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AJGA PING JUNIOR AT THE PENINSULA CLUB
The Peninsula Club
Cornelius, N.C.
July 22-25, 2002
THREE BOYS STUCK IN A TIE
FOR FIRST AT THE PENINSULA CLUB
Simons, Myers shoot low round in Girls Division to share
lead
CORNELIUS, N.C. - Three players fired 3-under-par
68s Tuesday to sit atop the leaderboard in a tie for first
at the AJGA PING Junior at The Peninsula Club. Maggie Simons
of Raleigh, N.C., and Whitney Myers of East Berlin, Pa., both
carded rounds of 1-under-par 71 for a share of the lead in
the Girls Division.
Thomas Feldman of Washington, D.C., Drew Weaver of High Point,
N.C., and Ty Lefler of Apex, N.C., all fired 33-35-68, the
low score after the first round.
The PING Junior at The Peninsula Club, conducted by the American
Junior Golf Association, features 99 boys and girls representing
18 states, with the majority of players hailing from North
Carolina.
Feldman, who will play golf next year at Miami of Ohio, started
strong with a birdie on the first hole. However, the highlight
of his round came on the par-4, 462-yard ninth when the 18-year-old
sunk a 25-foot birdie putt for a 2-under-par 33 on the front.
Feldman also carded birdies on Nos. 5, 11 and 15.
"I wanted to make sure I didn't hit it in the rough around
the greens," Feldman said. "Bermuda grass is awful
to try and hit out of."
The turning point in Weaver's round came on the par-4, 462-yard
fifth when he made a clutch 15-foot putt to save par. Although
the 15-year-old proceeded to bogey Nos. 9 and 10, the par
putt on No. 5 gave him confidence in his putting.
"That putt really kickstarted my round," said Weaver,
who recorded five birdies on the day. "I hit the ball
well and made 10 and 12-foot putts that haven't been falling
for me."
Lefler carded a pair of birdies on Nos. 1 and 2 for a 2-under-par
front nine. After a birdie and bogey on Nos. 12 and 13 left
him at 2-under through 13 holes, the 17-year-old finished
with a bang on No. 18, making birdie on the par-5, 548-yard
hole.
Will Shambley of Cary, N.C., and Brad Doster of Winter Park,
Fla., are both one-stroke behind the leaders in a tie for
fourth. Shambley carded three birdies en route to a round
of 34-35-69, and Doster posted a pair of birdies on the front
and one on the back for 33-36-69.
In the Girls Division, Simons had a solid front nine, and
an eagle on No. 10 to put her at 4-under-par after 10 holes.
Simons, who has never shot under par in a tournament, holed
out from 60 yards for eagle. The 17-year-old was up and down
after that, carding bogeys on the next three holes before
sinking birdies on Nos. 14 and 15.
"On this course, you just have to hit fairways and greens,"
said Simons (34-37-71). "The rough is thick around the
greens, so it's tough to get up and down if you miss the green.
I could have been a lot lower, but I missed three two-foot
putts today."
Myers, 16, started her round with a bogey on No. 3, but recovered
to fire two birdies on Nos. 5 and 9 for a front nine total
of 35. On the back side, Myers again started with a bogey
on No. 11 only to finish at even after making birdie on No.
14.
Polo Golf Junior All-American Mallory Hetzel, a native of
Summerville, S.C., is three strokes behind the leaders in
second place after shooting 2-over-par 74.
Second-round tee times will begin at 7 a.m. on Wednesday,
July 24, off the No. 1 tee at The Peninsula Club.
For more information on the AJGA PING Junior at The Peninsula
Club, contact tournament headquarters at (704) 896-7060.
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