McCrery, Deng finish strong to end up in a tie for fifth in Rolex Tournament of Champions at TPC San Antonio

 

   Avery McCrery, a Wilmington, Del. native, and Canadian Aphrodite Deng, both of whom have a Women’s Golf Association of Philadelphia Junior Girls’ Championship victory on their resumes, posted strong finishes in Wednesday’s final round of the Rolex Tournament of Champions at TPC San Antonio’s Canyons Course in San Antonio, Texas and ended up among a group of five players tied for fifth place.

   McCrery, who will join the program at Atlantic Coast Conference power Duke next summer, carded her third straight 1-under-par 71, and Deng, who was the defending champion in the Rolex Tournament of Champions, the marquee event on the American Junior Golf Association (AJGA) circuit, posted a flawless 2-under 70 in the final round as each landed on 2-under 286 for the 72-hole test.

   McCrery and Deng finished four shots behind the winner, Amelie Zalsman, a class of 2027 competitor from Saint Petersburg, Fla. who posted her fourth straight sub-par round with a 2-under 70 over a Canyons Course that measured 6,242 yard and played to a par of 72 for the girls to finish with a 6-under 282 total.

   On the boys side, Miles Russell, the heralded class of ’27 entry from Jacksonville Beach, Fla., displayed his seemingly limitless potential with a brilliant 7-under 65 as he pulled away for a from a talented field of junior golfers for a six-shot victory.

   McCrery, winner of the WGAP Junior Girls in 2020, began her scholastic career at the Tower Hill School before moving on to the ICL Academy, an on-line arm of the AJGA. A product of the junior program at Wilmington Country Club, McCrery made a major statement last summer when she claimed the title in the Girls Junior PGA Championship, one of the top national events for juniors, at Congressional Country Club’s Blue Course in Bethesda, Md.

   McCrery entered Wednesday’s final round in a tie for fifth place, just three shots behind Zalsman. She struggled a little early in the round, making bogeys at the fourth, sixth and ninth holes around a birdie at eight.

   But McCrery got the two par-5s on the Canyons Course’s incoming nine, making a birdie at the 12^th hole and an eagle at 15, and adding seven pars to finish strong and get it into red figures for the round for the third day in a row.

   Deng, who is based in Short Hills, N.J. in the States, won the WGAP Junior Girls two summers ago at the Moorestown Field Club and capped her bustout 2023 with a stunning five-shot victory at TPC San Antonio. Deng’s still just a kid, a class of 2028 competitor, the equivalent of a high school freshman.

   But Deng’s final round looked more like that of a grizzled veteran, a display of patience and discipline that saw her make birdies at the first and 12^th holes and par the remaining 16 holes. I’m sure she had a ton of birdie looks that didn’t fall, but she never got frustrated, never forced the issue.

   It is that kind of poise that Zalsman displayed in capturing the title. Rounds of 1-under 71, two-under 70 and another 1-under 71 had given Zalsman a one-shot edge over a trio of pursuers going into Wednesday’s final round.

   Zalsman, who was one of two 15-year-olds in the field in last spring’s U.S. Women’s Open at Lancaster Country Club, made bogeys at the third, fifth and eighth holes around a birdie at six on the outgoing nine at the Canyons Course.

   But, much like McCrery, Zalsman got the two par-5s on the incoming nine, making a birdie at the 12^th hole and a critical eagle at 15 before adding one more birdie at 17 that enabled her to hold off Scarlett Schremmer of Birmingham, Ala. by a shot.

   It was Zalsman’s fourth AJGA victory, but her first in an invitational. The Rolex Tournament of Champions has become a Thanksgiving week staple and a celebration of junior golf. It has the feel of a big event and winning it is, well …

   “This win was special,” Zalsman told the AJGA website. “AJGA has definitely provided me with so many opportunities that I am so thankful for. Playing and winning in this tournament is truly amazing.”

   Schremmer, who will join the program at Southeastern Conference power Texas A&M next summer, was the best player in the girls field for all but a couple of bad holes in a 6-over 78 in Tuesday’s third round.

   To her credit, Schremmer battled hard in Wednesday’s final round, making five birdies on the Canyons Course’s incoming nine on her way to a 2-under 70 that left her just a shot behind Zalsman in second place with a 5-under 283 total.

