TAYLOR SHOOTS 2-UNDER-PAR 70 TO TAKE WIN AT SRIXON QUALIFIER
Chow, Pak tie to share medalist honors in Girls Division

PENSACOLA, Fla. — Robbie Taylor of Brentwood, Tenn., carded a 2-under-par 70 Sunday to take home medalist honors in the Boys Division of the Srixon Qualifier for the Jerry Pate/Andrews Institute Southern Junior at Pensacola Country Club. Marissa Chow of Honolulu, Hawaii, and Megan Pak of Kenner, La., tied for the top spot in the Girls Division, both carding 2-over-par 74s.

Conducted by the American Junior Golf Association, the Srixon Qualifier for the Jerry Pate/Andrews Institute Southern Junior was an 18-hole stroke play event held at Pensacola Country Club. The 71-player field featured players from 18 states. The par-72 course was played at 6,762 yards in the Boys Division and 6,043 yards for the Girls Division.

Taylor fired six birdies on the day, carding 1-under-par 35 on both the front and back nines. Choosing to take an AJGA Performance Based Entry tournament exemption in lieu of playing in this week's event, Taylor said he will work on some things before his next tournament.

“My approach shots were all over the place,” he said. “I'll probably work on those to try and get more consistent in the future.”

In a tie for second place, both shooting even-par 72s were Zi Ting Wang of Bradenton, Fla., and Drew Mathews of Winter Haven, Fla. Corey Halsell of Lafayette, La., and Scott Wallace of Murfreesboro, Tenn., both carded 1-over-par 73s to tie for fourth place. There was a five-way tie for fifth place with Rafael Guerrero of Hilton Head Island, S.C., Austin Gutgsell of Mandeville, La., Steven Loer of Sarasota, Fla., Patrick McCormick of Weston, Fla., and Eduardo Chavez of Hillsborough, Calif., recording scores of 2-over-par 74. Alexander Galliano of Baton Rouge, La., and Blake Kelley of Mandeville, La., rounded out the Boys Division, both qualifying via a six-player sudden-death playoff with scores of 3-over-par 75.

Besides Taylor, Brandon Liu of St. Albans, Mo., Brant DeLongy of Winter Park, Fla., Blaine Woodruff of Acworth, Ga., Richard Werenski of South Hadley, Mass., Patrick Kenney of Acworth, Ga., Chad Bounds of Meridian, Miss., and Kevin Phelan of St. Augustine, Fla., all chose to take tournament exemptions this week.

In the Girls Division, this was the first AJGA win for both Chow and Pak. Chow chose to take a tournament exemption this week after her win.

Pak had a solid debut in her first AJGA event, firing three birdies on the day. She said she thought her round went well but said she needed to work on her putting.

“I had a couple of three-putts where I just wasn't thinking,” Pak said. “I am confident about my swing though, I just need to work on my putting a little.”

Chow, who shot 35-39 on the front and back nines, respectively, said she was happy with her performance and credited some of her success to solid drives.

“Before this week I was slicing my drives pretty bad,” Chow said. “I talked to my coach and he told me it was just timing and not to worry, I'd be fine, so that calmed me down. Today my driver was excellent.”

Jessica Shall of Lake Mary, Fla., claimed the last spot in the tournament for the girls, shooting a 3-over-par 75.

The American Junior Golf Association is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization dedicated to the overall growth and development of young men and women who aspire to earn college golf scholarships through competitive junior golf. The AJGA, the largest Association of its kind, has an annual junior membership (boys and girls ages 12-18) of approximately 5,000 junior golfers from 49 states and 25 foreign countries.

SRIXON Sports USA, Inc., based in Lawrenceville, Ga., has been distributing premium golf balls and equipment in the U.S. since 1997 and is a subsidiary of SRI Sports Limited. SRI Sports Limited is the number one golf club manufacturer in the world's second largest market, Japan, and is one of the world's leading patent holders in golf ball technology. SRIXON golf balls earned 26 tournament victories on multiple professional tours around the world in 2006.

AJGA alumni have risen to the top of amateur, collegiate and professional golf. More than 160 former AJGA juniors currently play on the PGA and LPGA Tours and have compiled more than 300 wins. AJGA alumni include Tiger Woods, Phil Mickelson, Jim Furyk, Stewart Cink, Davis Love III, Cristie Kerr, Pat Hurst, Paula Creamer, Brittany Lincicome, Morgan Pressel and Julieta Granada.

First-round tee times for the Jerry Pate/Andrews Institute Southern Junior begin at 8 a.m. off the Nos. 1 and 10 tees Tuesday, July 24. For more information on the Jerry Pate/Andrews Institute Southern Junior, please contact Tournament Headquarters at (850) 453-1831.