Denner holds off field, wins by 1
Win stays true to her name
The Hurricane Junior Golf Tour traveled to Bowling Green, Ohio on April 26-27 for the Toledo Junior
Shootout. Playing 36 holes over two days through windy conditions, a champion was crowned in
each of our four age divisions: Boys and Girls 15-18 and Boys and Girls 11-14. Winners in all four
divisions received an invitation to the 2014 Mid-Season Invitational and 2014 Tour Championship.
The top ten finishers received points towards year end honors which include state teams, ALL HJGT
teams, and the Hurricane Cup. Additionally, all divisions were ranked by the Junior Golf Scoreboard.
In the Boy’s 15-18 division, Michael Denner of Ottawa Hills, OH took home the first place trophy with
a one stroke win over Trey Walker III from Bowling Green, OH. Denner carded a 74 on Saturday and
slept on a one stroke lead. During round one he had a bogey free streak for 10 straight holes from
seven to 16 with one birdie coming on the 7th hole both days. Denner only bogied three holes on
Saturday, with pars on 14 of his 18 holes. His consistency and ability to save pars from around the
green was the biggest factor in his win this weekend. Other players in the field were able to make
more birdies than Denner’s two, but nobody was able to make more pars than his 25. Walker
finished in second place with rounds of 77 and 75, a total of 152. Walker began the day tied for third
and three strokes behind the leader, Denner. Despite the windy conditions he was able to score one
of the better rounds of the weekend. Walker also showed a great ability to save pars, finishing
behind only the leader with 22 pars made. Walker favored the back nine at Stone Ridge, or at least
his scorecard did as he was the field leader in scoring on the second nine averaging a 35 during
both rounds. Grant Godfrey of Delaware, OH earned his second third place finish with the HJGT this
season after carding rounds of 75 and 78 for a total of 153. Godfrey was the leader in birdies made
in the field with six. Godfrey proved that he has a short memory coming back on Sunday and posting
birdies on holes seven and 11, which he was a combined four over par on the day before. Godfrey
also led the field in par three and par five scoring.
Elizabeth “Lizzie” Win from Sylvania, OH left the course on Saturday with a two stroke lead after an
opening round 80. Coming into the round on Sunday she said “My mindset was to shoot below 78”
and Win did just that, carding a 77 in her second round and winning the Girls 15-18 division by
seven strokes. Win made the most birdies in the field with six, four of which came on Sunday
afternoon in windy conditions. Win was also the field leader in par four and par five scoring over the
weekend, recording only one over par on the par five’s and two under par on the long holes on
Sunday. Finishing in second place was Sarah Noto of Tampa, FL with duel rounds of 82 for a total of
164. Sarah did not make a ton of birdies on the weekend, but it was her consistency and ability to
stay away from big numbers that earned her the second place finish. Not only did she have similar
rounds of 82 but two holes she did birdie were par five’s and she fired equivalent nine-hole scores of
41 on both sides Sunday. Sarah finished in second place in scoring on the Par 4’s and Par 5’s.
There was a tie for 3rd place in the Girls 15-18 division between Monica Torda of Oregon, OH and
Ashley Knight from Sylvania, OH with weekend totals of 168. Torda preferred the short holes at
Stone Ridge, dropping in both of her weekend birdies on Par 3’s. Torda also liked the statistically
harder front nine finishing in 2nd in scoring for the weekend. Ashley Knight, on the other hand, much
preferred the Back 9 especially on Saturday. Knight fired a 37 on the closing nine of day 1, including
an eagle on the Par 5 12th and a birdie on the 14th during a bogey free 5 hole stretch where she shot
3 under par. Knight finished day one only 1 shot behind Win but the tougher conditions on Sunday
got to her, finishing the weekend with a round of 87.
In the Boys 11-14 division, Adam Filo of Norton, OH and Ben Foltz from Solon, OH battled head to
head throughout both rounds with numerous lead changes occurring over the weekend. Paired
together both days, Foltz took the upper hand early with a 1 shot lead after nine holes. Filo closed
with a 1 under par 35 to shoot 79 and take a 3 shot lead over Foltz into the second day of play.
Similarly, Foltz started off hotter than Filo carding an opening nine 38 to Filo’s 44 and opening up a 3
shot lead of his own. The battle would come down to the final hole with the players tied after Filo
fought his way back again. Adam would bogey the 36th hole of the weekend, which was good
enough to beat the double bogey made by Ben, and earn him the win by 1 stroke. Both players
posted impressive weekend scores of 161 and 162, respectively.
Hailey Katona of Ontario, Canada finished the weekend atop the leaderboard in the Girls 11-14
division. Katona carded rounds of 85-95 for a total of 180. Many of the younger girls were affected
by the windier conditions on Sunday, and Hailey was no exception. She finished the weekend the
leader in birdies made, with both coming on Saturday afternoon. She lengthened her lead on
Sunday despite the higher score because of the effect the conditions were having on the young field.
Pinya Pipatjarasgit of Sylvania, OH started the second round 4 shots behind Hailey and finished the
weekend only behind her by 9 strokes. Pinya also fell victim to the tough conditions of the second
day shooting 11 strokes higher than her Saturday 89. The difference coming in her ability to avoid
big numbers on Saturday, and her inability to do so on Sunday. Sydney Leyerle of Helena, OH made
a strong showing on her home course, finishing in a solo 3rd place. Sydney shot rounds of 100-94,
one of the few players to better their score on Sunday. Sydney added a birdie to her scorecard on
one of the toughest holes on the course, the Par 3 13th that has almost as much water as land.
Weather:
Day 1: Mid 60’s, sunny and breezy
Day 2: Mid 50’s, sunny, wind gusts up to 20 mph
Tournament Yardage:
Boys 15-18: 6,850 yards
Girls 15-18: 5, 656 yards
Boys 11-14: 6, 100 yards
Girls 11-14: 5, 656 yards
About us:
The Hurricane Junior Golf Tour (HJGT) was founded in 2008 with the intention of providing junior
golfers between the ages of 11-18 an opportunity to play exceptional courses in a competitive
environment. Golfers who participate on the tour will compete in one of four age divisions: Boys 1518, Boys 11-14, Girls 11-14, and Girls 15-18. Based out of Jacksonville, FL the HJGT administers
events all across the nation, with stops in Florida, Georgia, South Carolina, North Carolina,
Tennessee, Kentucky, Alabama, Ohio, Virginia, Pennsylvania, Maryland, New York, New Jersey,
Indiana, and Connecticut.
For more information regarding the HJGT, please visit our website at www.hjgt.org or call the
Hurricane Junior Golf Tour headquarters at (904) 379-2697, or email info@hjgt.org.