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Ginsburg & Kippers Best at Ballantrae

Matthew Ginsburg of Huntsville, Alabama and Allison Kippers of Zachary, Louisiana captured the respective Boys and Girls Overall Championships at the AJGT Ballantrae Junior Classic at Ballantrae Golf Club in Pelham, Alabama. Birmingham’s Mills Poynor took home the Boys 12-14 Year-Old Age Division Title.

The AJGT extends its thanks to host PGA Professional Hal Brown and the staff at Ballantrae.  The course played 6855 yards from the AJGT Blue Tees, 6227 from the AJGT Gold Tees and 5679 from the AJGT White Tees.  Tuesday was unseasonably mild with a light breeze.  The event was an AJGT Double Points Tournament.

Matthew Ginsburg of Huntsville, AL Boys Overall Champion AJGT Ballantrae Junior Classic

Allison Kippers of Zachary, LA Girls Overall Champion AJGT Ballantrae Junior Classic

Ginsburg Cards Eight Birdies for Title

McLeod & Tucker Two Shots Back

Birmingham’s Barnes Takes Fourth

Matthew Ginsburg (74-74-148) kept identical scorecards on both days, shooting 36-38-74 on Tuesday and then again on Wednesday to capture the Boys Overall Championship at 148, four over par.  Ginsburg’s even par 36 front side on Tuesday
included birdies on 2, 4, & 7.  Ginsburg birdied 15 & 16 in succession on the back side. Ginsburg again shot even par on Wednesday’s front, using birdies on 1, 3 & 5.

Birmingham’s Witt McLeod (74-76-150) and Jake Tucker (75-75-150) of Cullman, AL tied for second, two shots back at 150.  McLeod went out in 1 under par 35 enroute to a first round 74 and made birdies on 4, 7, 9 & 11.  McLeod shot even par on Wednesday’s back nine, with back-to-back birdies on 11 & 12.  Tucker birdied 11 on Tuesday and shot 3 over for the day.  Tucker posted an even par 36 on Wednesday’s back nine and carded birdies on 2, 7 & 10.  Andrew Barnes (75-77-152) of Birmingham birdied 1 & 11 on Tuesday and shot 75.   Barnes birdied no. 2 on Wednesday and covered the front in 1 over 37 enroute to a fourth place finish.

Griffin Just is Fifth Overall

Lovelady & Henderson are 1 & 2 Shots Back

Hamm & Ruston Smith Tie for Eighth

Romano and Riley Smith Round Out Top Ten

Birmingham’s Griffin Just (80-75-155) finished fifth.  Just birdied 1, 4, 7, 10 & 16 during a final round, 3 over par 75.  Caleb Lovelady (76-80-156) and Nate Henderson (77-80-157), both of Tuscaloosa, were sixth and seventh, respectively.  Lovelady made five opening round birdies, on 5, 7, 9, 12 & 13, and carded a 76.  Henderson made five birdies and opened with a 77 on Tuesday.  Blair Hamm (80-78-158) of Pleasant Grove, AL and Ruston Smith (79-79-158) of Northport, AL tied for eighth at 158.  Hamm birdied 2, 6, 7 & 11 and closed with a final round 78.  Smith shot 79 both days, with two birdies and an eagle on the par 11th hole on Wednesday.  Michael Romano (74-86-160) and Riley Smith (80-80-160), both of Hoover, AL, rounded out the Top Ten.  Hamm made seven total birdies and opened on Wednesday with a 1 under 35 on the front side.  Riley Smith shot 3 over on Tuesday’s front and carded four birdies on the tournament.

Poynor’s Final Round 74 Good For Title

Tynes Plays Tuesday Front in 3 Under

Morris Opens With 2 over 74

Birmingham’s Mills Poynor (76-74-150) eagled the par five 11th hole and covered the back side in 1 under par 35 to take the Boys 12-14 Year-Old Age Division Title by one shot over Ingram Tynes (75-76-151), also of Birmingham.  Poynor shot 38-38-76 on Tuesday, with birdies on 6 & 18.  Poynor birdied no. 7 and played Wednesday’s front in 3 over 39, then went under par with his final nine holes to win the event,

Tynes fired a 3 under par 33 on Tuesday’s front, with birdies on 2, 4 & 7.  Tynes also covered the front on Wednesday in even par 36 and made birdies on 7 & 11 while shooting 76, good for second place.  Birmingham’s Anthony Morris (74-79-153)
birdied 5, 7, 8 & 13 enroute to an opening round 74 on Tuesday.  Morris carded an even par 36 on Tuesday’s front nine.  Morris birdied 2 & 11 on Wednesday and shot 79 to finish third. 

