U.S. Junior Amateur
Championship
The 67th U.S. Junior Amateur Championship held at
The Club at Carlton Woods (Nicklaus Course) saw AJGA golfers Will Zalatoris and Davis Riley go head-to-head in the final round of match play.
Zalatoris claimed the title in his final year of eligibility with a 5-and-3
victory in the 36-hole championship match. He had previously competed in the
event four times.
Zalatoris pulled ahead with back-to-back birdies on the 19th and 20th holes played (Nos. 1 and 2) after the pair was all square following
the first 18 holes. In all, the match saw 22 birdies over 33 holes between the
competitors, along with an eagle on No. 14 by Zalatoris. The runner-up finish
was Riley’s second straight at the U.S. Junior Amateur Championship, after
falling to Scott Scheffler 3 and 2
in 2013.
The title was a fitting part of Zalatoris’ final year of
junior golf before moving on to compete at Wake Forest in the fall. The former
Rolex Junior All-American has competed in AJGA events since 2009, after
medaling in his first-ever event at the Preseason Junior at Brookhaven. He
would go on to amass four more top-10 AJGA finishes, including another victory
at the 2009 Junior All-Star at Ballantyne. The Plano, Texas, native was also a
member of the victorious West Team at the 2010 Wyndham Cup.
Riley of Hattiesburg, Mississippi, has also enjoyed a
storied AJGA career. The 2014 Wyndham Cup participant has accumulated 11 top-10
finishes in AJGA competition, including a T6 finish at the 2014 CB&I Boys
Championship at Carlton Woods, held on the Fazio Championship Course. The
rising senior and two-time Rolex Junior All-American is verbally committed to
Alabama.
U.S. Girls’ Junior
Championship
AJGA alumna Marijosse
Navarro went to a playoff with Princess Mary Superal before falling on the
37th hole of the 2014 U.S. Girls’ Junior Championship at Forest
Highlands Golf Club’s Meadow Course. This was the second time the event needed
extra holes since it expanded to 36 holes in 2006.
Mexico’s Navarro was a three-time Rolex Junior All-American
from 2010-12, and notched four career victories. She has reached match play at
the U.S. Girls’ Junior Championship each year since 2011, culminating in this
year’s runner-up finish. Navarro is
currently a freshman at Texas A&M.