Waldmann finishes the job as he claims Junior Tour victory at Linwood

   Christopher Waldmann of Malvern has been in contention in a number of Philadelphia Section PGA Junior Tour events in the last six weeks.

   Sunday, in a stop at Linwood Country Club in Linwood, N.J., Waldmann broke through, carding a 7-over-par 77 to claim a victory in the 16-to-18 division. Waldmann had birdies on two par-3s on the front nine, the third and sixth holes, added another birdie on the back and, with victory in his grasp, made pars on two of his last three holes.

   The rest of the finishers in the 16-to-18 division were Jersey guys with Riley Mostecki, playing not far from his Linwood home, and Tyler Peters of Berlin sharing second place, each posting an 8-over 78 in breezy conditions over the 6,237-yard, par-70 Linwood layout. Mostecki birdied the ninth hole and then went 2-over on the incoming nine. Peters was solid down the stretch, registering pars on eight of his last nine holes.

   P.J. Schulte of Cape May Court House and James Dalzell, another Linwood entry, finished in a tie for fourth place, each signing for an 82. Carl Michael Lim of Franklinville took sixth place with an 89 and Colton Murray of Sewell was seventh with a 91.

   Nathan Guertler of Merchantville, N.J. had two birdies, one on each side, and had seven pars on his scorecard on his way to an 8-over 78 that gave him top honors in the 13-to-15 division.

   Evan Goldberg, another Linwood, N.J. guy playing close to home, was the runnerup with an 82 that included a birdie on the par-4 14^th hole and two pars in a row down the stretch.

   Matthew Normand of Lumberton, N.J. and Joseph Fargnoli of Mickleton, N.J. finished in a tie for third place, each posting an 83. Reese Dalzell of Warrington took fifth place with an 84 and Julien de Brechard, making one of his occasional road trips from Brooklyn to play a Junior Tour event, finished sixth with an 85.

   Francis Wren of Egg Harbor Township, N.J. and Luca Gherardi of Hammonton, N.J. shared seventh place, each signing for an 87 and Jake Hennelly, another Linwood, N.J. entry, and Michael Henry of Wayne ended up in a tie for ninth place, each carding an 89.

   Chase Cristella of Mount Laurel, N.J. finished in 11^th place with a 90, Tommy Marshall of Marlton, N.J. was 12^th with a 92 and Justin Forman of Sewell, N.J. was 13^th with a 96.

   Rhianna Gooneratne of Plymouth Meeting ran her win streak in the girls 13-to-15 division to eight straight with a sparkling 79 that included birdies at the par-5 ninth and the par-4 15^th holes and seven pars. Gooneratne has finished nowhere but first since the calendar turned to the wraparound 2019-2020 season on the Junior Tour.

   Elora Walker of Philadelphia was the runnerup with a 97 that featured two pars, one on each side. Savannah Thompson of Seaville, N.J. finished in third place, a shot behind Walker, as she made a birdie on the 10^th hole and added a par on the 12^th hole on her way to a 98.

   Savannah Laverty of Moorestown, N.J. and Paul Reilly of West Creek, N.J. shared first place among the nine-holers, each posting an 8-over 42. Laverty had back-to-back pars on the third and fourth holes and added another par on the sixth hole. Reilly made a birdie on the sixth hole and preserved his share of the top spot with a clutch par on the ninth hole.

   Laverty and Reilly are both listed as Class of 2027 players, which, if my math is right, makes them fifth-graders. That’s pretty good playing for a couple of fifth-graders.

   Mia Martinez of Little Egg Harbor, N.J. had two pars as she took third place with a 44. Keller Tannehill of Margate, N.J. finished in fourth place with a 47.