Canada's #1 Junior Golf Tour

April 23-24, 2011
Cobble Hill, BC

Steady Play Rules the Day on MJT at Arbutus Ridge

For Immediate Release – Cobble Hill, BC – (April 25, 2011) – Junior golfers representing three provinces traveled to compete in the Maple Leaf Junior Golf Tour’s (MJT) Vancouver Island Series at Arbutus Ridge Golf Club in Cobble Hill, BC, over the Easter weekend of April 23-24. The players were treated to great spring conditions as well as a competitive field, which saw Alix Kong take the overall low score of 145 and Trevor Garofano win a spot into the 59th East Aurora International Junior Masters.

Round one of the Boston Pizza-presented event opened with the best weather yet this season and it proved to be the players who could put together a second day effort under rainy conditions during Round two that took top spots in each age division.

Alix Kong, 14, of West Vancouver, BC, shot 75-70 to capture a convincing win in the Girls Division. “My ball striking was good, I hit lots of greens in regulation,” she said, adding, “It feels amazing (to win) and I look forward to participating in more MJT’s”. Kong also took home the Mr. Lube Long Drive for her division on the long uphill 18th hole. Naomi Ko, 15, of Victoria, BC, carded back-to-back rounds of 80 to place second, while another local player, Haley Kruse, 15, of Victoria Golf Club, came third with scores of 84-85 and added the Sundog Closest-to-the-Pin (KP) prize to her haul with her tee shot on the par three 9th . Allison Lee, 16, also of Victoria, collected herself for an impressive second day improvement of 17 strokes earning herself the division’s Golf Town Comeback award.

There was a tie for the lead in the tightly contested Boys 17-19 division at 149 total score between Victoria golfer, Alex Cartwright, 17, who carded 76-73, and Trevor Garofano, 17, of Coquitlam, BC, (77-72). At the end of the day it was Garofano who claimed the gold medal and an exemption into a top-ranked junior boys’ tournament in the USA – the International Junior Masters in East Aurora, New York - based on retrogression. He stated, “I was only one back going into the round today but I felt, in order to win, I would need to play well. It was a battle between Alex and I all day long. He made some key up and down's during the round forcing it to come down to the wire.” Jake Du Vall, 17, of Victoria, had to settle for bronze with his 79-74 (153) but impressed spectators and players with his resolve, finishing day one putting out with his wedge after a defect in his putter was uncovered on the 4th hole during the normal course of play.

Consistent scoring continued into the Boys 14-16 division as Jun Kang, 15, of Port Moody, BC, recorded scores of 74-75 (149) for a two shot victory over Aaron Crawford, 16, of Calgary, Alberta (77-74=151). Kang said, “I feel very happy because I never gave up until the finish. I would like to give thanks to Brian Jung, my coach as Redwoods golf course.” The top three players in this division recorded both rounds in the 70’s, including the bronze medal winner Logan Yanick, 14, of Courtenay, BC, whose second day 73 was low in his division and edged him into third place by one shot (79-73=152).

In the Boys 13 and under division it was a battle on day one between 10 year old Raymond Li and 13 year old Patrick Tan, both of Vancouver, BC, but it was the steady play of Tan, carding 79-76 (155 total), that would win the gold medal. Tan commented, “My driver was key. It feels great to win, since it’s my first title win in the 2011 season.” His second day improvement was also good enough to take home both the Sundog KP Competition and the Golf Town Comeback award in his division. Li closed with scores of 81-96 to finish second, while Ethan Ko, 10, of Victoria, came third (90-91). The division’s Mr. Lube Long Drive contest was won by local power, this time from Liam Kruse, 11, of Cordova Day Golf Club.

Other Skills competition winners in various divisions were Ryan Hunt of Pitt Meadows, BC, and Nathan Haussmann of Victoria in the Mr. Lube Long Drive; Dallas Jones of Ladysmith, BC, and Darren Day of Victoria for the Sundog KP; Kyle Panaktalok-Olin of Victoria and Ryan Saran of Langley, BC, for the Golf Town Comeback awards.

The MJT continues its British Columbia schedule on May 7th and 8th in Abbotsford with the MJT Lindsay Kenney Classic at Ledgeview Golf Course, which is also a qualifier for the 2011 Future Champions Golf (FCG) World Championship to be held July 17th to 19th at PGA West Golf Club in La Quinta, California. For more information or to register, please visit www.maplejt.com or call 1-877-859-4653.

About the MJT:
The non-profit Maple Leaf Junior Golf Tour presented by Boston Pizza is Canada’s premier and only national junior tour run exclusively by Canadian PGA Professionals and the ‘Road to College Golf’ for aspiring young players. The organization hosts more than 60 events across Canada, including free Ford Go Golf Junior Clinics, the MJT Mini Tour for 7-13 year olds, and multi-day events for competitive players which also qualify juniors for international competitions. The MJT offers annual awards, scholarships, and frequent player incentives to help reward player's performance and participation throughout each season. MJT alumni include many Professional Tour players and Canadian PGA Professionals, as well as Canadian Amateur, National and Provincial Junior Champions. The MJT aims to develop champions, in golf and in life, promoting the game from grassroots through to provincial, national, university and professional level. For more information please visit www.maplejt.com.

MEDIA CONTACT: MJT - Elaine Denton - edenton@maplejt.com - 1-877-859-GOLF