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Canada's #1 Junior Golf Tour
The Road to College Golf, run exclusively by PGA ProfessionalsPress Release
March 28-29, 2009
Richmond, BC
TWO WIN SPOTS TO TOP EVENT IN FLORIDA AT MJT’S RICHMOND STOP
Richmond, B.C. (March 30, 2009) – The Maple Leaf Junior Golf Tour (MJT) opened its 11th season of over 50 events across Canada with a two-day tournament at Mayfair Lakes Golf Club in Richmond, BC, this past weekend. A packed field of 80 young golfers turned out to compete in four divisions, with two exemptions up for grabs into the Future Collegiate World Tour (FCWT) National Championship in Florida, USA. Cold, wet weather on day one was followed by sunshine with gusty winds on day two.
MJT Cleveland Golf Player of the Year 2008 for Boys 13 and under, Kevin Kwon, 13, of Pitt Meadows, BC, shot outstanding rounds of 70-69=139 to win his division by an incredible 14 strokes. Runner-up was MJT newcomer, David Lee, 13, of Coquitlam, BC, who shot 72-81=153, while third place went to Donald Qiu, 12, of Richmond, BC (80-79=159).
Three years ago Sean Ko, now 17, of West Vancouver, BC, shot 117 during one MJT round. On Sunday, after much practice and competitive rounds on the tour, he shot 71 on a wind-blown Mayfair Lakes Golf Course to close at 145 overall, winning the Boys 17 and up division by four strokes and claiming low overall from the blue tees together with an exemption to the Future Collegiate World Tour National Championship at PGA National Golf Club in Florida this May. “I simply putted better than in any other tournament I played recently,” he said. “It feels great to win, I wanted to shoot as low as possible to have a chance to go to the FCWT National Championship in Florida.”
Runner-up to Ko among Boys 17-19 was Charlie Juan, 18, of Richmond (75-74=149) followed by Justin Hyun, 17, of Port Coquitlam (75-76=151).
15-year-olds Adam Svensson, of Surrey, BC, and current Canadian Junior Girls Champion Soo Bin Kim, of Port Coquitlam, BC, both fired brilliant opening rounds of 66 and both went on to finish with total scores of 146 to win their divisions of Boys 14-16 and Girls respectively. “Overall the greens were great and during the first round my putting was awesome,” said Svensson. “The second round I was struggling all day.”
Runner-up in Boys 14-16 was Brian Jung, 15, of Coquitlam, who shot 76-77 (153). Sunny Li, 14, of Surrey, shot 76-79=155 to finish third in the division.
Soo Bin Kim will also receive an invite to Florida. Finishing right behind her just one stroke back in the Girls division was Anica Yoo, 15, also of Coquitlam, who scored 72-75=147. Porsche Campbell, 16, of Vancouver, placed third (79-78=157).
The divisional winners in the Mr. Lube Long Drive Competition were Nels Nelsen, 13, of North Vancouver (who also closed with his best competitive round ever – 84 – after a disasterous first round in freezing conditions), Brent Pound, 16, of Kamloops, BC, Nathan Lee, 18, of Burnaby and Soo Bin Kim. The Sundog Skills competition divisional winners were Kevin Vigna, 13, of Burnaby, Stuart MacDonald, 14, of Vancouver, Jae Jun Lee, 18, of Coquitlam, and Ji-Hyun An, 15, of Coquitlam.
The MJT continues it’s British Columbia schedule on April 11th and 12th with the HSBC Golf Classic at Morgan Creek Golf Club in Surrey, a qualifier for the 57th annual East Aurora International Junior Masters in New York State. For more information or to register, please visit www.maplejt.com or call 1-877-859-4653.
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About the MJT
As a not-for-profit association, the national Maple Leaf Junior Golf Tour (MJT) presented by Boston Pizza is Canada’s only national junior tour run exclusively by Canadian PGA Professionals. The program helps develop Canada's junior golfers, offering clinics, tournaments, international competitions and more. From free introductory clinics sponsored by Ford to the major CPGA Zone-sponsored junior championships, the MJT aims to develop champions, in golf and in life. For more information please visit www.maplejt.com.