With hopes that the junior golfers selected will demonstrate some of the same work ethic, discipline and competitiveness that Hale Irwin himself is known for, the inaugural class for the Hale Irwin Elite Player Program was announced this week by the Colorado Golf Association and Colorado Women’s Golf Association.
Six junior players from Colorado will be the first group to receive the privileges that go along with being picked for the Irwin Elite Player Program, which is designed to nurture the budding careers of exceptional young golfers in the state.
The perks include free unlimited use of the practice range and Kids Course at CommonGround Golf Course in Aurora — and of the championship course on a space-available basis — in 2013. CommonGround, which opened in 2009, is owned and operated by the CGA and CWGA, who established and will administer the Irwin Program.
The inaugural players selected are Christian Agelopoulos of Denver, Payton DeVencenty of Englewood, Ross Macdonald of Castle Rock, Roger Nakagawa of Denver, Calli Ringsby of Cherry Hills Village and Hannah Wood of Centennial. (Pictured above, CGA governors Clayton Cole, left, and Steve Irwin, right, flank, from left, Agelopoulos, DeVencenty, Nakagawa and Wood.)
The Hale Irwin Elite Player Program is named for the most successful golfer with Colorado roots. Irwin, a Boulder High School and University of Colorado graduate, has won three U.S. Opens, 20 PGA Tour events in all, and a record 45 tournaments on the Champions Tour. He was inducted into the World Golf Hall of Fame in 1992.
In Colorado, Irwin claimed the 1963 state high school championship, three straight CGA Stroke Plays (1963, ’64 and ’65) and the CGA Match Play in 1966.
Irwin, who also played football at CU, is known for his competitiveness and work ethic, dating back to his days growing up in Boulder in the 1960s.
“(It) just comes down to the ‘These guys aren’t going to beat me’ attitude,” Irwin said earlier this year during a visit to the state where he grew up. “They could certainly outplay me but they weren’t going to beat me. They might win the battle, but I was going to win the war.”
Nineteen young golfers applied for spots in the first class of the Hale Irwin Elite Player Program, and the half-dozen who were selected were introduced Sunday at the Colorado Golf Awards Brunch by CGA governors Clayton Cole and Steve Irwin. Cole, the visionary behind the Irwin Elite Player Program, is a former head professional at Cherry Hills Country Club. Steve Irwin, the 2004 CGA Les Fowler Player of the Year, is Hale Irwin’s son and has also helped establish the Irwin Elite Player Program.
The six junior players selected range in age from 10 to 17. They include two golfers ranked among the top 220 girls players worldwide by Junior Golf Scoreboard: Ringsby (No. 89) and Wood (No. 213). Both players qualified for the U.S. Girls’ Junior Championship in 2012.
Ringsby won both the CWGA Junior Stroke Play and Junior Match Play this year, and she was one of four American girls selected to compete in the 2012 USA-China Youth Golf Match. Wood won the Colorado Junior Golf Association Tournament of Champions last month.
On the boys side, Macdonald was runner-up in the CGA Junior Stroke Play Championship.
Here’s a brief rundown on each of the junior players selected for the Hale Irwin Elite Player Program:
Christian Agelopoulos of Denver — The 10-year-old from Bromwell Elementary School finished atop the CJGA 10-and-under points list in 2012. He never placed out of the top five in his age group and won two tournaments outright.
Payton DeVencenty of Englewood — The junior at Lutheran High School in Parker finished seventh in the 2012 3A state tournament.
Ross Macdonald of Castle Rock — The Valor Christian sophomore placed second in the CGA Junior Stroke Play and made it to the quarterfinals in the Junior Match Play. The native of London, England represented Colorado at the 2012 Junior America’s Cup.
Roger Nakagawa of Denver — The 12-year-old from the Hill Campus of Arts and Sciences owns an 11.9 handicap and shot a 77 this summer. His home course is CommonGround.
Calli Ringsby of Cherry Hills Village — The Cherry Creek High School junior is ranked 89th internationally among girls by Junior Golf Scoreboard and played in the USA-China Youth Golf Match. She won both the CWGA Junior Stroke Play and Junior Match Play this year and qualified for the U.S. Girls’ Junior. She finished 36th in the Callaway Junior World Golf Championships.
Hannah Wood of Centennial — The Arapahoe High School junior won the CJGA Tournament of Champions in October and qualified for the U.S. Girls’ Junior. She was runner-up to Ringsby in the CWGA Junior Stroke Play and placed third in the 5A girls high school state tournament. A Colorado representative at the Girls Junior America’s Cup, she plays regularly at CommonGround.
