Conner heads a group of 13 qualifiers for the Philadelphia Boys Junior PGA Championship with a victory at Elmhurst

 

   Declan Conner, a District One Class AAA qualifier as a junior for Ridley last fall, put together a sparkling 3-under-par 69 Wednesday at Elmhurst Country Club in Moscow, Lackawanna County, to claim a Philadelphia Section PGA Junior Tour victory in the 16-to-18 division and lead a group of 13 qualifiers for next week’s Philadelphia Boys Junior PGA Championship.

   Pretty sure this was the last in the series of qualifiers for the guys for the Philadelphia Boys Junior PGA Championship, a one-day 36-hole test scheduled to be played June 15 at Bellewood Country Club, across the Schuylkill River from Pottstown.

   The event always draws one of the best fields of scholastic golfers in the region each year as the top finishers – and we’re talking about only the top two or three guys – earn a trip to the Boys Junior PGA Championship, one of the marquee national events for junior golfers conducted by the PGA of America.

   The Boys Junior PGA Championship, a 72-hole, stroke-play event, tees off July 28 at Fields Ranch East and West at the PGA of America’s headquarters in Frisco, Texas.

   Players ages 13 to 18 are eligible for the Philadelphia Boys Junior PGA Championship. The Philly Junior Tour broke down its usual 16-to-18 and 13-to-15 age groups, so I’ll wrap them up while referring to the overall scoring.

   Nobody at Elmhurst was better than Conner as he made birdies at the third, sixth, 10^th, 14^th and 17^th holes and 11 pars on his scorecard. The three birdies on the incoming nine enabled Conner to tour the back nine in 2-under 34.

   His 3-under round left Conner at the top of the leaderboard in the 16-to-18 division and in the overall scoring.

   Cole Powell, a Fell Township resident and the PIAA Class AA champion as a sophomore at Scranton Prep last fall, made birdies on the second, sixth, eighth, 11^th and 14^th holes and had seven pars on his card as he matched par with a 72 to finish in second place among the older guys and in the overall standings.

   Powell’s three birdies on the outgoing nine at Elmhurst enabled him to tour the front nine in 2-under 34.

   Sebastian Park of Lansdale and Judd Fletcher of Moorestown, N.J. each posted a 4-over 76 to finish in a tie for third place in the 16-to-18 division and in a tie for third in the overall standings with Logan McGinn of South Williamsport, who landed at the top of the leaderboard in the 13-to-15 division.

   Park made an eagle on the par-5 sixth hole, added birdies on seven and 11 and had eight pars on his card. Fletcher made birdies on the fourth and 15^th holes and had 12 pars on his card, including a string of four straight pars from 11 through 14.

   Holden Sparks, a PIAA Class AAA qualifier as a sophomore at Nazareth last fall, headed a group of four players who finished in a tie for fifth place in the 16-to-18 age group and in a tie for sixth in the overall scoring, each signing for a 5-over 77. Sparks was coming off a Philly Junior Tour victory the previous weekend in a Philly Junior Tour York Series stop at Out Door Country Club.

   Joining Sparks at 5-over were Quin Zuegner, a junior on the golf team at The Hill School and a New Hope resident, David Nissen, a junior on the Wissahickon golf team, and Jackson Murland, a Villanova resident and a junior on the Friends’ Central golf team.

   Rounding out the top 10 in the 16-to-18 division and finishing in a tie for 11^th place in the overall scoring were Jack Pavuk, a Clarks Summit resident and PIAA Class AA qualifier as a junior at Scranton Prep last fall, and Matthew Haggerty, both of whom ended up in a tie for ninth place, each recording a 79.

   Pavuk, Haggerty and Sebastian Leone, a freshman on the Radnor golf team that finished in a tie for second place in the PIAA Class AAA team competition last fall, nailed down the final spots in qualifying for the Philadelphia Boys Junior PGA Championship. Leone finished in a tie for third in the 13-to-15 division.

   McGinn opened his round with back-to-back birdies at the first and second holes, added birdies at six, 10 and 14 and had five pars on his card as he finished at the top of the leaderboard in the 13-to-15 division with a 4-over 76.

   McGinn joined Park and Fletcher from the 16-to-18 division in the tie for third place in the overall standings. McGinn finished in a tie for 10^th place in the Philadelphia Boys Junior PGA Championship last summer at the RiverCrest Golf Club & Preserve.

   Bryce Bussom of Lewisburg punched his ticket to the Philadelphia Boys Junior PGA Championship at Bellewood as he made birdies on the 10^th and 14^th holes and had 10 pars on his card to earn runnerup honors in the 13-to-15 division and finish 10^th overall with a 6-over 78.

