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Tournament to honor late Judie Oppenheimer

The American Junior Golf Association announced the name change for the Hilton Head Junior Open to the Judie Oppenheimer Memorial Junior in honor of the late Judie Oppenheimer, a long-time supporter and friend of junior golf. The tournament will be a 54-hole competition played at the Oyster Reef Golf Club in Hilton Head, South Carolina, July 18-21. This will be the 28th event in the tournament’s long-standing history. 2016 also marks the return of the tournament to Oyster Reef Golf Club where the tournament was first held is 1986. The field will feature some of the top junior golfers from around the world.

In addition to memorializing Judie Oppenheimer through the tournament name, the Judie Award will be given to the tournament participant who best exemplifies Judie’s greatest qualities; friendship, kindness, joy and respect.

“Judie was passionate about seeing young people succeed, she was full of joy and sought to ensure opportunities were provided to all, no matter their current circumstances,” said AJGA Vice President of Development Walker Hill. “Judie was an ambassador for junior golf and is greatly missed. We are excited about honoring her through this tournament and allowing her legacy to live on in South Carolina and in the hearts of our staff and juniors.”

A shotgun qualifier tournament will be held Sunday, July 17 to fill the final tournament spots. A practice round will take place Monday, July 18, at 1:30 p.m. First-round play will begin Tuesday, July 19, with first- through final-round tee times running from 7:30 – 9:30 a.m. off the Nos. 1 and 10 tees at Oyster Reef Golf Club. An awards ceremony will immediately follow Thursday’s final round. Guests are welcome to attend and admission is free.

During the tournament week, some of the top juniors participating in the Judie Oppenheimer Memorial Junior will also take part in a Pro/Junior-Am fundraising tournament Monday, July 18. The Pro/Junior-Am will be an 8 a.m. shotgun start at Oyster Reef Golf Club. It is the intent of the local organizers and volunteers to endow an Achieving Competitive Excellence (ACE) Grant in Judie’s name through the fundraising efforts of the tournament. The goal of the ACE Grant program is to give top-flight golf opportunities to young golfers regardless of financial resources. This program helps to fulfill the AJGA’s mission of developing young men and women who aspire to earn college golf scholarships through competitive junior golf.

An excellent opportunity to entertain clients, reward employees or enjoy a tournament round with friends, the Transamerica Junior-Am Series allows amateurs to play alongside the future stars of the game. Tiger Woods, Jordan Spieth, Rickie Fowler, Paula Creamer and Morgan Pressel are just a few of the thousands of talented players who participated in AJGA Junior-Ams when they were teenagers.

Supporting golf at the grassroots level, Transamerica Junior-am Series Events allow the AJGA to make contributions to local junior golf charities and programs in hosting communities. For more information or to participate, contact AJGA Regional Director, Southeast, Ryan Tahara at rtahara@ajga.org.

For more information, please contact Tim Jackman (tjackman@ajga.org) in the AJGA Communications Department at (678) 425-1789 or visit the AJGA website at ajga.org.

 

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.