In This Issue

The Teenager Invasion:
Seven AJGA members will take their game to the next level at this year’s U.S. Women’s Open.

View From Chateau:
The AJGA and Ashland, Ky., have a unique relationship and tradition that keep people coming back year-in and year-out.

The Gallery:
There is always fun to be had on and off the golf course at AJGA events.

The Scoring Tent:
Here are the newly crowned champions from the past two weeks of AJGA events

News From the Fringe:

Go Shopping!
Celebrate the nation's birthday in style! Check out the some of the sale items on the AJGA Golf Shop.

AJGA, Bellefonte Country Club Celebrate 20 Years
Champions banquet commemorates and remembers this long-standing event

As Good as Gold
At AJGA majors this year, Brian Harman has been right on time.

Picture of the Week
Rolex's Big Winners

By the Book
How well do you know the rules of golf? Not as well as Gus Montano, the AJGA director of education. He'll test you here.

THE AJGA LINK HOME

As Good as Gold

At AJGA majors this year, Brian Harman has been right on time.

by Steve Ethun

Brian Harman has felt a little out of sorts as of late. The Savannah, Ga., native has been so good he’s even been surprising himself.

Brian Harman Savannah, Ga.

After being named the 2002 Georgia State Golf Association Junior Player of the Year and an American Junior Golf Association Polo Golf Junior All-American, you wouldn’t think he would feel too out of place at the top of leaderboards. After all, these accolades came after winning the Georgia Junior Championship by seven strokes, finishing in the top five of AJGA events in four tries and making his way to the quarterfinals of the U.S. Junior.

This year, he pinned down another GSGA Junior Championship in mid-June. By the time he defended this title, on the national level, he already had two AJGA major wins to his credit: The Thunderbird International Junior and Chrysler AJGA Boys Invitational. These finishes helped propel him to the top of the Titleist/Golfweek rankings (he ranked first as of June 18) and made him one of the top contenders in the AJGA Rolex Tournament of Champions scheduled to take place July 6-11 at Chateau Elan Resort.

Somehow, he still finds a way to shake his head in bewilderment.

“I had no idea all this was coming,” the 16-year-old said. “To me, I was just a relative nobody in AJGA tournaments, so to win two majors is an absolute shock. I mean, I never thought I’d win one AJGA major, much less two.”

In order to make it three, Harman will have to continue to amaze himself and others as many of his fellow Polo Golf Junior All-Americans make their way to Atlanta.

In terms of caliber of competition, few 72-hole tournaments rival that of the Rolex Tournament of Champions. The 26th annual event will feature 168 juniors (boys and girls ages 13-18) representing more than 20 states and three foreign countries. It is the AJGA’s longest-running event and will feature more than 50 Polo Golf Junior All-Americans.

From 1983-’88, the event was annually held at Horseshoe Bend Country Club in Atlanta, then home to the AJGA. Although the tournament returned to Horseshoe Bend in ’92 and ’93, this will be the first time the event has returned to Atlanta in 10 years, once again making its way to the (new) home of the AJGA – Chateau Elan Resort.

Past champions of the event include David Duval, David Gossett, Charles Howell III, Phil Mickelson, Beth Bauer, Emilee Klein, Paula Marti and Grace Park.