   Leone, the Radnor freshman, was the final player in the 13-to-15 division to qualify for a spot at Bellewood as he made a birdie on the 10^th hole and had 10 pars on his card, including four straight pars to open his round, on his way to a 79 that left him in third place among the younger guys and in a tie for 11^th in the overall standings with Pavuk and Haggerty from the 16-to-18 division.

   A couple of West Chester residents who were freshmen in the Malvern Prep golf program last fall, Tucker Detwiler and Owen Ciesielka, accounted for the next two spots in the 13-to-15 division as Detwiler took fourth place with an 84 and Ciesielka was fifth with an 85.

   Oliver Hubbert, a Gwynedd Valley resident and a freshman in the golf program at Catholic League power La Salle, and Richard Davoli of Ambler finished in a tie for sixth place among the younger guys, each carding an 86.

   Brody Campbell, a Plymouth Meeting resident and a freshman on the Malvern Prep JV last fall, took eighth place with an 87 and Joseph Hoynoski IV of Hatfield finished a shot behind Campbell in ninth place with an 88.

   Josiah Zimmerman of Camp Hill rounded out the field in the 13-to-15 division as he finished in 10^th place with a 93.

   Madison Walker of Tunkhannock had the best score among the girls as she had five pars on her scorecard, four of them on the outgoing nine at Elmhurst, to claim a Philly Junior Tour victory in the 16-to-18 division with a 91.

   It was not a qualifier for the Philadelphia Girls Junior PGA Championship, which is basically an open tournament and will be played July 6 at DuPont Country Club near Wilmington, Del.

   The top finishers at DuPont will earn a spot in the field in the Girls Junior PGA Championship, which will be played simultaneously with the guys at Fields Ranch East and West in Frisco, Texas and tees off July 28.

   Julia Biko, a sophomore on the North Pocono golf team, rounded out the field in the 16-to-18 division as she had six pars on her card, including three pars in a row at the 12^th, 13^th and 14^th holes, on her way to a 93.

   Alexa Mcelwain of Schnecksville was the lone entry in the 13-to-15 division and she posted a 108.

   Kash Gray of Eagleville had four pars on his scorecard, opening his round with three straight pars, as he bested the field of boys 12-and-under nine-holers with a 6-over 42.

   Blake Shurman of Villanova and Jace Collins of Spring Brook Township finished in a tie for second place, each ending up a shot behind Gray with a 43.

   Shurman made a birdie on the eighth hole and had a par on four. Collins, coming off a weekend sweep of the Philly Junior Tour’s York Series stops at Regents’ Glen Country Club and Out Door, had five pars on his card, opening his round with three straight pars.

   Andrew DElia of Clarks Summit took fourth place with a 44 and Nolan Dunkelberger of Nazareth rounded out the field in the boys 12-and-under division as he finished fifth with a 57.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Sparks goes low at Out Door to complete a solid weekend in the Philly Junior Tour's York Series

 

   Holden Sparks, a PIAA Class AAA qualifier as a sophomore at Nazareth last fall, completed a solid weekend of play in a Junior Golf Scoreboard (JGS) York Series weekend on the Philadelphia Section PGA Junior Tour Sunday as he finished at the top of the leaderboard with a 2-under-par 70 at Out Door Country Club.

   Sparks made birdies on the third, fifth and seventh holes on the outgoing nine at Out Door, went back-to-back with birdies at 13 and 14 and had 10 pars on his scorecard.

   Sparks had finished in third place among the older guys a day earlier at Regents’ Glen Country Club with a 1-over 73.

   His 1-under 143 total for the weekend gave him a share of first place among the players who completed both ends of the York Series in the boys divisions (16-to-18 and 13-to-15) with Cameron Peffel, who finished in a tie for second place in the PIAA Class AAA Championship as a sophomore at Fleetwood in the fall of 2024.

   Peffel, who had matched par with a 72 at Regents’ Glen, was solid again at Out Door as he went back-to-back with birdies at the seventh and eighth holes, added birdies at 11 and 14 and had 11 pars on his card on his way to a 1-under 71.

   JGS events offer players points than can earn them status on some of the higher-profile junior circuits, most notably the American Junior Golf Association (AJGA).

   Gus Stoltzfus, a PIAA Class AAA qualifier as a junior at Avon Grove last fall, made a birdie at the seventh hole, went back-to-back with birdies at 16 and 17 and had 12 pars on his card as he matched par with a 72 at Out Door to finish in third place among the older guys.

