The Cypress Creek course at Champions Golf Course in Houston, Texas, will welcome the AJGA for the first time in August as the inaugural Jack Burke Jr. Invitational takes place. As is the AJGA Invitational standard, the event will feature the top junior golfers from around the world, but the genesis of this event is a little different.
It all began as Tom Hargrove, George Gilbert, Bill Hoyt and Chris Spaulding, all parents of AJGA junior golfers, asked a simple question, could the AJGA bring an event to Champions Golf Club and the historic Cypress Creek? Spaulding, who is the tournament chair, reached out to Solomon Hughes, the AJGA's Regional Director for the South Central . The two hatched a plan, which eventually involved club Vice President Robin Burke and Head Golf Professional Bret Nutt, to bring a top-tier boys junior golf tournament to the course.
One of the biggest challenges for junior golf is obtaining high-quality courses for tournaments. We all have junior golfers and we know this first hand. We thought it would be excellent if an AJGA Invitational were held at Champions and on the Cypress Creek course. We knew that it would be a very special event and, as we knew would be the case, when we raised the possibility with Robin Burke and Bret Nutt, Champions immediately got behind hosting the event.
The tournament's name is an ode to one of the founders of Champions Golf Club, Jack Burke Jr. who had an illustrious career in golf in the 1950s and 60s which included 16 PGA TOUR victories and a win at the PGA Championship and the Masters in 1956. Burke Jr. also had much success in the Ryder Cup as well as the Hopkins Trophy. In 2000, he was also inducted into the World Golf Hall of Fame.
We are honored to be hosting an AJGA event in August at the iconic Champions Golf Club. This event will pay tribute to the many accomplishments of Jackie Burke who, not only is a past Masters Champion, but is responsible for creating one of the great golf clubs in America. Champions has hosted major championships like the U.S. Open, TOUR Championship and Ryder Cup. This tournament will be such a great story about how a simple idea can become something that impacts the lives of so many. We look forward to making this an annual event on the AJGA schedule for many years to come.
The event is unique in its approach to fundraising as well. Typically there are corporate sponsors who come alongside a tournament to cover the expenses, but in this case, the committee brought the membership at Champions into the fold and a true partnership between the club and the AJGA was formed. The membership showed out in full force to support the event and raise the needed funds to secure the championship for 2021 and into the future.
Champions is excited to host the AJGA. We are a club that loves competition at all levels whether it’s an amateur event or professional. Our members are excited and look forward to seeing some of our own have a chance to compete in this most prestigious Championship. It is about getting better, sharing experiences, sharing knowledge, and play.
The investment and synergy between the tournament committee, the club and its membership and the AJGA showcase how a high-quality event can come about from a simple question and the dedication of a few people with a vision to help the AJGA accomplish its mission of helping junior golfers earn a college golf scholarship.
The Jack Burke Jr. Invitational will be held August 3-6, 2021 on the Cypress Creek course at Champions Golf Club in Houston, Texas. The event will host the top 72 boys from across the country and around the world for a 54-hole stroke play competition. For more information about the event, please contact Tim Jackman (tjackman@ajga.org) with the AJGA's Communications Department.