By Neto Baptiste
Organisers of the inaugural Antigua Junior Masters Golf Championship held at Cedar Valley on Sunday, are hoping to have both the boys and girls winners of the event represent Antigua and Barbuda at Junior Orange Bowl Golf Championship slated for January 2-6 in Miami, Florida.
This was revealed by Glentis Martin, a member of the organising team, who said he has already written to the organisers of the Orange Bowl asking that the newly crowned boys and girls champions, Marquise George and Lexi Hunt, be considered for their next tournament.
“We wrote to them asking for an invitation into their tournament for two of our players who won the Masters over the weekend. At this moment we are putting pen to paper to write to the bodies again in terms of the Cedar Valley Golf Course and the federation, of which I think Avery Jonas is the head, asking them to write the Orange Bowl asking for invitations for our two champions to take part in their tournament,” he said.
In 1964, the inaugural Junior Orange Bowl Golf Championship was held with the girls’ tournament added in 1977. Top US and foreign players 18 years and younger compete in this event which is now recognised as one of the world’s most prestigious junior golf tournaments.
Martin said that coming out of the local tournament in which winners were rewarded red jackets mimicking the prestigious green jackets given to winners of the senior Masters golf tournaments, it is evident that Antigua has the talents required to compete at that international level.
“The course is not in really good shape because of the lack of rain so for the kids to go out there and score in the 80s is still commendable, so I really have to tip my hat. The competition was of a high quality for a 12-year-old to 15 because no one in the tournament was 16 or 17 so for the children to be scoring in the 80s and 96 is really commendable,” he said.
Martin is hoping that his group could organize one more tournament before the end of the year.
“We are looking for one more tournament before the year is finished but we have not picked a date or a month as yet so we are still putting pen to paper for that one and I know when that comes to the forefront we will past on that information all of the relevant bodies again and relevant authorities,” he said.
During Sunday’s Junior Masters, Marquise George easily secured the boys division with an 18-hole score of 88 as he finished ahead of runner up Carlos Khoury and third place finisher Siyolo Joseph.
As for Lexi Hunt, the 14 year old hot shot secured the girls category with a score of 86.