   Stoltzfus opened his round with five straight pars and ripped off a run of six straight pars from the 10^th through the 15^th holes.

   Stoltzfus’s 72, combined with the 80 he recorded Saturday at Regents’ Glen, left him in fourth place among the guys who played both days with an 8-over 152 total.

    Miles McGinty, a sophomore on the Warwick golf team, registered a solid 1-over 73 to finish a shot behind Stoltzfus in fourth place.

   William Thorkelson, a freshman on the golf team at The Haverford School, was another shot behind McGinty in fifth place with a 2-over 74.

   Thorkelson teed it up in both ends of the York Series and his 74 at Out Door, combined with his 77 at Regents’ Glen, left him third place for the series with a 151 total.

   Bryce Erwin, a PIAA Class AAA qualifier as a junior on the Hershey golf team last fall, and Jack Ferm, a District One Class AAA qualifier as a junior at Garnet Valley last fall, finished in a tie for sixth place in the 16-to-18 division, each tallying a 4-over 76.

   Erwin teed it up in both ends of the York Series and his 76, combined with a 77 at Regents’ Glen, gave him a 153 total, a shot behind Stoltzfus in fifth place.

   Central York teammates Everett Harrold, a junior, and Zack Beaverson, a sophomore, finished eighth and ninth, respectively, among the older guys, Harrold carding a 77 and Beaverson a shot behind him with a 78.

   Dominick Scavone, a junior on the Boiling Springs golf team, rounded out the top 10 in the 16-to-18 division at Out Door as he finished in 10^th place with an 82.

   Taimoor Naseem, the talented 13-year-old from Sinking Spring, matched the 2-under 70 posted by Sparks at Out Door to earn a Philly Junior Tour victory in the 13-to-15 division.

   Naseem had a birdie burst on the outgoing nine at Out Door with birdies at the fifth, sixth and ninth holes and added a fourth birdie at 16. He had 12 pars on his scorecard, including a string of six straight pars from the 10^th through the 15^th holes while touring the incoming nine at Out Door in 1-under 35.

   Owen Ciesielka, a West Chester resident and a freshman on the Malvern Prep golf team, made a birdie on the fifth hole and had 14 pars on his card, actually matching the card on the back nine with nine straight pars, as he earned runnerup honors among the younger guys with a 3-over 75.

   Drew Gebhard, a freshman on the Cedar Crest golf team, and Callen Edmonston of Thurmont, Md. finished in a tie for third place in the 16-to-18 division as each signed for a 76.

   Gebhard had 14 pars on his card, finishing up his round with a run of eight straight pars. Edmonston finished up his round with a birdie at the 18^th hole and had 13 pars on his card, including separate strings of five pars in a row from six through 10 and again from 13 to 17.

   Nathan Lobo of Collegeville finished a shot behind Gebhard and Edmonston in fifth place with a 77.

   Sam Vinc, a PIAA Class AA qualifier as a freshman at Tamaqua last fall, took sixth place with a 78. Vinc’s 78, combined with his 76 at Regents’ Glen, gave him the best finish for the series among the 13-to-15 players who completed both ends of the York Series with a 154 total.

   Thomas Holt IV of Haddonfield, N.J. and Conley Killian of South Williamsport shared seventh place, each recording a 79, Nolan Sweigart of Lancaster was ninth with an 80 and Helmut Dang of Newtown Square rounded out the top 10 in the 13-to-15 division as he finished 10^th with an 81.

   The best score among the girls at Out Door came out of the 13-to-15 division as Raegan Young of Middletown had eight pars on her scorecard on her way to an 86.

   Young also had the best score among the younger girls with an 88 a day earlier at Regents’ Glen and her 174 total left her in second place for the York Series.

   Christine Wallace of Chambersburg had six pars on her scorecard as she earned runnerup honors among the younger girls with an 89. Combined with the 95 she registered a day earlier at Regents’ Glen, Wallace had a 184 total and finished in third place for the York Series.

   Ella Buerhaus of Abingdon, Md. had three pars on her card as she finished in third place in the 13-to-15 division at Out Door with a 93.

   Ella Barton of New Freedom rounded out the field in the 13-to-15 division as she tallied a 94.

   Emma Bergey of Kennett Square made a birdie at the 13^th hole and had four pars on her scorecard, including three straight at four, five and six, as she completed a sweep of the weekend York Series by earning a Philly Junior Tour victory in the 16-to-18 division with a 91.

