Davis Endures Playoff to Win First AJGA Victory at Under Armour® / Hunter Mahan Championship
Park stays strong to win Girls Division
PLANO, Texas. — After 54 holes of golf in just two days, Branson Davis of McKinney, Texas, seized first place in the Boys Division after a strenuous two-hole playoff by posting a 3-over-par 216. Kaitlin Park of Tustin Ranch, Calf., shot a 1-over-par 214 to win first place in the Girls Division.
Conducted by the American Junior Golf Association, the Under Armour® / Hunter Mahan Championship was a 54-hole stroke play competition played on the par-71 Queen's Course at Gleneagles Country Club. The Boys Division was played the course at 6,791 yards while the Girls Division is playing at 6,031 yards. The 78-player field featured players from 10 states, Canada, Colombia, Mexico, Malaysia, South Korea and Venezuela.
Sitting in a three-way tie for tenth place after 36 holes on Saturday, Davis was unsure about how the rest of the field would play during the final round. However, he started his Sunday off strong by finishing his first five holes 4-under-par.
“My goal for Sunday was to post a great score in the clubhouse,” Davis said. “I stuck all three of my irons to about a foot on Nos. 1, 2, and 5.”
Davis also had two birdies on the back nine, but felt his 15-foot putt for par on No. 16 really kept him on track for the win.
“After I hooked my ball in the hazard on No. 16, I was really worried about how the hole would play out,” Davis said. “But I was able to stick my shot to the green in order to make par.”
Keeping cool under pressure seemed to pay off for Davis as he faced a three-way tie for first after the final round. Davis, Dylan Healey of Franklin, Tenn., and Cameron Champ of Sacramento, Calif., competed in the two-hole sudden-death playoff on No. 18. All three boys fought hard for the win, but Davis pulled ahead to par No. 18 after Healey and Champ bogeyed the hole.
Healey and Champ tied for second with a score of 3-over-par 216. Daniel De La Garza of Monterrey, Mexico, finished in fourth with a score of 4-over-par 217. Rounding out the Boys Division tied for fifth place was Lorens Chan of Honolulu and Brendon Jelley of Tulsa, Okla., with final scores of 6-over-par 219.
Park led the Girls Division from the beginning. After finishing the first two rounds with a two-stroke lead, she took some advice from Hunter Mahan by committing herself to every shot, especially on the putting green.
“I really took advice from Hunter Mahan and committed myself to every shot,” Park said. “I focused on my putting and it really was the main contributor to my victory today.”
Park, who tallied her second AJGA victory today, made par on 12 holes and also birdied two more.
“My putting really saved me and helped me get two surprise birdies,” Park said. “No. 9 seemed to really be working for me because I birdied that hole all three rounds.”
Fishing in a two-way tie for second place with final-round score of 10-over-par 223 was Maddie Szeryk of Allen, Texas, and Summar Roachell of Conway, Ark.
For more information about the Under Armour® / Hunter Mahan Championship, contact AJGA National Headquarters at (770) 868-4200.
About Under Armour®
Under Armour® (NYSE: UA) is a leading developer, marketer, and distributor of branded performance apparel, footwear, and accessories. The brand's moisture-wicking fabrications are engineered in many different designs and styles for wear in nearly every climate to provide a performance alternative to traditional products. The Company's products are sold worldwide and worn by athletes at all levels, from youth to professional, on playing fields around the globe. The Under Armour global headquarters is in Baltimore, Maryland, with European headquarters in Amsterdam's Olympic Stadium, and additional offices in Denver, Hong Kong, Toronto, and Guangzhou, China. For further information, please visit the Company's website at www.underarmour.com.
About the AJGA
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 more than 40 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.
AJGA alumni have risen to the top of amateur, collegiate and professional golf. Former AJGA juniors have compiled more than 500 victories on the PGA and LPGA Tours. AJGA alumni include Stewart Cink, Matt Kuchar, Hunter Mahan, Phil Mickelson, Tiger Woods, Paula Creamer, Cristie Kerr, Inbee Park and Morgan Pressel.
