Junior Tour of Northern California Contingent Headed to U.S. Junior and U.S. Junior Girls’ Amateurs

Junior Tour of Northern California Contingent Headed to U.S. Junior and U.S. Junior Girls’ Amateurs

July 20, 2015

 

U.S. Junior Amateur Championship Scoring | U.S. Junior Girls’ Amateur Championship Scoring 

July 23, 2015

And then there was one.

Kathleen Scavo, who’s headed to the University of Oregon this fall, is the only player with JTNC ties left alive in either the U.S. Junior Amateur Championship or U.S. Girls’ Junior Amateur Championship. The Benicia resident won her Round of 32 match on Thursday, 3 and 2.

Both 2014 U.S. Women’s Open darling Lucy Li and San Jose’s Sabrina Iqbal fell in the Round of 32. Li lost 1-up, while Iqbal, the 2014 JTNC Girls Player of the Year, lost 6 and 4.

Josh Sedeno and Bryan Baumgarten, the two lone JTNC boys left in the brackets, saw their runs at this week’s U.S. Junior Amateur Championship come to an end in the Round of 16. Sedeno, the runner-up at this year’s California Amateur Championship, lost his Round of 16 match, 1-up, while Baumgarten fell, 5 and 4.

July 22, 2015

UPDATE: Three girls with JTNC ties advanced through their Round of 64 matches at the U.S. Girls’ Junior Amateur Championship at Colleton River Plantation in South Carolina. Lucy Li of Redwood City cruised to a 6 and 5 win, Sabrina Iqbal of San Jose won 4 and 3 and Benicia resident Kathleen Scavo won, 2 and 1. Li and Scavo played together at this year’s U..S. Women’s Amateur Four-Ball Championship.

The U.S. Junior Amateur is again experiencing a weather delay. One player who did get in his Round of 64 match and moved on was Danville’s Joshua Sedeno, who won his opener, 1-up. Sedeno finished as runner-up at this year’s California Amateur Championship.

Six girls with JTNC ties moved on to match play at this week’s U.S. Girls’ Junior Amateur Championship at Colleton River Plantation in South Carolina. The six advancing were 2014 U.S. Women’s Open darling Lucy Li of Redwood City, recent California Junior Girls’ State Championship winner Simar Singh of Los Altos, Yealimi Noh of Concord, 2014 JTNC Girls’ Player of the Year Sabrina Iqbal, Kathleen Scavo of Benicia and the Olympic Club member Hannah O’ Sullivan.

Over at the U.S. Junior Amateur at Tulsa CC in Oklahoma, the second round was still being completed this morning. Players that looked to be safe bets to advance to match play were Ahmed Ali of Palo Alto, Devon Bling of Ridgecrest, Scott Mitchell of Santa Rosa, Roseville’s Joshua Sedeno and Bryan Baumgarten of Granite Bay.

July 20, 2015

There’s a heavy Junior Tour of Northern California flavor at this week’s U.S. Junior Amateur Championship and U.S. Girls’ Junior Amateur Championship.

Overall, 23 players in the two fields will either be current or past JTNC members. The U.S. Junior Amateur Championship will be held Monday through Saturday at Colleton River Plantation in South Carolina. The U.S. Girls’ Junior Amateur Championship will be held concurrently, teeing off Monday through Saturday at Tulsa Country Club in Oklahoma.

So who’s going to be representing the JTNC?

On the Boys’ side, there’ll be:

• Eddy Lai (San Jose): Lai will enter the championship on a roll. A junior at Bellarmine High, in May Lai won the CIF/NCGA Boys’ Northern California Championship at Corral de Tierra CC in Salinas. A little over a week ago, he won the NCGA Junior Championship by three strokes after carding a first round 5-under 67 at Spyglass Hill.

• Ahmed Ali (Palo Alto): A sophomore at Palo Alto High, Ali will be making his second USGA appearance this year. He was the youngest competitor at this year’s U.S. Amateur Four-Ball Championship, where he played with his brother, Hussain.
• Devondeep Bling (Ridgescrest): A sophomore at Burroughs High, Bling finished T-13 at a prer-qualifier for this year’s PGA Tour Northern Trust Open. Bling has already verbally committed to UCLA.
• Logan Lowe (Grass Valley): Headed to George Washington University, Lowe won the JTNC Fall Series IV Championship back in September. As a junior at Nevada Union High in 2014, he was named the Sierra Foothills League Most Valuable Player.
• Ashkaan Hakim (San Ramon):  A high school junior, Hakim won the Spring Series IV Championship. He was the only player to shoot under 70 both days of the tournament.
• Peter Kuest (Fresno): A high school senior, Kuest captured the JTNC Fall Series VII Championship last October. In 2012, Kuest made two aces at two different courses in the Fresno area on the same day.
• Scott Mitchell (Santa Rosa): Mitchell shot 6-under 138 in a U.S. Amateur qualifier held earlier this week in Santa Rosa, earning the second alternate spot. In 2014, he won the Santa Rosa City Championship by five strokes.
• Josh Sedeno (Roseville): A senior at Del Oro High, Sedeno has had a spectacular summer. In June, he’d finish as runner-up at the prestigious California Amateur Championship. Prior to that, he won the annual Memorial Championship, which normally features a field of top collegiate players.

