Sixteen more junior golfers punched their tickets to the Regional round of qualifying for the Drive, Chip & Putt Championship through a Sub-Regional held Saturday at Walnut Creek Golf Course in Westminster.
It’s the first time two Sub-Regionals have been conducted in Colorado in the same year as CommonGround Golf Course in Aurora hosted one last weekend.
Among those who advanced on Saturday was Sofia Choi of Littleton, winner of the last two girls titles in the Junior Golf Alliance of Colorado’s 11-13 Junior Series Championships. Choi won the girls 14-15 division on Saturday, a year after advancing to Regionals in the 12-13 division.
Also earning a spot in Regionals on Saturday was Ashton Edwards of Boulder, son of University of Colorado men’s head coach Roy Edwards. Ashton Edwards placed second in the boys 7-9 division on Saturday, behind Max Riley.
The top two finishers in each of eight divisions on Saturday earned trips to the Regionals, set for Sept. 16 at Southern Hills Country Club in Tulsa, Okla. From there, the top finisher in each division will make it to the 2018 National Championship, set for April 4 at Augusta National Golf Club, site of the Masters.
In three of the first four years the DCP has been held, no Coloradans made it to Nationals, But three in-state junior golfers — Luke Trujillo, Arielle Keating and Caitlyn Chin — went to Nationals in the spring of 2016.
Players who make it to Nationals have to advance through Local, Sub-Regional and Regional Qualifying.
In all, 40 boys and 40 girls will compete in the Nationals of the Drive, Chip & Putt Championship, which is sponsored by the Masters, the USGA and the PGA of America. The competition is limited to players 7-15.
Each participant in the DCP is awarded points for each skill based on his or her performance, with the points added together for an overall score.
Here are all those who will advance from Colorado sites to Southern Hills, with their points from each of the three skills (drive, chip and putt) — and their total for the Sub-Regionals at Walnut Creek on Saturday and at CommonGround on Aug. 12:
Drive Chip & Pub Sub-Regionals
AUG. 19, 2017 AT WALNUT CREEK GOLF PRESERVE IN WESTMINSTER
ADVANCE TO REGIONALS
(Drive-Chip-Putt–Total)
Boys 14-15
Joshua Stouder 36-35-60–131
Hunter Khan 42-35-46–123
Girls 14-15
Sofia Choi 33-41-65–139
Rachel Penzenstadler 41-21-55–117
Boys 12-13
Yusuke Ogi 60-36-45–141
Wesley Erling 47-45-37–129
Girls 12-13
Abigail Aeschleman 34-50-55–139
Ali Mulhall 48-27-60–135
Boys 10-11
Kaden Devenport 46-45-55–146
Tucker Jaffe 36-60-35–131
Girls 10-11
Rylee Salome 21-55-45–121
Macy Kleve 21-36-40–97
Boys 7-9
Max Riley 32-55-55–142
Ashton Edwards 21-4-65–90
Girls 7-9
Adrielle Miller 13-41-31–85
Molli Mulhall 22-7-55–84
For all the scores from Saturday, CLICK HERE.
AUG. 12, 2017 AT COMMONGROUND GC IN AURORA
ADVANCE TO REGIONALS
(Drive-Chip-Putt–Total)
Boys 14-15
Joshua Gallegos 57-55-55–167
Kaden Ford 61-45-40–146
Girls 14-15
Alyssa Chin 31-55-60–146
Emma Bryant 51-40-55–146
Boys 12-13
Riley Stephens 42-55-55–152
Brian Knapp 36-3-55–122
Girls 12-13
Kaylee Chen 54-55-36–145
Avery Sky 38-37-55–130
Boys 10-11
Matai Naqica 50-60-60–170
Mason Smith 31-45-45–121
Girls 10-11
Callia Ward 26-60-60–146
Lillian McDermott 30-45-50–125
Boys 7-9
Collen Todd 28-45-31–104
Santiago Liberto 16-30-46–92
Girls 7-9
Eleanor Warden 23-40-50–113
Allie Smith 11-55-45–111
For all the scores from Aug. 12, CLICK HERE.