   Bergey had posted the best score among the girls with a 79 at Regents’ Glen and that, combined with her 91 at Out Door, gave her first place in the series with a 170 total.

   Emily Stauffer, who completed her scholastic career at Warwick last fall, was the runnerup in a short field in the 16-to-18 division at Out Door as she made a birdie on the 16^th hole and had four pars on her card, including three straight at 10, 11 and 12, on her way to a 94.

   Jace Collins of Spring Brook Township completed a weekend sweep of the boys 12-and-under division as he opened his round with a birdie at the first hole and had five pars on his scorecard, including a string of four straight pars from four through seven, on his way to a Philly Junior Tour victory with a 2-over 38 at Out Door.

   Collins was coming off a victory a day earlier at Regents’ Glen with a sparkling 2-under 34.

   Connor Michaels of Lancaster and Jaxon Price of York finished in a tie for second place among the boys 12-and-under nine-holers, each signing for a 4-over 40.

   Michaels, coming off a tie for second place behind Collins a day earlier at Regents’ Glen, made a birdie on the eighth hole and had four pars on his card.

   Price, who finished in a tie for fifth place a day earlier at Regents’ Glen, made a birdie at the fifth hole and had four pars on his card at Out Door.

   Niko Muego of Bryn Mawr and Grayson Wright of Philadelphia finished in a tie for fourth place, each registering a 41.

   Damien Dollard of Cinnaminson, N.J., who had shared second place with Michaels a day earlier at Regents’ Glen, finished in sixth place with a 42. Dollard is the reigning Philly Junior Tour Player of the Year in the boys 12-and-under division.

   Joey Charpentier of Schwenksville took seventh place with a 43, Victor Wang of Hockessin, Del. was eighth with a 44 and Kash Gray of Eagleville and Massimo Testaiuti of Newtown Square rounded out the top 10 in the boys 12-and-under division as they finished in a tie for ninth place, each posting a 45.

   Trisha Lobo, another member of Collegeville’s Team Lobo, completed a sweep of the girls 12-and-under division for the weekend York Series as she had seven pars, finishing her round with a run of four straight pars, to earn a Philly Junior Tour victory at Out Door with a 2-over 38.

   Trisha Lobo bested a short field of girls 12-and-under nine-holers with a 1-over 37 a day earlier at Regents’ Glen.

   Addison Sabatini of West Chester made a par on the sixth hole on her way to a 52 as she rounded out the field in the girls 12-and-under division by finishing in second place.

   Sabatini was also the runnerup to Trisha Lobo a day earlier at Regents’ Glen with a 40.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Mohn, Peffel each match par at Regents' Glen to share top spot in a Philly Junior Tour stop

 

   Josh Mohn, a junior on the Saint Mark’s golf team, and Cameron Peffel, a junior on the Fleetwood golf team, each matched par with a 72 at Regents’ Glen Country Club in York to finish in a tie atop the leaderboard in the 16-to-18 division in a Philadelphia Section PGA Junior Tour stop Saturday.

   Mohn, coming off a top-20 finish in the Delaware Interscholastic Athletic Association (DIAA) Championship at Baywood Greens earlier in the week, made an eagle on the par-5 ninth hole, added birdies at five and 15 and had 10 pars on his scorecard, including four straight pars to open his round.

   Peffel, who finished in a tie for second place in the PIAA Class AAA Championship as a sophomore with the Tigers in the fall of 2024, made birdies on the second and seventh holes and had 14 pars on his card, including a string of seven straight pars from eight through 14.

   The stop at Regents’ Glen was the first day of a Junior Golf Scoreboard (JGS) York Series that concluded Sunday at Out Door Country Club. Points earned at JGS events can help players get status on some of the higher-profile junior circuits, most notably the American Junior Golf Association (AJGA).

   Holden Sparks, a PIAA Class AAA qualifier as a sophomore at Nazareth last fall, made birdies at the fourth, ninth and 16^th holes and had 11 pars on his card, including a run of six straight pars from 10 through 15, as he finished a shot behind Mohn and Peffel in third place with a 1-over 73.

   Luke Ladrido, a junior on the State College golf team, took fourth place with a 2-over 74, Onyu Park, a sophomore standout for Germantown Academy last fall, was fifth with a 75, and Charlie Ladrido, like Luke a junior on the State College golf team, was sixth with a 76.

   I’m guessing the Ladridos are brothers and probably twins, but I do know, for sure, they were members of the State College team that finished in a tie for second with Radnor, a shot behind Unionville in a tight battle for the PIAA Class AAA team crown last fall.