   Schremmer’s future Texas A&M teammate, Natalie Yen of West Linn, Ore., and Eliana Saga, another class of ’27 competitor from Stevenson Ranch, Calif., finished in a tie for third place, each landing on 3-under 285, two shots behind Schremmer.

   Yen, who will join Schremmer in College Station next summer, and Saga each matched par in the final round with a 72.

   Michelle Xing of Canada and Nikki Oh of Torrance, Calif. had two of the best rounds of the day in the final round of the Rolex Tournament of Champions with a pair of matching 5-under 67s. Their strong finishes propelled them into the quintet tied for fifth place that included McCrery and Deng at 2-under 286.

   Xing will join the program at UCLA of the Big Ten at the end of the summer in 2026 and Oh plans to join the program of ACC power Stanford in the summer of 2026.

   Rounding out the fivesome tied for fifth place at 2-under was another Canadian, Shauna Liu, a class of ’27 entry who closed with a solid 1-under 71.

   The best round of the day in Wednesday’s final round belonged to Lisa Herman of Jenks, Okla. who carded a sizzling 6-under 66 to elbow her way into the top 10, ending up alone in 10^th place, two shots behind the five players tied for fifth place at even-par 288.

   Herman plans to join the program at SEC power Mississippi in the summer of 2026.

   Russell, the kid who electrified the golf world when he finished in a tie for 20^th place in the Korn Ferry Tour’s LECOM Suncoast Classic as a 15-year-old in April, put on quite a show in capturing the boys title over a Canyons Course layout that measured 7,106 for the guys.

   Russell, who reached the quarterfinals of the U.S. Junior Amateur at Oakland Hills Country Club in Bloomfield Hills, Mich. last summer, made birdies at the second, seventh, ninth, 10^th, 12^th, 15^th and 17^th holes with nary a bogey on his scorecard in fashioning a fantastic 7-under finish.

   It gave the little left-hander a 13-under 275 total and another impressive entry on his burgeoning amateur resume.

   “This is a great event,” Russell told the AJGA website. “To play against the top junior golfers in the world makes it pretty amazing. I played well all week and I was happy to have a strong final round today.”

   Luke Colton of Frisco, Texas was Russell’s closest pursuer as he closed with a 3-under 69 to finish six shots behind the winner in second place with a 7-under 281 total. Colton plans to join the program at ACC power Stanford in the summer of 2026.

   Edan Cui of Atherton, Calif. also closed with a 3-under 69 to finish two shots behind Colton in third place with a 5-under 283 total. Cui will precede Colton at Stanford by a year as he will join the Cardinal next summer.

   Michael Riebe of Encinitas, Calif. gave Stanford a third recruit inside the top four as he headed a group of three players tied for fourth place at 4-under 284.

   Riebe, who will join Cui as a Stanford freshman next summer, had led the field at the halfway point by four shots after back-to-back 4-under 68s. He faltered with a 5-over 77 in Tuesday’s third round, but finished strong with a solid 1-under 71.

   Joining Riebe at 4-under were Joshua Kim of Danville, Calif. and Tyler Watts of Huntsville, Ala.

   Kim, who will join the program at UCLA in the Big Ten next summer, finished up with a 2-over 74. Watts, who plans to join the program at Tennessee in the SEC in the summer of 2026, closed with a 1-over 73.

   Watts lost in the final of the U.S. Junior Amateur at Oakland Hills last summer.

 

 

 

 

 

 

McCrery creeps within three of the lead heading into final round of Rolex Tournament of Champions in San Antonio

 

   Avery McCrery of Wilmington, Del. began the third round of the Rolex Tournament of Champions, the marquee event on the American Junior Golf Association (AJGA) circuit, Tuesday nine shots out of the lead, but she will only be three shots from the top spot when she tees off for Wednesday’s final round.

   Scarlett Schremmer of Birmingham, Ala. had built a four-shot advantage after the first two rounds at TPC San Antonio’s Canyons Course in San Antonio, Texas, but she struggled to a 5-over 77 in Tuesday’s third round and let a whole bunch of talented junior players back in the hunt for the title.

   Not sure if weather, a tough course setup or just the pressure of playing for such a coveted title was to blame, but some big numbers showed up on several scorecards.

