'This event is really beneficial to the kids': T-G Junior Golf Championship gets underway
ASHLAND — It was a perfect start to a great tournament.
Under blue skies and on a golf course the participants said was in solid shape, the Times-Gazette Junior Golf Championship got underway Wednesday morning at Brookside Golf Course.
Mick Briggs, Pro Shop manager at Brookside, said the tournament is a culmination of many good days of work.
“This event is really beneficial to the kids,” he said. “It comes right on the heels of the end of the junior golf program we have over the summer and right before the high school competition starts, so I think the timing of this is just really good.
“To get them out there and playing in a competitive format is really good for them to get used to. It takes them from the junior program right to when the high school season begins.”
The two-day tournament features six divisions differentiated by age and gender. Division I is for 17- and 18-year-old boys, Division II 15-16 boys, Division III 13-14 boys and Division IV 10-12 boys. Division V (girls, 15-18) and Division VI (girls, 14-and-under) complete the field.
Keslar Bates leads the Division I group heading into the final day after shooting an opening-round 84.
“Coming into today, I just wanted to have fun, shoot in the mid 80s and just get ready for the high school season,” he said. “I had a few three-putts in the end, so I could have been better.”
Mapleton soon-to-be senior Nolan Dennison is just four strokes behind Bates after carding an 88.
“The course played pretty well,” he said. “It was a little wet in the beginning. I was hoping to shoot around an 85, so with my 88 I’m not terribly upset with that. I had some large numbers on a few holes, but other than that it was pretty good.”
Foster Thomas leads Division II with a 95, one shot ahead of Ryan Eberling. Dalton Beattie shot an 82 for a 15-stroke lead in Division III, while Hunter Christian fired a 55 (nine holes) for an 11-stroke lead in Division IV.
“I was looking to shoot a little bit lower than a 55,” Christian said. “I still need to work on my putting a little bit. I missed a few putts out there today.”
In Division V, Emma Packard will take a 10-stroke lead into the final round after firing an 84.
“The course played alright,” she said. “It is kind of in the middle after we had all that rain a few days ago. I was hoping for the low 80s and maybe to break into the 70s today. My second shots onto the green are a lot better than they used to be. That makes it much easier to par.”
Lydia Wells ended her round with a 94, good for second place in D-V.
“It’s a little windy, but the course has been treating me pretty well,” she said. “My expectations for today are to have fun and just play well.”
Elleni Miller, the only participant in Division VI, finished with a 54 for nine holes.
“The conditions for the course are pretty good after coming off two and a half inches of rain over the weekend,” said Billy Christian, course superintendent at Brookside. “There will be some areas of the course that are a little wet, but the greens are rolling nice.”
The tournament will resume Thursday morning at the Ashland Golf Club.
Playing on two courses in two days provides a great advantage in learning the game, according to Briggs.
“Playing these two courses has extreme value for the golfers,” he said. “For just $25, they get to play the Ashland golf courses that they are going to play on throughout their high school careers. Some are here and some are out [at the Ashland Golf Club].
“Ashland Golf Club has always been terrific about cooperating with this. It is a good format and awfully helpful to the kids.”
This article originally appeared on Ashland Times Gazette: Times-Gazette Junior Golf Championship gets underway