Naff 1 Under on Wednesday’s Back Side

Hitchner and Priestley Are 5th & 6th

Birmingham’s Holden Naff (79-76-155) covered Wednesday’s back nine in 1 under par 35 enroute to a fourth place finish.  Naff birdied 11 & 18 and shot 76 on the day.  Naff also birdied no. 6 on Tuesday.  Tuscaloosa’s Tyler Hitchner (81-81-162) was fifth at 162.  Hitchner played Tuesday’s front side in 3 over par 39.  Fischer Priestley (82-84-166) of Mountain Brook, AL was sixth at 166.  Priestley birdied 1 on Tuesday and the par five 11th on Wednesday.

Kippers Fires Final Round, Even Par 72

Allison Kippers (85-72-157) fired a final round, even par 72 to capture the Girls Overall Championship.  Kippers impressive Wednesday round included even par 36 efforts on both the front and the back and birdies on 6, 11, 14 & 16.  Kippers,
the recent Girls Overall Champion of the Arrowhead FAL Match Play Championship, birdied no. 5 on Tuesday.

Sims and Lucas Tops at The Wetlands

Layne Sims of Lafayette, Louisiana and Ali Lucas of Crowley, LA captured the respective Boys and Girls Overall Championships at the AJGT Wetlands Junior Classic at The Wetlands Golf Course in Lafayette, LA.  Brandon Pierce of Covington, LA won the Boys 12-14 Year-Old Age Division Title at the tournament.

Layne Sims of Lafayette, LA Boys Overall Champion AJGT Wetlands Junior Classic

Ali Lucas of Crowley, LA Girls Overall Champion AJGT Wetlands Junior Classic

David Gary and staff at The Wetlands served as extremely hospitable hosts.The course played at 6842 yards from the blue tees, 6308 yards from the AJGTGold Tees and 5678 from the AJGT White Tees.

Sims and Gauntlett in Playoff Battle

Sims Nails Five Birdies:  Shoots 2 under 70

Gauntlett Makes Seven Birdies Enroute to 69

Layne Sims (74-70-144) and Hunter Gauntlett (75-69-144) both finished at even par 144 and began their sudden death playoff on the 178-yard, par three 9th hole. Sims reached the playoff with a 2 under par 70 (35-35), which included birdies on 4, 13, 14, 15 and 17.  Sims shot 2 over 74 on Saturday, with birdies on 7, 12 & 16.  Hauntlett fired the tournament’s low round on Sunday, a 3 under par 69, and made seven birdies:  on 6, 9, 11, 12, 14, 15 & 18.  Gauntlett birdied no. 6 on Saturday enroute to 75.

Sims and Gauntlett both parred the 178-yard, par three 9th hole and the 420-yard, par four 10th.  Then Sims birdied the 518-yard, par five 11th for the denounement.

Billings Shoots Final Round 73

Abel Makes Nine Weekend Birdies

Lace Is Solid in Fifth

Taylor Billings (74-73-147) of Kenner, LA turned in another outstanding performance enroute to third place, finishing at 3 over par 147.  Billings birdied 2 & 12 while shooting 2 over 74 on Saturday and 1 & 14 while carding a 1 over 73 on Sunday.

Ashton Abel (76-73-149) of Patterson, LA was two shots back at 149.  Abel made nine weekend birdies and finished fourth.  Abel shot even par 36 on Saturday’s back nine and even par 36 on Sunday’s front enroute to a final round 73.  Andrew Lace (75-75-150) of Frierson, LA was fifth at 150, one shot back of Abel.  Lace birdied 6, 9, 13 & 17 on Saturday and birdied 8 & 11 on Sunday, closing with an even par 36 on the back side.

Corrigan is First Round Leader, Takes Sixth

Buller & Sturm Tie for 7th at 152

Hawkins & Sweeney Round Out Top Ten

First round leader Eustis Corrigan III (73-78-151) of Lafayette posted a first round, 1 over par 73 on Saturday.  Corrigan’s round included birdies on 1, 11, 12 & 15 and a 2 under 34 on the back side.  Daniel Buller (75-77-152) of Westlake, LA and Lafayette’s Brady Sturm (76-76-152) tied for seventh, 1 shot back of Corrigan at 152.