• Bryan Baumgarten (Granite Bay): Baumgarten has also been hot the last two months. In May, he finished T-2 at the CIF/NCGA Northern California Championship, while in June he runner-up at the JGANC Match Play Championship. In the spring, he reached the semifinals of the San Francisco City Championship.
• Isaiah Choi (San Ramon): Choi finished second at the Spring Series V Championship. He also took second at the Junior Easter Championship in Sacramento competing in the Boys’ 14-15 division.

 

On the Girls’ side, there’ll be:

• Anna Zhou (Palo Alto): Headed to Harvard this fall, Zhou was a star at Gunn High, being named Most Valuable Player from 2012-2104. This spring, she finished as runner-up at the San Francisco City Championship. In both 2013-2014, Zhou was a Rolex Junior All-American.
• Lucy Li (Redwood City): Li is no stranger to the USGA spotlight. In 2014, she became the youngest player to qualify for the U.S. Women’s Open. Previously, Li had the set the record for youngest qualifier of the now defunct U.S. Women’s Amateur Public Links Championship. She competed in this year’s U.S. Women’s Amateur Four-Ball Championship, reaching the Round of 16 with partner Kathleen Scavo.
• Katherine Zhu (San Jose): Zhu, who’s headed to Pepperdine this fall, was one of the hottest players on the JTNC Tour in the fall, finishing second at both the Fall Series IV and Fall Series V Championships. In March, she’d finish T-2 at the Spring Series II Championship.
• Belinda Hu (San Ramon): Hu grabbed a JTNC win in the fall, capturing the Fall Series V Championship. This spring, she’d reach the quarterfinals of the San Francisco City Championship.
• Angela Liu (San Jose): Liu finished tied for second at both the Fall Series IX Championship and the Spring Series I Championship. While missing a win, she’s been solid On the JTNC Tour this season, having collected eight Top 5 finishes.
• Simar Singh (Los Altos): A sophomore at Los Altos High, Singh just recently captured the California Junior Girls’ State Championship, defeating 2014 winner Yealimi Noh in the final.

• Tammy Lim (Fresno): A high school sophomore, Lim won the JGANC Match Play Championship in June. Just last week, she’d finish second at the JGANC/NCGA NorCal Players Championship.
• Yealimi Noh (Concord): Noh, a freshman at Carondelet High, is currently second in the JTNC points race for Player of the Year honors. She has three JTNC wins this season, including the Spring Series I and Spring Series III Championships. Noh also finished as runner-up at the California Junior Girls’ State Championship.
• Sabrina Iqbal (San Jose): A sophomore at Pioneer High and the defending JTNC Girls’ Player of the Year, Iqbal is having another great year. She’s got four JTNC victories, and most recently won the NCGA Junior Championship at Spyglass Hill. Iqbal also finished first at last fall’s CIF Girls’ State Championship.
• Nicole Schroeder (Rocklin): Schroeder has had a solid JTNC season, racking up eight Top 10 finishes including a win at the Summer Series III Championship. She recently reached the semifinals of the California Junior Girls’ State Championship.

• Kathleen Scavo (Benicia): Headed to University of Oregon this fall, Scavo partnered with Lucy Li in the U.S. Women’s Amateur Four-Ball Championship. She has three JTNC wins this season, and finished second at the CIF Girls’ State Championship. Scavo also won the AJGA Junior at Yolo Fliers Club.
• Bibilani Liu (Cupertino): Liu has four Top 10’s on the JTNC Tour this season, including a victory at the Fall Series VI Championship. She also reached the Round of 16 at the San Francisco City Championship after earning medalist honors and the No.1 seed.
• Hannah O’Sullivan (Arizona): The former JTNC member, who now lives in Arizona but is still a member at the Olympic Club, has been a dynamo this year. In February, O’Sullivan, who’s already committed to USC for 2016, became the youngest winner on the Symetra Tour. At the U.S. Women’s Amateur Four-Ball Championship, her and partner Robyn Ree reached the finals before falling. Most recently, O’Sullivan played in the U.S. Women’s Open, making the cut.