TJGT Descends on Austin for Barton Creek Holiday Classic

More than 175 junior golfers from Texas, Louisiana, Oklahoma, Florida, Arkansas, New Jersey, California and Mexico came together in west Austin at the end of December for the 16th Annual Barton Creek Holiday Classic, a three-round major junior championship featuring some of the most elite junior players in the country.

In year’s past, the weather has been anything but pleasant, with temperatures dipping into the 30s, biting rain, sleet and high winds; but this year Mother Nature smiled down on the tournament, leaving players with temperatures in the 70s during Day 1, and the high 50s and low 60s on Day 2 and 3.

With more than a dozen college coaches on hand from schools such as the University of Texas, Baylor, Stephen F. Austin, Vanderbilt, Georgia Tech, Houston Baptist, St. Edwards and more, three players – Lubbock’s Eli Tran, Austin’s Kaylee Vesely and Austin’s Zach Kingsland – emerged victorious to claim titles in the three divisions.

Girls 11-18 Division (Fazio Foothills Course)
In the Girls 11-18 Division, Kaylee Vesely set the pace right away, firing a 4-under-par 68 on Day 1, which was the low round for the division, and tied for low round of the tournament. Starting on hole No. 9, Vesely made three birdies and two bogeys on her first nine holes, and then went on a tear, making three birdies in a four-hole stretch on the back nine, en route to a final-nine 33.

BC Girls 11-18

Three shots back after the first round was Monroe, La. senior Aoife O’Donovan, who made five birdies and four bogeys on her way to a 1-under-par 71. At even par, four strokes off the lead, were Austin’s Randi Romack and Cedar Park’s Chandler Rosholt. All in all, 15 players shot 80 or better on Day 1, nearly half the field.

Day 2 brought high winds a slightly lower temperatures, leading to much tougher conditions and higher scores, even for the leaders. San Pedro, Mexico’s Cory Lopez shot one of the low rounds of the day, a 2-over 74, vaulting her from outside the top 5 into second place, six shots behind Vesely, who maintained her lead by firing a 1-over 73.

Nursing her six-shot lead, Vesely put her foot down on Day 3, shooting a 2-under 70 for a three-day total 211 and a 10-shot lead. The real battle was for second place, as Lopez held off Romack by two shots, firing a second 74 to take solo second. The round of the day came from Austin’s Hanna Liu, a two-under-par 70. The round vaulted Liu all the way up into the Top 5, giving her a T5 finish with Allen’s Phoebe Yuan, who shot a final round 80. Rosholt finishes fourth.

Boys 15-18 Division (Crenshaw Cliffside Course)
In the older boys division, played on the Crenshaw Cliffside Course, Flower Mound’s Dawson Lewis took the early lead with a 3-under round of 68. Starting on hole. no. 3, Lewis birdied his first two holes, and finished his round with an impressive eagle on 470-yard par 5 second hole.

BC Boys 15-18

Just one shot back after Day 1 was Austin’s Dalton Doerr, who finished with a 2-under 69. Eli Tran and San Antonio’s John Keefer were one and two shots back, respectively, and Daisuke Nakano, Cole Enlow and Christian Hansen rounded out the top 5.

On Day 2, 30mph winds swept through the mostly-open course, causing problems for players and sending scores through the roof. Eli Tran shot what may have been the most impressive round of the tournament, a 1-under 70, which felt like about  a 65 in the extremely difficult conditions. Right on his heels was Keefer, who shot even par on Day 2, and Lewis, who faltered a bit with a 5-over 76.

The final round brought calmer skies and, thusly, lower scores. Tran, who held a two-shot lead heading into the final round, played relatively stable golf on Day 3, shooting even par, which was good enough to hold off a hard-charging Dawson Lewis, who bounced back after a poor Round 2 with a two-under 69 on the final day. Tran took the title by one over Lewis, with Keefer finishing solo third.

With an impressive final round 68, New Mexico’s Ryo Harada jumped up into a tie for 4th with Nakano, who shot a two-over 73.

Boys 11-14 Division (Fazio Foothills Course)
In the younger boys division, it was a tight race all three days for the top three slots. On Day 1, Austin’s Zach Kingsland took the early lead with a 1-over round of 73. Kingsland turned in a very colorful scorecard, which featured four bogeys and a double-bogey, but balanced that out with five birdies, including two on par 3s.

BC Boys 11-14

Kingsland’s 73 gave him a three-shot lead over a host of players, including Arkansas’ Palmer McSpadden and Houston’s Javier B Pande.

Kingsland increased his lead during Day 2 with a 76, but a few players behind him began to separate themselves from the pack. Austin’s J. Holland Humphries played himself into solo 2nd after Day 2, and Temple’s Dallas Hankamer positioned himself in solo 3rd.

Kingsland held a sizable lead starting the final round, and his Day 3 77 helped him cruise to the title. Humphries held of Hankamer for second place.