Sycamore Ridge Golf Course — The quarterfinal matches are in the books at the 2014 Boys’ Match Play Championship. In the largest upset of the event, number eight seed Erin Packel defeated number one seed Preston Fleenor 4 and 2. Packel utilized extremely cautious, but accurate play on the difficult Sycamore Ridge layout and it proved effective as Fleenor frequently found trouble off the tee.
Facing off against Packel in the Semifinals will be KC Junior Champion, Eric Pahls. Pahls defeated Nicholas Klock 2 and 1.
In the bottom of the semifinal bracket, James Henderson and Andy Spencer will face off for a chance at tomorrow’s finals. Henderson beat Jake Goldman 2 up with a clutch birdie on the final hole of the morning. Spencer dispatched Tanner Owen 4 & 3.
Live scoring will be available for the afternoon semifinal matches. Click here for complete results.
It was a wet and windy start to the Boys Metro Match Play Championship at Sycamore Ridge Golf Course. Ten of the best junior golfers in Kansas City faced off in a 9-hole stroke play qualifier for eight spots in tomorrow’s match play.
Preston showed today why he is the heavy favorite in this year’s Championship. He fired off a 36 on the front nine of Sycamore Ridge Golf Course to claim the number 1 overall seed. Preston will face number eight seed Ethan Packel tomorrow.
Preston was followed closely by James Henderson who also shot a 36. James had a rocky start but came back strong after the one hour rain delay with birdies on 6, 7, and 9. James will be the number two overall seed after he lost the draw for number one. James will play Jake Goldman in tomorrow’s match.
Andy Spencer grinned out a 37 in the windy conditions to claim the number three seed and will face off against Tanner Owen the number six seed.
Kansas City Junior Champion Eric Pahls also shot a 1 over, 37, but lost the draw to Andy to become the number four seed. He will play Nicholas Klock tomorrow in the first match.
Make sure to follow the action live tomorrow.
To see the full results from today’s round Click Here.
The Kansas City Golf Association is proud to announce its 2014 Mid-America Junior Cup Team. The Mid-America Junior Cup is a two day Ryder/Walker Cup style competition begun in 1999 in which the top juniors from Kansas City face off against the top juniors from St. Louis. The KCGA and Metropolitan Amateur Golf Association (St. Louis) alternate in hosting the event. This year’s event will take place October 25-26 at Fox Run Golf Club in Eureka, MO. Eligibility for the team is based off of the KCGA Junior Amateur Boys/Girls Standings for the year. The format for the first day is same-gender four-ball while the second day is co-ed alternate-shot. The KCGA looks to retain the Cup they secured at Blue Hills in 2013.
This year’s team is as follows:
Girls
Taylor Black – Girls Metro Match Play Champion
Jean Tyrrell – Girls Metro Match Play Runner Up
Olivia Laub – Girls Metro Match Play Semifinalist & 2013 Crusaders Junior Championship Runner Up
India Gaume – Kansas City Junior Champion
Boys
Eric Pahls – Kansas City Junior Champion
Preston Fleenor – Round one leader of the 2014 Watson Challenge
Tryston Tovkach – Boys KC Junior Tour Varsity Division Player of the Year
Nicholas Klock – Boys 13-15 KC Junior Tour Championship Winner
Joshua Fratzel receives his Mini-Masters Trophy after shooting an incredible 3-hole score of 11.
Heart of America – The weather was perfect for the Mini-Masters yesterday afternoon at the Heart of America Academy executive course. Twelve adorable kids ages four to eight took on the executive course Tuesday afternoon at 4:30pm.
The Mini-Masters is designed to expose young golfers to the competition side of golf. The rules of golf will therefore be applied very liberally for the event. We want the players to enjoy their time at the Mini-Masters. After their tough round of golf, all of the players are greeted back at the clubhouse with their very own hotdog, chips and a drink.
There was all smiles and no waterworks for this years event. The story of the day goes to the Fratzel brothers who dominated the competition in the event.
The oldest of the two, Jacob age 7, flew through the course shooting and incredible 20 after six holes. His best stretch of golf was three pars on holes two through four. He finished with an unbelievable four pars and two bogeys. Jacob won the 8-9 age division despite only being seven, playing up an age group.
His brother, Joshua age 4, might be better than his brother. Joshua shot an outstanding 11 on three holes. He finished with a lone par on hole three and two bogeys on holes one and four. Joshua won the 4-5 age division by four strokes over Logan Wall and his impressive score of 15.
We wish the best of luck to these two boys and their future golf careers.
In the 6-7 age division, there was a close battle between Peyton Smith age 6 and Jonathan Cornick age 6. Peyton would take the division with a 3 hole score of 15, but was followed closely by Jonathan who shot a 3 hole score of 17. Peyton was consistent across the board, making a double bogey on every hole.
After the event Executive Director Matt Williams had this to say. “It was a pleasure to watch the joy on the golfers faces as they played today. Even when they hit a bad shot, it did not seem to upset them, they were still smiling and laughing. It makes us remember why we love this game so much and why we continue to play it year after year.”
This was the final Mini-Masters event for the year but the KCGA staff looks forward to next years events.