   Bryce Erwin, a PIAA Class AAA qualifier at Hershey last fall, and William Thorkelson, a Bryn Mawr resident and a freshman on the golf team at The Haverford School, finished in a tie for seventh place, each signing for a 77.

   Hayden Bartle of Coopersburg took ninth place with a 79 and Gus Stoltzfus, a PIAA Class AAA qualifier as a junior at Avon Grove last fall, rounded out the top 10 in the 16-to-18 division as he finished 10^th with an 80.

   Ian Lu took a road trip to York County from Edison, N.J. and earned a Philly Junior Tour victory in the 13-to-15 division with a solid 1-over 73.

   After making an early birdie at the third hole, Lu ripped off four consecutive birdies at seven, eight, nine and 10 and had six pars on his scorecard.

   Jason Leekley of Moorestown, N.J. made birdies on the seventh, 10^th and 14^th holes and had 12 pars on his card, including a string of four straight pars from three through six, as he finished a shot behind Lu in second place with a 2-over 74.

   Mason Kim of Blue Bell made birdies on the ninth, 11^th and 16^th holes and had 11 pars on his card, six of them on the incoming nine at Regents’ Glen, as he finished a shot behind Leekley in third place with a 4-over 75.

   Sebastian Leone, a freshman on the Radnor team that shared second place with State College in the PIAA Class AAA team competition last fall, and Sam Vinc, a PIAA Class AA qualifier as a freshman at Tamaqua last fall, shared fourth place, each registering a 4-over 76.

   Cole Miller of York took sixth place with a 77, Thomas Holt IV of Haddonfield, N.J. was seventh with a 79 and Chase Maurer of Lititz and Nathan Lobo of Collegeville finished in a tie for eighth place, each signing for an 81.

   Drew Gebhard, a freshman on the Cedar Crest golf team, and Brody Campbell of Plymouth Meeting rounded out the top 10 in the 13-to-15 division as they finished in a tie for 10^th place, each tallying an 82.

   Emma Bergey of Kennett Square made birdies on the third and 13^th holes and had nine pars on her scorecard with seven of those pars coming while touring the outgoing nine at Regents’ Glen in even-par 36 as she topped a short field in the girls 16-to-18 division with a solid 7-over 79.

   Emily Stauffer, who wrapped up her scholastic career at Warwick last fall, rounded out the field in the 16-to-18 division as she made a birdie on the third hole and had two pars on her card while finishing in second place with a 98.

   Raegan Young of Middletown made a birdie on the seventh hole and had seven pars on her scorecard, five of them on Regents’ Glen’s front side, as she claimed a Philly Junior Tour victory in the 13-to-15 division with an 88.

   Ella Buerhaus of Abingdon, Md. had six pars on her card as she earned runnerup honors with a 90 that left her two shots behind Young.

   Caroline Wallace of Chambersburg made birdies on the third and eighth holes and had three pars on her card as she finished in third place with a 95.

   Ella Barton of New Freedom took fourth place with a 96 and Sophia Carvalho of Downingtown rounded out the field in the 13-to-15 division as she finished fifth with a 108.

   Jace Collins of Spring Brook Township ripped off birdies at the third, seventh and ninth holes and had five pars on his scorecard as he bested the field of boys 12-and-under nine-holers with a sizzling 2-under 34.

   Connor Michaels of Lancaster and Damien Dollard, the reigning boys 12-and-under division Player of the Year from Cinnaminson, N.J., shared second place, each ending up three shots behind Collins with a 1-over 37.

   Michaels made birdies on the fourth and ninth holes and had four pars on his card. Dollard finished up his round with a birdie at the ninth hole and had six pars on his card.

   Brody Rollins of Milton, Del. took fourth place with a 39 and the trio of Joey Charpentier of Schwenksville, Victor Wang of Hockessin, Del. and Jaxon Price of York finished in a tie for fifth place, each registering a 40.

   Seon Park, another member of Blue Bell’s Team Park, took eighth place with a 41 and the trio of Niko Muego of Bryn Mawr, Grayson Wright of Philadelphia and Massino Testaiuti of Newtown Square rounded out the top 10 in the boys 12-and-under division as they finished in a tie for ninth place, each posting a 42.

   Talented 11-year-old Trisha Lobo, another member of Collegeville’s Team Lobo, made a birdie on the second hole and then ripped off seven straight pars to finish out her round as she topped a short field of girls 12-and-under nine-holers with a 1-over 37.

   Addison Sabatini of West Chester rounded out the field in the girls 12-and-under division as she made six straight pars from the third through the eighth holes while finishing in second place with a 40.