Canada’s top played Junior Golf Tour, the Maple Leaf Junior Golf Tour presented by Boston Pizza, held the MJT Ford Series at Swan-e-Set Bay Resort and Country Club in Pitt Meadows, over the weekend of June 6 and 7.
The golfers included one Summerlander.
Brycen Ko, 11, out of Richmond, BC, took the MJT Peewee Boys title by a tremendous 24 strokes, shooting 71-73 (144) on the well manicured, challenging Swan-e-Set track.
In the Junior Boys 17-19 division, six year MJT veteran Ian Kim, 18, of Vancouver, BC, fired an excellent closing round of 70 to shoot 79-70 (149) to win by five strokes over another tour veteran, Shayne LaRochelle of Coquitlam, BC.
Henry Lei, 14, of Surrey, BC, edged out the competition in the MJT Bantam Boys division by a cool seven strokes, aided by his under par second round 79-71 (150).
The MJT Juvenile Boys division champion was 16 year old Mitchell Thiessen from Chilliwack, BC, who shot 79-75 (154) to narrowly edge out the competition by two strokes. Mitchell credited his win to his chipping, saying his ability to land his shots close enough to one putt was the key to his success. “It feels amazing to win, and coming up clutch in the end.”
The two Girls Divisions fielded 28 players from around B.C. which is wonderful to see in competitive junior golf. In the Girls U15 Division, Julie Ju, 14, of West Vancouver, BC, placed first shooting 87-81 (168) to finish above the rest of the field by two shots.
Katherine Chan, 15, another Richmond native, collected the Girls 15-19 champion’s trophy with a great 78-73 (151) score despite tough pin placements.
Players now shortlisted for MJT Team Canada for the Srixon International Junior Classic in Australia this October include Mitchell Thiessen and Katherine Chan.
The finalists will be announced once the other qualifiers finish across the country.
Each division had a Mr. Lube Long Drive Competition, a Sligo Closest-to-the-Pin Competition and a Golf Town Comeback Award for best second day improvement in score. From Summerland, Rachelle Nielsen of the Summerland Golf and Country Club was one of the winners in the Sligo Closest-to-the-Pin Competition.
The next Maple Leaf Junior Golf Tour stop in British Columbia is the MJT Ford Series at The Harvest Golf Club in Kelowna on June 29 and 30. This tournament is also a qualifier for the North American Junior Amateur.