   There aren’t a whole lot of junior tournaments that are 72-hole stroke-play tests like the Rolex Tournament of Champions, but McCrery, a scholastic standout at Tower Hill School before moving on to the ICL Academy, an on-line arm of the AJGA, owns a win in one of them, last summer’s Girls Junior PGA Championship at Congressional Country Club’s Blue Course in Bethesda, Md.

   McCrery, who will join the program at Atlantic Coast Conference power Duke next summer, wasn’t completely immune from the slew of train wrecks that broke out on the Canyons Course, which measured 6,242 yards and played to a par of 72 for the girls. After opening her round with a birdie at the first hole, McCrery made a triple bogey 8 at the par-5 second.

   But McCrery battled back, making birdies at the seventh, ninth, 11^th and 12^th holes to get it to 2-under for her round. She made back-to-back bogeys at the 13^th and 14^th holes to fall back to even for the day, but got one more birdie at the last for a 1-under 71.

   That gave McCrery a 1-under 215 total that left her in a tie for fifth place with Shauna Liu, a class of 2027 competitor from Canada.

   McCrery is only three shots behind 54-hole leader Amelie Zalsman, another class of ’27 entry from Saint Petersburg, Fla. who carded a steady 1-under 71 that left her with a 4-under 212 total.

   Zalsman avoided the pitfalls that befell some of her competitors. After making a birdie at the fifth hole, Zalsman made a bogey at six. Birdies at the 12^th and 15^th holes got her to 2-under for her round before she gave back a shot with a bogey at the finishing hole.

   Zalsman has played on one of the biggest stages in women’s golf as she was the medalist in a local qualifier in Bradenton, Fla. and earned a spot in the field for last spring’s U.S. Women’s Open at Lancaster Country Club.

   Schremmer, who will join the program at Southeastern Conference power Texas A&M next summer, had a rough day, but she’s not out of this thing by a long shot. Her 77 left her among a trio of players tied for second place, a shot behind Zalsman at 3-under 213.

   Joining Schremmer at 3-under were her future Aggie teammate Natalie Yen of West Linn, Ore. and Eliana Saga, a Class of ’27 competitor from Stevenson Ranch, Calif.

   Yen, who will join Schremmer in College Station as a freshman next summer, matched par with a 72 in Tuesday’s third round to get her share of second place. Saga struggled a little with a 2-over 74. Saga had taken the lead following an opening round of 4-under 68 and she’s still right there going into the final round.

   Liu, the Canadian, registered a 1-over 73 to join McCrery in the tie for fifth place at 1-under 215.

   McCrery was the winner of the Women’s Golf Association of Philadelphia Junior Girls’ Championship in the pandemic summer of 2020. But she’s not the only WGAP Junior Girls champion on the leaderboard.

   Aphrodite Deng, the WGAP Junior Girls winner two summers ago at the Moorestown Field Club, matched McCrery’s 1-under 71 in Tuesday’s third round and was alone in seventh place a shot behind McCrery and Liu at even-par 216.

   Deng, a native of Canada whose base of operation is Short Hills, N.J. in the States, was the equivalent of an eighth-grader when she stormed to a five-shot victory in the Rolex Tournament of Champions at TPC San Antonio a year ago.

   Deng, too, hit a snag early in her third round with a double bogey at the par-5 second hole. But she came roaring back with three straight birdies at the fifth, sixth and seventh holes. Deng stumbled with bogeys at the eighth and 13^th holes, but finished strong with birdies at 16 and 18.

   Deng will enter Wednesday’s final round just four shots out of the lead on a golf course on which she is obviously comfortable.

   On the boys side, all eyes in San Antonio were on the most hyped 15-year-old in golf, Miles Russell, the little left-hander from Jacksonville Beach, Fla. Pretty sure he’s celebrated his 16^th birthday recently because he had just turned 15 when he picked up the AJGA’s Rolex Player of the Year award during Tournament of Champions week a year ago.

   Since then, Russell, a Class of ’27 competitor, made the cut in a Korn Ferry Tour event, the LECOM Suncoast Classic, and finished in a tie for 20^th place, teed it up in a PGA Tour event, the Rocket Mortgage Classic at Detroit Golf Club, and reached the quarterfinals of the U.S. Junior Amateur at Oakland Hills Country Club in Bloomfield Hills, Mich.

