Thomas Maintains Lead Through Second Round in Las Vegas Junior Open Presented by The Pacemaker
Brown rallies to the top of the Girls Division at Anthem Country Club

Las Vegas, Nev. — Zane Thomas of Las Vegas, carded a 2-over-par 74 and tournament total of 2-under-par 142 to hold his position at the top of the leaderboard in the second round of the Las Vegas Junior Open presented by The Pacemaker. Devon Brown of Rancho Santa Fe, Calif., fired a 1-over-par 73 bringing her to 3-over-par 147 for the tournament as she sits alone in first heading into the final round.

Conducted by the American Junior Golf Association, the Las Vegas Junior Open presented by The Pacemaker is a 54-hole stroke-play event held at Anthem Country Club. The 78-player field features players from 14 states, Switzerland, Canada and Mexico. The Boys Division is playing the par-72 course at 7,356 yards while the Girls Division is playing at 6,244 yards.

In winds gusting more than 40 miles an hour, Thomas played conservative golf throughout the round and was able to capitalize on the greens. He had four birdies on the day, including back-to-back on Nos. 17 and 18.

“My putting worked well,” Thomas said. “I made a 40-footer on the par-3 No.4 for birdie and I made all the short ones I needed to make. I knew par was going to be a good score so I tried to keep it close.”

Behind Thomas in second place in the Boys Division is Tad Darland from Henderson, Nev., at 1-under-par 143. In third place is J.J. Holen from Castaic, Calif., with a 1-over-par 145. Austin Quick from Scottsdale, Ariz., sits in fourth place with a 2-over-par 146 and Nicolo Galletti from Clayton, Calif., is in fifth place with a 3-over-par 147.

Coming off an eighth-place finish in the PING Phoenix Junior, Brown is looking to add a win to her 2010 AJGA season before attending Northwestern University in the fall. Brown credits the wind as a factor in maintaining her concentration throughout the round.

“I feel really good about my round and played solid throughout,” Brown said. “My iron shots were dialed in and I worked on my punch shots into the green, which helped a lot. I was able to make a lot of par-saving putts.”

In second place in the Girls Division at 4-over-par 148 is Shannon Aubert from Orlando, Fla. Dana Finkelstein of Chandler, Ariz., sits in third place a 5-over-par 149.

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 provides valuable exposure for college golf scholarships, and has an annual junior membership (boys and girls ages 12-18) of approximately 5,000 junior golfers from 49 states and 30 countries. To ensure scholarship opportunities for all junior golfers who have the skill, the AJGA created the Achieving Competitive Excellence (ACE) Grant program to provide financial assistance to young players in need.

Titleist, the AJGA's National Sponsor, has been the catalyst and driving force behind the Association's success since 1989. Rolex Watch USA, which is in its third decade of AJGA support, became the inaugural AJGA Premier Partner in 2004. In 2007, after 12 years of support, Polo Ralph Lauren became the AJGA's second Premier Partner.

AJGA alumni have risen to the top of amateur, collegiate and professional golf. Former AJGA juniors have compiled more than 400 victories on the PGA and LPGA Tours. AJGA alumni include Tiger Woods, Phil Mickelson, Stewart Cink, Cristie Kerr, Paula Creamer and Morgan Pressel.

Final-round tee times for the Las Vegas Junior Open presented by The Pacemaker will run from 7:30 to 9:18 a.m. on Thursday, June 17 off tee Nos. 1 and 10 at Anthem Country Club. For more information on the Vegas Junior Open presented by The Pacemaker, contact tournament headquarters at 678-327-6982 or visit the AJGA's website at ajga.org.