Team Virginia pictured with Captain Ray Montgomery
Second Round Recap
Team Virginia, sparked by a closing 3-under-par 67 by Christopher Zhang, from Blackburg, finished with a total of 870 (433-437) to easily win the ninth Mid-Atlantic Junior Invitational tournament at the Suburban Club in Pikesville, Md., October 22. Team West Virginia moved up to second in the two-day event, 446-441–887, followed by Team Maryland, which fell back to third, 441-463–904. With a fourth straight victory, Virginia now leads the series with five wins to four for Maryland.
The competition, which featured the best six scores from eight-man teams each day, represented the state golf associations from the three states. The par-70 course was played at 6,542 yards on the second straight day of picture-perfect weather — sunny and mild with a breeze.
Zhang, a 16-year-old high school junior from Blacksburg, Va. finished with five birdies and a double-bogey (at the eighth), with his longest birdie from 40 feet at the sixth hole. He reported the rest of his birds were from about six feet. The next-best final-round score was a par-70 by Christian McKisic, from Buckhannon, W. Va., while among the 72’s that followed was one by Maryland’s top scorer, Lou Baker, from Timonium.
Joining Zhang, Creasy, and Johnson as second-day Virginia scorers were Jack Montague, Manakin-Sabot, 146; Drew Brockwell, 147, and Kurtis Grant, Herndon, and Cameron Moore, Glen Allen, tied at 149.
The superb round by Zhang vaulted him into first place in the tournament-total chase with 72-67–139, well clear of three at 145 — Connor Creasy, Abingdon, Va., 73-72; Connor Johnson, Jr., Richmond, Va., 71-74, and McKisic, 75-70–145. Maryland’s best was first-day leader Austin Barbin, Elkton, who slipped back with 70-77–147, and Liam Powderly, Cockeysville, with 73-74–147.
Virginia will host the 2018 tournament at River Bend Golf &Country Club, Great Falls, Va.
Virginia Opens Up First Round Lead
A Virginia team placed all its scorers at 74 and better to take the first-round lead in the ninth annual Mid-Atlantic Junior Invitational tournament at the Suburban Club in Pikesville, Md., October 21. The format calls for the top six scorers to count from among eight members of teams representing the golf associations of Virginia (433), Maryland (441) and West Virginia (446).
There will be two 18-hole rounds, with the concluding one on October 22, with play beginning at 9:30 a.m.
Austin Barbin, from Elkton, Md., had the low score of 70 on a mild, sunny fall day, matching par for the 6,542-yard suburban Baltimore course. The 16-year-old junior at Red Lion (Pa.) Christian Academy called his round “steady,” as he recorded two birdies in reaching 13 greens in regulation and taking 31 putts.
The top scorers for Virginia were Connor Johnson, Jr., from Richmond, and Drew Brockwell, from Chesterfield, with 71’s. while West Virginia was led by Christian Boyd, Charles Town, with 73. Completing the Virginia scorers were Jack Montague, from Manakin-Sabot, and Christopher Zhang, from Blacksburg, with 72’s, and Connor Creasy, from Abingdon, with 73. Kurtis Grant, from Herndon, and Cameron Moore, Glen Allen, tied with 74’s.
Notes: Virginia’s Johnson was on his way to a sub-par round until he bogeyed the 17th and 18th holes. . .Jack Halleron, from Timonium, Md., started out with an eagle-2 at the first hole, holing out from the rough at the 386-yard opener. . .Liam Powderly, from Cockeysville, Md., and Isaac Prine, from Vienna, W.Va., each had four birdies. Virginia, with three straight victories, has tied the series at four wins with Maryland.