   And, with a sparkling 3-under 69 in Tuesday’s third round, Russell gained a share of the lead with Joshua Kim of Danville, Calif. going into Wednesday’s final round, each landing on 6-under 210 over a Canyons Course layout that measured 7,106 for the guys.

   After opening his round with a double bogey at the first hole, Russell went 5-under the rest of the way, making birdies at the second, fifth, sixth, 11^th and 15^th holes.

   Kim, who will join the program at newly minted Big Ten entry UCLA next summer, recorded his third straight 2-under 70 to join Russell at 6-under.

   Kim got off to a good start Tuesday with a birdie at the second hole before stumbling with bogeys at three and nine. But Kim bounced back on the incoming nine at the Canyons Course with birdies at the 11^th, 14^th and 17^th holes to get it in at 2-under for the day.

   Tyler Watts of Huntsville, Ala. was just a shot behind the co-leaders in third place at 5-under 211 after matching par with a 72 in Tuesday’s third round.

   Watts, who plans to join the program at the SEC’s Tennessee in the summer of 2026, lost in the final in last summer’s U.S. Junior Amateur at Oakland Hills.

   A couple of future Vanderbilt Commodores, Luke Colton of Frisco, Texas and Michael Riebe of Encinitas, Calif., accounted for the next two spots on the leaderboard with Colton in fourth place at 4-under 212 and Riebe in fifth at 3-under 213.

   Colton, who plans to join the Vanderbilt program in the summer of 2026, made the biggest move of the day on the boys side with a sparkling 5-under 67.

   Riebe, who will join the Vanderbilt program next summer, had taken a three-shot lead into Tuesday’s third round after signing for back-to-back 4-under 68s in the first two rounds. He struggled to a 5-over 77 Tuesday, but he will go into Wednesday’s final round still very much in the hunt at 3-under.

 

 

 

 

 

 

McCrery, Deng in top 10 at halfway point of Rolex Tournament of Champions in San Antonio

 

   A couple of winners of the Women’s Golf Association of Philadelphia Junior Girls’ Championship of recent vintage are in the top 10 at the halfway point of the Rolex Tournament of Champions, the marquee event on the American Junior Golf Association (AJGA) circuit at TPC San Antonio’s Canyons Course in San Antonio, Texas.

   Avery McCrery, the 2020 WGAP Junior Girls winner at Sandy Run Country Club while playing out of Wilmington Country Club, made a late charge in Monday’s second round and is in a tie for seventh place at even-par 144 after two tours of the Canyons Course, which measures 6,142 yards for the girls and plays to a par of 72.

   Aphrodite Deng, the 2023 WGAP Junior girls winner at the Moorestown Field Club and the defending champion in the Rolex Tournament of Champions, climbed the leaderboard with a sparkling 3-under-par 69 that left her among a trio of players tied for ninth place at 1-over 145. Deng, a Class of 2028 competitor, is a native of Canada who has made Short Hills, N.J. her home base.

   Scarlett Schremmer of Birmingham, Ala. is threatening to turn the battle for the title into a runaway as she blitzed the Canyons Course with a sizzling 6-under 66 Monday and will take a four-shot lead into Tuesday’s third round against an international field of junior standouts.

   McCrery, who will join the program at Atlantic Coast Conference power Duke at the end of next summer, turned heads when she captured the title in the Junior Girls PGA Championship, one of the major national events for junior golfers, in July at Congressional Country Club’s Blue Course in Bethesda, Md.

   McCrery was one of the top scholastic players in Delaware when she was at the Tower Hill School, but moved to the ICL Academy, an on-line arm of AJGA, in order to integrate her schooling with her golf ambitions.

   After opening with a 1-over 73 Sunday, McCrery, who began her second round off the 10^th tee, got off to a slow start with bogeys at the 12^th and 16^th holes on the Canyons Course’s incoming nine.

   But a burst of three birdies in a four-hole stretch at the fifth, sixth and eighth holes enabled McCrery to get it into red figures for the round as she recorded a 1-under 71 to get it to even-par for the tournament.

   Deng was a stunning winner by five shots as a 13-year-old a year ago at TPC San Antonio.

   She struggled in the opening round with a 4-over 76, but Deng was bogey-free in a steady round that got her back in the hunt at 1-over. Also starting off the 10^th tee, Deng opened with a birdie at 10, added birdies at 15 and two and then rattled off seven straight pars to finish her round.