Buller shot 75 on Saturday, with an even par 36 on the back.  Buller birdied 9, 13 & 14 on Sunday. Sturm shot 76 both days and closed with an even par 36 on Sunday’s back nine. Sturm birdied 11 & 14 on Saturday and 6 & 11 on Sunday.  Shreveport’s Daniel Hawkins (78-75-153) and Scott Sweeney (78-76-154) were ninth and tenth, respectively, rounding out the Top Ten. Hawkins shot 75 on Sunday and made six weekend birdies.  Sweeney carded a final round 76 and birdied 3 & 18 on Sunday.

Pierce’s Final Round 73 Takes Age Division Title

Burns Posts First Round, 1 Under Par 71

Cantrell & Karam 1 Stroke Apart

Brandon Pierce (76-73-149) of Covington, LA fired a final round, 1 over 73 which included an even par 36 on the back nine to take the Boys 12-14 Year-Old Age Division Title.  Pierce birdied 6, 15 & 16 on Sunday and carded a birdie on par three 8th hole on Saturday while shooting 76.  With the victory Pierce moves within 100 points of Age Division Points Leader Brennan LeBlanc of Baton Rouge in the Boys 12-14 Year-Old Age Division Points Race. 

Shreveport’s Sam Burns (71-81-152), the only player to record a subpar round on Saturday, finished second at 152.  Burns fired a 1 under par 71 on Saturday and opened with a 2 unde 34 on the front side.  Burns birdied 6, 9, 12 & 16 on the round.  Burns birdied 9 & 13 on Sunday.  Corbin Cantrell (79-76-155) of Benton, LA finished third, 1 shot ahead of Conner Karam (79-77-156) of Lake Charles.  Cantrell birdied 4 & 14 on Saturday, then birdied 9 & 13 on Sunday while touring the back in even par 36.  Karam shot 1 over par 37 on the back side both days, with birdies on 14 & 17 on Saturday and a single birdie on 11 on Sunday.

Going Takes Fifth in Second AJGT Effort

Desormeaux and Cole Are Sixth & Seventh

Fullilove, Mejia & Wilmore Place in Top Ten

Jacob Going (81-78-159) of Lake Charles shot 159 to finish fifth in the Boys 12-14 Year-Old Age Division.  Going, who made five weekend birdies, fired an even par 36 on Sunday’s back side while closing with a 78. Lafayette’s Ryan Desormeaux (82-82-164) was sixth in his first AJGT outing. Desormeaux birdied 11 on Saturday and shot 2 over 38 on Sunday’s front side. Jordan Cole (80-85-165) of Gibsland, LA took seventh.  Cole birdied 6 on Saturday and 14 & 17 on Sunday, while shooting a 1 over 37 on Sunday’s back.  Josh Fullilove (86-82-168) of Larose, LA, Lafayette’s Skye Mejia (87-82-169) and Alexandria’s Thomas Wilmore (87-83-170) all found the Top Ten.  Fullilove birdied 9 & 15 on Saturday and 14 & 16 on Sunday. Mejia fired a 2 over 38 on Sunday’s front side and birdied no. 9.  Wilmore birdied 7 on Saturday and 6 on Sunday enroute to a tenth place finish.

Lucas Wins Tourney With 4 Over Effort

Heim Shoots 77 on Sunday for Second

Failla Claims Third in AJGT Debut

Ali Lucas

Anna Heim

Rachel Failla

Ali Lucas (74-74-148) of Crowley, LA turned in one of her most consistent performances of the year, shooting 2 over 74 each day and riding the 4 over par 148 finish to the Girls Overall Championship.  Lucas opened the tournament with an even par 36 on Saturday’s front side, then shot 38, 37, and 37 to stay at or near par on every nine hole effort.

Lucas carded birdies on 3 & 18 on Saturday and on 4, 14 & 15 on Sunday.

Lafayette’s Anna Heim (85-77-162) fired a final round, 5 over par 77 enroute to a second place finish.  Heim shot 39-38-77 and birdied the par four tenth hole to kick start Sunday’s back side effort.

Rachel Failla (83-87-170) of New Orleans finished third in her AJGT debut. Failla shot 4 over 40 on Saturday’s back side.