine-holers with a solid 6-over 78. Minio made a birdie at the third hole and had five pars on his scorecard in a 39 in his second round at the Presidential Course. He had six pars on his card as he also registered a 39 in the opening round at the Ambassador Course.

   Sam Whitehouse of Pottstown finished three shots behind Minio in second place with an 81. Whitehouse had five pars on his card in a 41 in the second round at the Presidential Course and six pars on his card in an opening-round 40 at the Ambassador Course.

   John (Jack) Shea of Harleysville finished two shots behind Whitehouse in third place with an 83. Shea had five pars on his card in a 41 in the second round at the Presidential Course. He had four pars, closing his round with four straight pars, in an opening-round 42 at the Ambassador Course.

   Connor Masulis, another Pottstown guy, finished in fourth place with a 94 as he carded a 47 in the second round at the Presidential Course after opening with a 47 at the Ambassador Course.

   Jack Gilbert of Bryn Mawr took fifth place as he finished three shots behind Masulis with a 97. Gilbert added a 47 in the second round at the Presidential Course to his opening-round 50 at the Ambassador Course.

   Rounding out the field in the coed 12-and-under division was Nolan English of Villanova as he added a 53 in the second round at the Presidential Course to his opening-round 50 at the Ambassador Course to finish in sixth place with a 103 total.