Canada's #1 Junior Golf Tour

August 29-30, 2016
Surrey, BC

The more the Merrier on MJT’s Ford Series at Hazelmere

Surrey, BC – (August 31, 2016) -  Evan Merrier, 17, of Surrey, BC, broke through for his first MJT win in the Maple Leaf Junior Golf Tour’s Ford Series at Hazelmere Golf Club in Surrey, BC, August 29 and 30, after he fired steady rounds of 75, 71 (146) to overtake first-rounder leader, Christian Zalli, 17, of Vancouver, BC (74, 74=148), and claim the MJT Junior Boys division title.

Merrier went from the pond to the podium, as back in 2013 he had a memorable start playing in his very first MJT event when his bag of golf clubs rolled away down an incline into a pond on Morgan Creek Golf Club in Surrey and sank, forcing him to withdraw. “It feels amazing to win my first MJT – I am so happy and proud of myself,” he said after his round yesterday. “I stayed in the moment and played one shot at a time, never got ahead of myself and never gave up!” Third place in the division went to Rowan Froese, 18, of Kamloops, BC (80, 77=157).

The MJT Juvenile Boys title was won by Keith Ng, 16, of Richmond, BC, who shot 77, 75 (152) to hold onto victory over runner-up Min Hyeong Kang, 16, of Abbotsford, BC (78, 75=153) and John Morrow, 16, of Delta, BC (79, 75=154).  “I feel happy to win because it was not an easy golf course,” Ng said. “My driving was really good. The greens were amazing and the fairways were pure.”

Fantastic scoring off the white tees of 70-69 from Vancouver’s Ilirian Zalli, 14, ensured he won his fourth MJT Bantam Boys title in as many starts. “I wanted to keep playing aggressively after my BC Bantam Championship win, and that mentality really pushed me to go lower and lower,” he said about his five-under-par total score. “The courses that MJT tournaments are played at are always in great condition which is fitting as these tournaments are run with a professionalism that never ceases to amaze.”  Second place in the division went to Leo Harper, 14, of Burnaby, BC (73, 73=146) and third place to Bailey Bjornson, 13, of Surrey, (76, 75=151).

Esther Subin Lee, 17, of Maple Ridge, BC, came from behind to beat Natalie Chu, 17, of Vancouver by four strokes and defend her MJT Girls 15-19 title in the Hazelmere event with rock solid back-to-back rounds of 74. “I tried my best to concentrate and be positive on hard holes that I struggled on,” said Lee, noting that her hard work had paid off. Third place went to Surrey’s Angel Lin, 13, who carded 79, 74 (153).

It was a first-time win in the younger Girls U15 division when Abbotsford’s Rachel Chung, 14, shot 77, 83 (160) for a seven stroke victory over Emma Yang, 13, of Langley, (82, 85=167). “It is certainly a great honour to win this title and it is very special to me because this was the first tournament I played in last year,” said Chung. There was a tie for third at 169 total score between Emily Xu, 14, of Burnaby, (87, 82) and Angela Arora, 12, of Surrey, (85, 84).

Freddy Sun, 12, of Richmond, racked up another MJT Peewee Boys title, his third on the Junior Tour, after he fired 75, 77 (152) off the red tees to edge 9 year-old Ryan Liang of Vancouver by just one stroke. “I’ve been playing quite consistently and I feel pretty good about the win,” said Sun. Junwoo Nam, 12, of Abbotsford, came third (78, 85=163).

The MJT Ford Series event at Hazelmere, which was preceded by the Dams Ford Lincoln free Junior Golf Clinic for kids in the community on August 28, also featured the chance to win a new Ford Focus with a hole-in-one,. Several came close to winning the car in the tournament and eighteen additional prizes were awarded to Ford Long Drive, MJT Closest-to-the-Pin, and Golf Town Comeback Competition Winners in the tournament whose names are all listed on the tournament page on the MJT website.

There is one more MJT Junior Tour event in the province this season, which is the MJT Prodigy Series at Mayfair Lakes Golf Club in Richmond on October 8 and 9.  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 number-one played Junior Golf Tour as well as the only national junior tour run exclusively by PGA of Canada Professionals and the ‘Road to College Golf’ in Canada. The organization is generously supported by Boston Pizza and Premier Partners Ford of Canada, TuGo, Cleveland Golf, Srixon and Aquafina, in addition to valued Tournament and Product Partners. The MJT hosts more than 60 events across Canada, including free Ford Go Golf Junior Clinics, the MJT Mini Tour for 7-12 year olds, and multi-day events for competitive players which also qualify juniors for international competitions. The program 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 PGA of Canada 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.

- 30 - 
MEDIA CONTACT: Maple Leaf Junior Golf Tour - Elaine Denton, Director of Marketing and Administration edenton@maplejt.com 1-877-859-GOLF