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Choi leads KPMG Stacy Lewis Junior-All Star Invitational

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JOHNSON, ARKANSAS – Jayna Choi of Collierville, Tennessee, leads the Girls Division with a 5-under-par 67 after the first round at the KPMG Stacy Lewis Junior-All Star Invitational. Mauricio Figueroa of Guadalajara, Mexico, Robin Williams of Peterborough, United Kingdom, Clay Seeber of Newport Beach, California, Canon Claycomb of Bowling Green, Kentucky, and Mason Nome of Houston, Texas, tied for first place in the Boys Division with 1-under-par 71.

The KPMG Stacy Lewis Junior All-Star Invitational, features a mixed pairing duo where one boy and one girl pair up each round. LPGA Tour Champion Stacy Lewis brought this idea to fruition in hopes to create a more gender-blind golf competition.

Prior to the first round, Stacy Lewis was able to tell the players a little bit about her golf tips and tricks. Stacy stated that junior golf “is such an important time in your life, a real chance to grow,” during her Q & A session Monday night.

Choi carded the lowest round score for both the Boys and Girls Division by four strokes.  She is the first girl to score in the sixties in any round in the event’s two-year history. During the first round, Choi outscored the top-4 boys, giving the girls team a six-stroke lead in the team competition.

“It’s interesting seeing the boy’s strengths and weaknesses in comparison to the girls,” Choi said. “The mixed pairings bring out your game and show how good you are compared to the boys.” The Vanderbilt University verbal commit was a second team Rolex Junior All-American in 2015 and is seeking her second career title.

Harmie Constantino of Taguig, Philippines, sits one stroke back at 4-under-par 68. Ranked No. 97 in the Polo Golf Rankings, she has collected two wins in both of her career appearances and is seeking her third win in three weeks. Michaela Morarad of Huntsville, Alabama is in third at 1-under-par 71. The University of Alabama verbal commit has finished inside the top-4 in her five Junior All-Star event appearances since 2015, including a win at the Junior All-Star at Château Élan.

The top-5 boys are neck-in-neck when it comes to score, carding 25 birdies and two eagles in their rounds; however, their experiences are varied. A rising high school sophomore, Nome took home second place in the 2015 KPMG Stacy Lewis Junior All-Star Invitational with a final score of 1-over-par 217. Claycomb was named honorable mention Rolex Junior All-American in 2015 and is ranked third in his class. Williams has appeared in four AJGA Junior All-Star events this past year alone and has placed top-20 in all four. Seeber, a UCLA verbal commit, is one of 14 AJGA champions in the field. With only two AJGA tournaments under his belt, Figueroa is making his mark after he birdied seven holes during the first round.

Second-round tee times will run from 7:45 AM-11:45 AM off the No. 1 tee at Blessings Golf Club. For more information, please contact Tournament Headquarters at (706) 870-8918.

About Stacy Lewis

Lewis, an AJGA alumna and two-time world No. 1, has partnered with the AJGA since 2012, first for the KPMG Stacy Lewis Junior Open and now for the KPMG Stacy Lewis Junior All-Star Invitational.

Lewis, a double major in finance and accounting in college, is a three-time U.S. Solheim Cup team member and has claimed 11 LPGA Tour victories, including two major championships at the 2011 Kraft Nabisco Championship and the 2013 Ricoh Women’s British Open. In 2015, she notched 14 top-10 finishes, with six second-place finishes, including at the ANA Inspiration, and three third-place finishes, including at the U.S. Women’s Open. She led the LPGA Tour in birdies in 2015 with 407 and already has four top-10 finishes in 11 events in 2016. The Toledo, Ohio, native played in eight AJGA events, with her career-best finish (T4) at the 2002 Action Zone/Bob Estes Abilene Junior.

About KPMG LLP

KPMG is one of the world’s leading professional services firms, providing innovative business solutions and audit, tax and advisory services to many of the world’s largest and most prestigious organizations.

KPMG is the fastest growing Big Four professional services firm in the United States and is widely recognized for being a great place to work and build a career.

Our people share a sense of purpose in the work we do, and a strong commitment to community service, diversity and inclusion, and eradicating childhood illiteracy.

Learn more at www.kpmg.com/us .

KPMG LLP is the U.S. member firm of KPMG International Cooperative (“KPMG International”). KPMG International’s member firms have 174,000 professionals, including more than 9,000 partners, in 155 countries.

About Blessings Golf Club

Blessings Golf Club was established with the vision to provide a welcoming environment that allows members to enjoy time with family and friends in a place that is complimented by great golf. The golf facilities include a course created by Robert Trent Jones, Jr. and an indoor short game practice area designed by Dave Pelz. In addition, the Razorback Center serves as the home of the University of Arkansas golf teams.

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 nearly 6,500 members from 49 states and more than 50 foreign countries. Through initiatives like the Achieving Competitive Excellence (ACE) Grant, a financial assistance program, and Leadership Links, a service-oriented platform that teaches juniors charitable-giving skills, the AJGA fosters the growth of golf’s next generation.

TaylorMade-adidas Golf became the AJGA’s National Sponsor in 2016 after more than 25 years of support. Rolex, which is in its fourth decade of AJGA support, became the inaugural AJGA Premier Partner in 2004. In 2007, after 12 years of support, 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 600 victories on the PGA and LPGA Tours. AJGA alumni include Tiger Woods, Phil Mickelson, Jordan Spieth, Rickie Fowler, Bubba Watson, Webb Simpson, Sergio Garcia, Hunter Mahan, Dustin Johnson, Patrick Reed, Zach Johnson, Justin Thomas, Stacy Lewis, Vicky Hurst, Alison Lee, Lexi Thompson, Inbee Park, Paula Creamer, Brittany Lincicome, Cristie Kerr and Morgan Pressel.