There’s nothing like capping off the local golf season on a high note. And for Trevor Olkowski of Grand Junction and Charlotte Hillary of Englewood, it doesn’t get any higher than winning the final major of the year for the Junior Golf Alliance of Colorado.
Olkowski birdied two of the last three holes as the sun set Sunday night to capture the boys title, and 14-year-old Charlotte Hillary of Englewood claimed the girls crown on her home course in the inaugural Junior Tour Championship at historic Cherry Hills Country Club. (Hillary and Olkowski are pictured together above.)
Olkowski, a U.S. Junior Amateur qualifier this year, shot a 3-under-par 69 on Sunday to post a 5-under 139 total, good for a two-stroke win in the last of the four junior majors in 2016.
Olkowski, who has verbally committed to play college golf at the University of Colorado beginning in 2017, made five birdies on Sunday and eight for the weekend.
“This is probably one of the bigger wins I’ve had so far,” said the 17-year-old (left), a senior at Grand Junction High School. “It feels good. It’s a major and you’ve got a lot of good players in this.”
Indeed, 40 of the best boys and 20 of the best girls the state has to offer.
Griffin Barela of Lakewood, winner of the Colorado Junior Match Play this year, tied for second place Sunday at 141 with first-round leader Cole Krantz of Windsor and 4A state high school champion Luke Trujillo of Colorado Springs.
Trujillo chipped in for eagle from 35 feet on the final hole to shoot 68 and gain a share of second place. Krantz led for much of Sunday, but fell out of the top spot when he went 4 over par in four holes starting on No. 14, culminating with a water ball that led to a double bogey on No. 17. The future CU golfer closed with a birdie — his sixth of the day — to shoot 72. Barela carded three birdies and a bogey on Sunday in a round of 70.
“(Krantz) was beating me by three shots at one point on the back nine,” Olkowski said. “It feels good (to prevail. Cherry Hills, site of three U.S. Opens and two PGA Championships) is an awesome layout. It’s good to play this course. You never know when you’ll be able to do this again.”
Meanwhile, Hillary, a freshman at Kent Denver, won her third JGAC tournament of the year in prevailing by three strokes in the girls competition. She made two birdies on Sunday en route to a 1-over-par 74, giving her a winning total of even-par 146.
Though Hillary was competing against mostly older players, she used her course knowledge of Cherry Hills to her advantage.
“I was looking forward to this the whole year because it’s my home course,” she said. “To hear that they were holding the JGAC tournament here, I was so excited. And to have won is crazy.
“It was actually a really big advantage (for me to compete at Cherry Hills). I knew all the secrets. The club is like my home basically.”
Lauren Lehigh of Loveland also posted a 74 on Sunday after making three birdies in a four-hole stretch starting on No. 14. She finished runner-up at 149.
Caroline Jordaan of Cherry Hills Village, like Hillary competing at her home course, checked in at 150 on Sunday, good for third place. And Kelsey Webster of Boulder closed with a 1-under-par 72 — the best girls score of the day on Sunday — to place fourth at 151.
But with Hillary racking up eight birdies and just one double bogey or worse over the two days, it wasn’t easy for any of the competition to keep up.
“It’s definitely hard competing against people a lot older than me, but I feel like if I keep playing my own game, I have what it takes,” she said.
After Sunday’s final round, the Junior Golf Alliance of Colorado held an awards banquet following its inaugural season and named its players of the year — AJ Ott of Fort Collins and Mary Weinstein of Highlands Ranch.
Weinstein, who now plays at Regis University, won two of the four girls titles in the JGAC majors as well as the 5A girls state high school championship. Nationally/internationally, the Hale Irwin Elite Player finished fifth in the Optimist International Junior and 15th in the Junior PGA Championship.
Weinstein was the CWGA’s Junior Player of the Year in 2015.
Ott, a freshman on the Colorado State University golf team, won the Colorado Junior PGA Championship by seven strokes, finished second in the AJGA Hale Irwin Colorado Junior and the national PGA Junior Series event at the Air Force Academy, and made it to the semifinals of the Colorado Junior Match Play.
