AJGA hp JUNIOR CLASSIC AT ENGLISH TURN QUALIFIER
Pinewood Country Club
Slidell, Louisiana
July 18, 2003
SHRIVER AND JONES GRAB MEDALIST HONORS
AT NEW ORLEANS QUALIFIER
Nine boys gain entry into three-round championship event
SLIDELL, La.—Eric Shriver of Cary, N.C., and
Brandon Jones of San Antonio, Texas, shared qualifier medalist
honors Friday as they headed a group of 10 boys who played
their way into the field of the AJGA hp Junior Classic at
English Turn.
Conducted by the American Junior Golf Association, the hp
Junior Classic at English Turn Qualifier was conducted on
16 holes at Pinewood Country Club. The field was comprised
of 64 boys from nine states, including 21 from Louisiana.
A 54-hole stroke-play event, the hp Junior Classic at English
Turn will begin Tuesday at English Turn Golf and Country
Club with an 84-player field, consisting of both boys and
girls.
Shriver and Jones each posted rounds of 2-under-par 62 on
the weather-stricken layout at Pinewood. Due to heavy rain
in recent weeks and water damage to the course, the qualifier
was shortened to 16 holes with a par of 64 and a length
of 5,604 yards.
The 17-year-old Shriver jokingly said he hopes to match
his qualifying score once the championship gets underway.
“I hope I shoot the same score,” he said, laughing.
“Sixty-two would be nice. I’ll try to have fun
again (once the tournament starts). Hopefully, I’ll
play with good guys like I did today.”
After opening the day with two pars, Shriver hit his stride
and birdied four of his next eight holes. His sole blemishes
of the day came on holes No. 14 and 16 where he made bogeys
to bring him to 2-under par.
“I started off with a couple of pars,” Shriver
noted. “Then a couple of putts started falling for
me. It was all fun from there on out.”
Jones, 16, will be making his third career appearance in
an AJGA event. He said his approach to play the course conservatively
led to his keeping the ball in play and resulted in a bogey-free
round.
“I just decided to hit a lot of irons off the tee and
get it in play,” he said. “That was my strategy
and it worked out well.”
The Texas native bounced back nicely after failing to qualify
for last week’s Abilene Reporter-News / Lawrence Hall
Abilene Junior.
“It’s great,” Jones commented. “I went
to Abilene last week and didn’t make it. But to come
here, play well and make it into the tournament is a great
feeling.”
Following Shriver and Jones in a tie for third place were
Michael Naaman of Greenville, Miss., and Timothy Byrd of
Laplace, La. The duo finished the 16-hole qualifier at 1-under-par
63 to gain entry into next week’s event. Leslie Bonvillain
from Luling, La., rounded out the top five as he finished
Friday’s round at even-par 64.
Also qualifying for next week’s 54-hole tournament
were David Viviano of Lafayette, La., Aaron Gillespie of
Jennings, La., Randy Guliuzo, Jr., of Belle Chasse, La.,
Christopher Banton of New Orleans and Gregory Wood of Tyler,
Texas.
For more information on the AJGA hp Junior Classic at English
Turn Qualifier or the championship event, contact tournament
headquarters at (504) 391-8182.