   The Rolex Tournament of Champions has become a Thanksgiving week staple on the golf scene. The 72-hole test will conclude Wednesday, the eve of Thanksgiving.

   Schremmer, who will join the program at Southeastern Conference power Texas A&M at the end of next summer, first appeared on my radar when she lost in the final of the Ione D. Jones/Doherty Championship, a match-play stop on the unofficial Orange Blossom Tour, in January at Coral Ridge Country Club in Fort Lauderdale, Fla. to Maisie Filler, who was in the middle of a really strong senior season at Florida.

   After opening with a 3-under 69 Sunday, Schremmer really got it going in Monday’s second round.

   After making a bogey at the 10^th hole, her first of the day, Schremmer proceeded to rip off eight birdies in the next 14 holes to get it 7-under for her round. She made birdies at the 11^th, 12^th, 14^th, 15^th, first, third, fifth and sixth holes.

   A bogey at the eighth hole did nothing to dim the luster of Schremmer’s 6-under round as she took command of the girls division with a 9-under 135 total.

   Schremmer reached the round of 16 in the U.S. Girls’ Junior Championship in July at El Caballero Country Club in Tarzana, Calif.

   Eliana Saga, a Class of ’27 entry out of Stevenson Ranch, Calif., was Schremmer’s closest pursuer as she signed for a 1-under 71 in Monday’s second round for a 5-under 139 total that left her four shots behind the front-runner.

   Saga had grabbed the lead after carding a 4-under 68 in Sunday’s opening round.

   Amelie Zalsman, a Class of ’27 competitor out of Saint Petersburg, Fla. and Natalie Yen of West Linn, Ore. are tied for third place, each landing two shots behind Saga at 3-under 141.

   Zalsman added a solid 2-under 70 in Monday’s second round to her opening-round 71. Yen, who will join Schremmer as a freshman at Texas A&M next summer, had matched par in the opening round with a 72 before adding a sparkling 3-under 69 in Monday’s second round.

   Shauna Liu, a Class of ’27 entry from Canada, matched par with a 72 in Monday’s second round after opening with a 2-under 70 and was alone in fifth place at 2-under 142 total.

   On the boys side, Michael Riebe of Encinitas, Calif. built on his lead with a second straight 4-under 68 and will take a three-shot advantage into Tuesday’s third round.

   Riebe, who will join the program at powerful Vanderbilt in the SEC next summer, got off to a blazing start Monday as, beginning his round off the 10^th tee, he rattled off birdies at the 10^th, 11^th, 12^th and 13^th holes.

   After making a bogey at the 16^th hole, Riebe immediately got that shot back with a birdie at 17. He made a bogey at the third hole, but finished his round with a flourish, making his sixth birdie of the day at nine that left him with a 36-hole total of 8-under 136.

   Edan Cui of Atherton, Calif. and Tyler Watts of Huntsville, Ala. were Riebe’s closest pursuers as each came on strong with a 5-under 67 that left them three shots behind Riebe at 5-under 139.

   Cui, who will join the program at ACC power Stanford next summer, had matched par in the opening round with a 72.

   Watts, who will join the Tennessee program in the SEC in the summer of 2026, also matched par in the opening round with a 72. Watts lost in the final of last summer’s U.S. Junior Amateur at Oakland Hills Country Club in Bloomfield Hills, Mich.

   Joshua Kim of Danville, Calif. was a shot behind Cui and Watts in fourth place with a 4-under 140 total after posting a second straight 2-under 70. Kim will join the program at newly minted Big Ten power UCLA next summer.

   Miles Russell, the Class of ’27 phenom from Jacksonville Beach, Fla., was a shot behind Kim in fifth place as he added a 2-under 70 in Monday’s second round to his opening-round 71 for a 3-under 141 total.

   Russell played the weekend and finished in a tie for 20^th place in the Korn Ferry Tour’s LECOM Suncoast Classic at Lakewood National Golf Club in Lakewood Ranch, Fla. in April and teed it up in the PGA Tour’s Rocket Mortgage Classic at Detroit Country Club in July. He returned to the Detroit area a couple of weeks later and reached the quarterfinals of the U.S. Junior Amateur at Oakland Hills.