Malvern Prep senior James Gradisek got it in red figures with a 1-under-par 71 at Pottstown’s Brookside Country Club for a three-shot victory in the 16-to-18 division in a Philadelphia Section PGA Junior Tour stop Monday.
The highlight of Gradisek’s round came on the drivable par-4 10th hole as he knocked it close enough to the hole off the tee that he was able to make an eagle.
Paul Brady, the District One Class AA champion as a sophomore at Pope John Paul II last fall, and Alex Gekas of York each carded a solid 2-over 74 to share second place. Brady had two birdies on his scorecard and Gekas finished strong, matching par on the Brookside back nine.
Corey Anderson of Media and Nicholas Rafetto, playing not far from his Pottstown home, finished in a tie for fourth place, each signing for a 3-over 75.
Lower Merion senior Adam Chen took sixth place with a 79, Pennridge senior Blake Stewart was seventh with an 80 and Alex White of Schwenksville was eighth with an 81.
Rounding out the top 10 in the 16-to-18 division were Robert McNelly of Collegeville and Benjamin Galko of Roaring Brook, both of whom carded an 82 to finish in a tie for ninth place.
The 13-to-15 division was also very competitive at the Brookside layout, which is adjacent to The Hill School in Pottstown, as Adrian Jordan of Lawrenceville, N.J. had four birdies in matching par with a 72 to take top honors among the younger guys.
Kevin Wortmann of Lords Valley had three birdies on his way to a 1-over 73 as he finished second, just a shot behind Jordan. Nathan Guertler of Merchantville, N.J., who has been playing well all summer, had five birdies in a 3-over 75 as he claimed third place.
Scott Hughes of Ambler finished in fourth place with a 76, Nick Joyce of Quakertown was fifth with a 78 and Anthony Carson of Broomall was sixth with a 79.
Rounding out the top 10 were four players tied for seventh place, each registering an 84. The quartet included Sean Surowiec of West Chester, Jarred Berish of Pottstown, Josh Baker of West Chester and Tyler Ott of Birdsboro.
The best score among the girls came out of the younger 13-to-15 group as Evelyn Wong of Macungie had four birdies in a really strong 1-over 73.
And that almost wasn’t good enough to win the division as Kayla Maletto of Sinking Spring and Rachel Joyce of Quakertown’s Team Joyce shared second place, each finishing a shot behind Wong at 2-over 74. Maletto and Joyce each had three birdies on her card.
That’s a pretty major step up the competitive ladder for Rachel Joyce, a Class of 2026 entry, which makes her what, a seventh-grader. The kid was barely breaking 50 in the 12-and-under coed division not that long ago. Looks like somebody’s been practicing.
Kate Roberts of Phoenixville finished in fourth place with an 83 and Nicole Yun of Limerick and Hayley Ekert of Fairview Village shared fifth place, each posting an 84.
Audrey Reese of Richboro took seventh place with an 86, Emma Li of Newtown was eighth with an 88 and Kayley Roberts gave Team Roberts of Phoenixville two players in the top nine as she finished ninth with an 89.
Rounding out the top 10 in the 13-to-15 division was Evelyn Lauerman of North Wales, whose 95 left her alone in 10th place.
Sarah Lawrie of Eagleville birdied the 10th hole, her first of the day, on her way to a 92 that left her atop the 16-to-18 leaderboard. Gwenaelle DeLeo of Lititz had three pars on her back nine, the front nine at Brookside, as she carded a 96 to earn runnerup honors.
Elizabeth O’Connell of Downingtown made a par on the first hole, her 10th of the day, as she signed for a 97 that left her alone in third place. Paige Damon of Manchester rounded out the 16-to-18 field as she registered a 101 to end up in fourth place.
Jason Mack of Delaware Water Gap made five pars in a solid 4-over 40 as he bested an increasingly competitive field of nine-holers.
Ian Larsen of Glenmoore opened his round with four straight pars and settled for a runnerup finish with a 5-over 41. Anthony Proud of Stroudsburg birdied the second hole on his way to a 6-over 42 that left him alone in third place.
Lawson Leeper of York and Lannon Boyd of Radnor shared fourth place, each recording a 44, Alan Evans of Schuylkill Haven was sixth with a 45 and Callahan Harrell of York and Ian Rotto of Kennett Square finished in a tie for seventh, each signing for a 47.
Quin Zuegner of New Hope took ninth place with a 48 and Rocky Corrigan of Haverford rounded out the top 10 as he finished alone in 10th place with a 49. That’s 10 kids 12-and-under breaking 50 on a legit course at Brookside. Pretty strong.
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