JGAC Junior Tour Championship
At Cherry Hills CC in Cherry Hills Village
GIRLS
1. Charlotte Hillary, Englewood, CO, 72-74-146 E
2. Lauren Lehigh, Loveland, CO, 75-74-149 +3
3. Caroline Jordaan, Cherry Hills Village, CO, 74-76-150 +4
4. Kelsey Webster, Boulder, CO, 79-72-151 +5
5. Jaclyn Murray, Grand Junction, CO, 78-74-152 +6
5. Jordan Remley, Lakewood, CO, 76-76-152 +6
7. Amy Chitkoksoong, Aurora, CO, 78-76-154 +8
8. Amisha Singh, Greenwood Village, CO, 82-76-158 +12
8. Sarah Hwang, Monument, CO, 78-80-158 +12
10. Amelia Lee, Castle Rock, CO, 82-77-159 +13
11. Julia Baroth, Denver, CO, 82-78-160 +14
12. Alexis Chan, Highlands Ranch, CO, 84-78-162 +16
12. Marie Jordaan, Cherry Hills Village, CO, 81-81-162 +16
14. Tabitha Diehl, Highlands Ranch, CO, 82-81-163 +17
15. Arielle Keating, Colorado Springs, CO, 82-82-164 +18
16. Aili Bundy, Fort Collins, CO, 87-81-168 +22
17. Emma Bryant, Aurora, CO, 87-84-171 +25
18. Jenna Chun, Englewood, CO, 86-90-176 +30
BOYS
1. Trevor Olkowski, Grand Junction, CO, 70-69-139 -5
2. Luke Trujillo, Colorado Springs, CO, 73-68-141 -3
2. Griffin Barela, Lakewood, CO, 71-70-141 -3
2. Coleson Krantz, Windsor, CO, 69-72-141 -3
5. Canon Olkowski, Grand Junction, CO, 72-72-144 E
6. Dillon Stewart, Ft Collins, 76-69-145 +1
6. Jackson Crist, Highlands Ranch, CO, 73-72-145 +1
8. Jackson Solem, Longmont, CO, 74-72-146 +2
9. Glen-Michael Mihavetz, Montrose, CO, 77-71-148 +4
9. Billy Howenstein, Boulder, CO, 76-72-148 +4
9. Kyle Pearson, Highlands Ranch, CO, 74-74-148 +4
12. Tom Packer, Greenwood Village, CO, 78-71-149 +5
12. Daniel Pearson, Longmont, CO, 77-72-149 +5
14. Davis Bryant, Aurora, CO, 78-72-150 +6
14. Owen Pasvogel, Colorado Springs, CO, 77-73-150 +6
14. Calvin McCoy, Highlands Ranch, CO, 71-79-150 +6
17. Freddie Gluck, Boulder, CO, 77-74-151 +7
18. Jackson Klutznick, Denver, CO, 78-74-152 +8
19. Tj Shehee, Longmont, CO, 75-78-153 +9
20. Luke Travins, Colorado Springs, CO, 81-73-154 +10
20. Cade Kilkenny, Centennial, CO, 79-75-154 +10
22. Marcus Tait, Littleton, CO, 80-75-155 +11
22. Jacob Mason, Westminster, CO, 78-77-155 +11
22. Ryan Pearson, Highlands Ranch, CO, 73-82-155 +11
25. Ian Thorpe, Superior, CO, 80-76-156 +12
25. Matthew LeFebre, Centennial, CO, 79-77-156 +12
25. Hunter Tuite, Englewood, CO, 77-79-156 +12
25. Tyler Severin, Johnstown, CO, 75-81-156 +12
29. Mathew Casias, Pueblo, CO, 81-76-157 +13
29. Walker Franklin, Broomfield, CO, 79-78-157 +13
31. Nishant Datta, Broomfield, CO, 80-78-158 +14
31. Dillon Baker, Castle Rock, CO, 76-82-158 +14
33. Evan Kalac, Highlands Ranch, CO, 80-79-159 +15
34. Drew Anderson, Aurora, CO, 86-74-160 +16
35. Jake Welch, Highlands Ranch, CO, 81-82-163 +19
36. Jack Castiglia, Lakewood, CO, 84-80-164 +20
37. Ethan Tartaglia, Lafayette, CO, 85-81-166 +22
37. Jake Ott, Centennial, CO, 82-84-166 +22
39. Jordan Jennings, Montrose, CO, 83-85-168 +24
40. Kailer Rundiks, Denver, CO, 76-93-169 +25
