Fifteen players from across the great state of Texas descended upon Aggieland this past weekend as the Texas Junior Golf Tour played host to the Aggieland Mini Tour Classic on December 10-11, 2011. Pebble Creek Country Club was the host course for this event for the fourth consecutive year. The boys 12-13 division played 5360 yards while the boys and girls 10-11 divisions played 4991 yards. Those players that arrived in town on Friday night were treated to a Q & A session at the Aggie Golf Learning Center. The Aggie Golf Learning center is the home away from home for the Texas A&M Men’s & Women’s nationally ranked golf teams. The Aggie Learning Center is located at Traditions Golf Club which is the home course for both the Aggie Men and Women’s golf programs. Texas A&M Men’s head coach JT Higgins and Women’s head coach Trelle McCombs were on hand to field questions from the golfers. Also present was men’s assistant coach Jim Anderson as well as women’s assistant coach Andy Crabtree. Several current players were in attendance including men’s players Jade Scott, Greg Yates, and Andrew Lister. Representing the women’s team were Susy Grunden, Mary Michael Maggio, and Katerina Ruzickova. Many of these players were former players on the Texas Junior Golf Tour.
As for the golf, players were greeted at check in Saturday morning with tee gifts that included a beanie, a maroon T-shirt, a golf shirt, two sleeves of ProV1 golf balls, as well as some coupons for stays at the Westin Galleria of Dallas. The weather on day one was breezy and cool, but not bad for the first full weekend in December. The players found the going a bit tough on day one. Lawson Klotz got things off to a good start in round one. He opened with a front nine 37 and finished with a total of 81 to lead the division. In the boys 10-11 division, 2011 Thanksgiving Mini Tour Championship winner Thomas Critch opened with a 78 to hold the overnight lead over Andrew Rodriguez by one stroke. Andrew opened with a great 79 to apply some pressure to Thomas. In the girls 10-11 division, multiple mini tour winner Hailey Jones got things off to a fantastic start with an opening round 77 that included three birdies. Sadie Englemann was not far behind after opening with an 82.
At the conclusion of the first round, players and families were treated to two tickets to the Texas A&M Men’s basketball game versus the University of Louisiana Monroe Warhawks at 7 pm. Texas A&M did a great job playing host to the Texas Junior Golf Tour over the weekend.
On day two, players were greeted with slightly warmer temperatures and a little less wind. In the boys 12-13 division, newcomer Daniel Gibbs had a remarkable even par 72 in round two which allowed him to take the title. Daniel recorded three birdies on his round, including making birdie on 16 and 18, two very tough holes at Pebble Creek. Finishing in second place was overnight leader Lawson Klotz. Lawson fired a second round 84 to edge William Paysse by two strokes. William improved his first round score by three strokes, finishing the front nine at 1 over. Reid Davenport was also much better in round two, knocking 10 strokes off his first round score of 91. In the boys 10-11 division, ever steady Thomas Critch fired a second consecutive 78 to win the boys 10-11 division. He opened with a two over 38 on the front nine and finished with a 40 on the back nine to post as 78. Finishing in second place was Andrew Rodriguez. Andrew was playing some great golf until he reached the 16th hole. Unfortunately he struggled on the way in, but he managed to hold off Scott Roden. Scott fired a second round 82 to claim third place. In the girls 10-11 division, first round leader Hailey Jones got off to a rocking start by making birdies on three of her first four holes. She struggled from that point forward however and managed to edge Sadie Enlgemann by three strokes. Sadie had the low round of the day in the girls 10-11 division after a 78 in round two that included only one birdie against 7 bogeys. Rebecca Reed finished third after posting a second round 85, improving her day one score by seven strokes. Congratulations to all of these fine young players!
The mini tour will be back in action December 19-20 at Trophy Club in Dallas followed by the Holiday Classic in Austin December 28-30. The Holiday Classic will be played at Flintrock Falls in Austin. This will be a fabulous treat for the mini tour players.
BOYS 12-13
Place Name Hometown Grad Yr Rd 1 Score Rd 2 Score Total
1st Daniel Gibbs Rockwall 2017 83 72 155
2nd Lawson Klotz Austin 2017 81 84 165
3rd William Paysse Temple 2018 85 82 167
BOYS 10-11
Place Name Hometown Grad Yr Rd 1 Score Rd 2 Score Total
1st Thomas Critch Cedar Park 2018 78 78 156
2nd Andrew Rodriguez Spring 2019 79 85 164
3rd Scott Roden Dallas 2020 84 82 166
GIRLS 10-11
Place Name Hometown Grad Yr Rd 1 Score Rd 2 Score Total
1st Hailey Jones Dallas 2019 77 80 157
2nd Sadie Englemann Austin 2020 82 78 160
3rd Rebecca Reed Midland 2019 92 85 177
