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AJGA CALLAWAY GOLF JUNIOR ALL-STAR CLASSIC
AT COLONIAL
PRESENTED BY MISSISSIPPI FARM BUREAU
Colonial Country Club
Jackson, Mississippi
June 17-19, 2002
ORMAND, MECK CAPTURE FIRST
AJGA TITLES IN JACKSON
Ormand survives sudden-death playoff for win
JACKSON, Miss. - Robby Ormand survived a sudden-death
playoff to secure his first American Junior Golf Association
title with an even-par 72 final round Wednesday and a tournament
total of 142 at the AJGA Callaway Golf Junior All-Star Classic
at Colonial held at the par-72 Colonial Country Club. In the
Girls Division, Kimberly Meck of Austin, Texas, also captured
her first AJGA victory, firing even-par 72 to finish at 2-over-par
146 for the tournament.
The tournament, presented by the Mississippi Farm Bureau and
conducted by the American Junior Golf Association, is the
second of seven events in the Callaway Golf Junior All-Star
Series and features 84 players, ages 13-15, from 26 states,
including two players from Mississippi.
Ormand, of Austin, Texas, and runner-up Philip Francis of
Scottsdale, Ariz., were neck-and-neck the entire tournament,
and going into the final round, were tied for the lead. However,
it was Ormand's solid play on the par-5, 537-yard first hole,
the playoff hole, that proved to be the difference.
Ormand hit a blistering 280-yard drive off the No. 1 tee,
while Francis found himself to the left of the fairway in
the trees. Francis's second shot hit a tree and bounced back
to the No. 9 fairway, and the 13-year-old could not recover
after that.
"I don't know how I hit it so good," Ormand said
about his drive. "I'd been hitting it all over the place
today. After Philip hit that bad drive, I wasn't going to
try anything stupid. I just wanted to make par."
After a birdie on No. 1, Ormand started off a little shaky
with a double bogey on No. 2 and a bogey on No. 4. However,
the 15-year-old fought back and made two birdies to finish
the front nine and two on the back for even-par 72. One of
Ormand's front nine birdies, on No. 1, was the eventual playoff
hole.
"I hung in there," Ormand said. "I have to
give a lot of credit to Philip Francis. It's pretty amazing
what he did out there. I knew Philip was a great player, but
I also knew I had a chance."
Francis carded a final-round 72 for a 2-under-par 142 and
a second-place finish. Matthew Burrow of Jackson, Miss., shot
72-72-144 to take third. In a tie for fourth place, Brian
Kim of Cerritos, Calif., Matthew Swan of Montgomery, Ala.,
and Sam Rosati of Oldsmar, Fla., finished at 2-over-par 146.
Meck, who was playing in only her second AJGA tournament,
knew her short game would be the key factor in staying ahead
of the field in the Girls Division. On the first hole, the
15-year-old found trouble in a bunker, but got up and down
to save par.
"I started making putts after that," said Meck,
who shot 74-72-146 and had six one-putts on the front nine.
"I didn't putt well the first day, but my dad said the
putts were going to drop for me today, and they did."
Megan Grehan of Mamaroneck, N.Y., took the runner-up position
with rounds of 76-76 for a tournament total of 152. Three
strokes behind her in third place was Lauren Mielbrecht of
Gulfstream, Fla., who carded a 75-80 to finish at 155.
For more information on the AJGA Callaway Golf Junior All-Star
Classic at Colonial, or other AJGA tournaments, contact AJGA
National Headquarters at (770) 868-4200.
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