Tetrault Builds Two-Stroke Lead at Emerson Junior Golf Classic
Petchakan sits atop Girls Division at Maderas Golf Club

POWAY, Calif. — Ryan Tetrault of Orange, Calif., leads the Boys Division at the Emerson Junior Golf Classic after firing a 4-under-par 68. Monica Petchakan of Encino, Calif., posted a 1-under-par 71 to lead the Girls Division after the first round at Maderas Golf Club.

The Emerson Junior Golf Classic is a 54-hole stroke play tournament conducted by the American Junior Golf Association at Maderas Golf Club in Poway. The tournament field consists of 134 boys and girls ages 12-18 from eight states. The Boys Division is playing the par-72 course at 7,094 yards while the Girls Division is playing at 6,113 yards.

Tetrault, a rising senior with five top-10 finishes on his AJGA resume, has one goal for the remainder of his junior golf career.

“I want to win,” said Tetrault. “I've been working really hard on my game, and that's the only thing I'm out here to do.”

The Cal-State Fullerton commit started the day with a very specific game plan.

“You have to hit fairways out here. If you try to bomb it off the tee you can make bogey or double in a hurry. I left my driver in the bag most of the day, and hit whatever club I needed to find the fairways.”

After an even-par front nine, Tetrault executed his plan perfectly on the back nine - hitting every fairway, and making birdies on Nos. 11, 14, 17, and 18 to shoot a sizzling 4-under-par 32.

Jonathan Sanders of Chatsworth, Calif., is two strokes behind Tetrault at 2-under-par 70. Robert Palacios of Chino Hills, Calif., Andrew Lister of Haymarket, Va., Beau Hossler of Rancho Santa Margarita, Calif., KK Limbhasut of Loma Linda, Calif., and Byron Meth of San Diego, each posted even-par 72 to tighten the leaderboard at third.

In the Girls Division, Petchakan jump-started her round with a birdie on No. 3 to put her at 1-under-par 35 on the front nine. She is chasing her first AJGA win, but is trying to keep her mindset on the game.

“All I want to do this week is try my best and so far it's worked well for me,” Petchakan said. “I just need to keep my head on and play each shot at a time.”

Despite a double bogey on No. 12, Petchakan came back with birdies on Nos. 13 and 15 en route to an even-par back nine. She credits the consistent round to her approach shots that helped her save par on the front nine, along with her positive attitude.

“Whenever I'm thinking negatively, my body follows and it affects my game in a bad way,” Petchakan said.

Kaitlin Park of Tustin Ranch, Calif., sits one stroke back at even-par 72 while Brittany Mai of Poway, and Esther Lee of Los Alamitos, Calif., are tied for third at 1-over-par 73 heading into the second round.

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.

Second round tee times will run from 7:15 a.m. — 8:57 a.m. and noon — 1:33 p.m. off the Nos. 1 and 10 tees at Maderas Golf Club. For more information about Emerson Junior Golf Classic contact tournament headquarters at (678) 617-2424.