AJGA Blog

First-round notes: Thunderbird International Junior

> Named “Aces and Eights,” the eighth hole lived up to its name Saturday. Zecheng Dou’s 6-iron from 177 yards found the bottom of the cup, giving him the ninth hole-in-one of his career. The ace helped him to an even-par 72, which is good for a share of eighth place. Grayhawk Golf Club will give him a commemorative flag and add his name to the “Hole-in-One Club” plaque that hangs in Phil’s Grill.

> Matt Gilchrest of Southlake, Texas, posted a seemingly nondescript 1-over-par round today, but his 73 shots don’t accurately reflect the last 73 hours of his life:

Wednesday, Matt was 1,070 miles from Grayhawk Golf Club and sixth on the alternate list.

Thursday, Matt got a call with an invitation to fill the void left by Shun Yat Hak’s withdrawal.

Friday, Matt and his dad flew from Dallas to Phoenix, but his clubs missed the flight and remained in Dallas overnight.

Saturday, Matt planned on playing with the head pro’s clubs during the first round. After spending hours at the airport, Matt’s dad arrived at the golf course with his clubs 20 minutes before his 8:05 a.m. tee time.

An eagle and a birdie highlighted a bogey-free front nine 33, and Matt even held the lead for portions of the morning. Though he fell to a tie for 15th through 18 holes, Matt’s next three days will certainly be more predictable than the last.

> While an international boy has never won the Thunderbird International Junior, Max Orrin (United Kingdom) and Hannes Ronneblad (Sweden) have put themselves in good position through one round. Max is part of the four-way tie for second after a 2-under-par 70, while Hannes is tied for sixth at 1-under-par.

> Recent success seems to be paving the way for four players in the top seven in the Girls Division. Shannon Aubert won in her last start at the Kathy Whitworth Invitational in March and is one of three co-leaders, while Moriya Jutanugarn won the Scott Robertson Memorial last weekend and is tied for fourth. Alison Lee (T4) also has a win this season, as she opened with a victory at the ANNIKA Invitational, and Ashlan Ramsey (T7) won the Sea Pines Junior Heritage in February.

- Chris Richards, AJGA Communications

Higginbottom near the top…again

Jake Higginbottom may not be a household name in American junior golf circles, but Australia has gotten to know the 17-year-old well over the last month. Prior to traveling to Arizona for the Thunderbird International Junior, Higginbottom has notched three consecutive victories since May 6.

The month started with a 2-and-1 victory in the 36-hole final at the Queensland Amateur. The following week, he posted a 15-under-par 273 and won by a shot at the Keperra Bowl. The trifecta was completed on May 20 when a 10-under-par 274 performance put him atop the leaderboard at the Handa Junior Masters.

After a second-round 67 at the Thunderbird International Junior, he’s once again in the final pairing and only one shot behind leader Billy Kennerly.

“(My expectations) are still the same. Hopefully I can play well and I expect to keep playing better. I’m playing well at the moment so that’s good,” a humble Higginbottom said.

Five days after winning the Handa Junior Masters, Higginbottom traveled 7,800 miles to Scottsdale to compete at Grayhawk Golf Club – a desert course in harsh weather conditions that isn’t the norm in Australia.

“Out here you just have to hit your iron shots into the green a little bit higher to make them land a bit softer,” he said. “I know I can go low out here now and it’s great to have a bit of confidence going into the last round.”

In 12 years, an international boy has never been crowned champion at the Thunderbird International Junior. With one more tournament-clinching round, Higginbottom can extend his winning streak to four while also ending a 12-year drought for international boys at Grayhawk Golf Club.

By Chris Richards, AJGA Communications

Final-Round Twitter Rewind

The 11th annual Thunderbird International Junior is in the books, and the Girls’ Division went to a sudden-death playoff for the second-straight year. In case you missed it (or don’t follow @AJGAGolf on Twitter), here is the live shot-by-shot account of the four-hole playoff between Cindy Feng and Laetitia Beck.

No. 10 (First playoff hole)

· Feng and Beck both find the fairway off the tee on the first playoff hole. #tbirds

· Feng first to play, hits her 140-yd approach to the upper level, pin high and 30 feet away for birdie. #tbirds

· From 115 yds, Beck hits her approach short of the ridge, rolls to the front edge and has a difficilt 60 footer for birdie. #tbirds

· Beck's great lag putt leaves her with a 2-footer for par. #tbirdsabout

· Feng leaves her downhill birdie bid 3 feet short, taps in for par. Beck follows suit and we head to the 2nd playoff hole. #tbirds

No. 11 (Second playoff hole)

· Flashback to 2009: Feng birdies No. 11 to defeat Sarah Brown on the 2nd playoff hole. Will history repeat itself? #tbirds

· Feng's second shot on the par 5 sneaks into the rough, Beck lays 2 in the fairway. Both have about 100 yds for their 3rd shots.#tbirds

· Beck is first to play and has a better lie and a better angle. Can she capitalize? #tbirds

· Beck flies it over the flag, has a downhill 25 footer for birdie. #tbirds

· Feng's aggressive approach finishes 10 feet below the front left hole location. #tbirds

· After Beck nestled her birdie putt within tap-in range, Feng burns the edge and taps in for par. Heading to the 3rd playoff hole. #tbirds

No. 12 (Third playoff hole)

· Beck bombs her drive 30 yards past Feng on the long par-4 12th hole. Advantage, Beck. #tbirds

· Feng misses long left, will have a tricky downhill chip from a downhill lie. Beck's approach finishes pin-high, 15 ft from the pin. #tbirds

· Feng's 40-ft downhill chip leaves her 6 feet for par. #tbirds

· Beck narrowly misses her birdie for the win, Feng responds by draining her long 6 footer. On to the par-3 13th. #tbirds

No. 13 (Fourth playoff hole)

· Feng puts on the pressure, hits her tee shot to 10 feet. Beck's tee shot finds the deep greenside bunker. #tbirds

· Beck's ball is away from the face, but she only has about 6 paces of green to work with. #tbirds

· A tough shot to say the least. Beck is on the green, but 45 feet past the hole for par, while Feng has a 10 footer for birdie. #tbirds

· Beck's par attempt misses, Feng 2-putts her way to her 2nd straight #tbirds title.

Midday Report: Final Round

The Girls’ defending champ started Monday’s final round three shots off the pace, but five birdies have helped Yueer Cindy Feng (above) catch second-round co-leader Laetitia Beck with four holes to play.

Playing in the second-to-last group, Feng and Beck are tied at 3-under-par and have a three-shot lead over Stephanie Meadow and Alison Lee.

In the Boys Division, second-round leader Anthony Paolucci rebounded from bogeys on Nos. 4 and 6 by going eagle-birdie on Nos. 7 and 8. His two-shot lead remains in tact as he makes the turn at 11-under-par, while Patrick Cantlay (9-under) and Justin Thomas (7-under) are still in hot pursuit.

Follow FootJoy Live Scoring to watch the exciting finishes at Grayhawk Golf Club.

Storylines: Final Round

The final round of the Thunderbird International Junior has begun, and two deserving champions will be crowned in a matter of hours. Here are a few storylines to put on your radar as you follow the scores with FootJoy Live Scoring.

• Each of the six players in the final two girls groups is ranked in the top 11 of the Polo Golf Rankings (1. Tanco, 3. C. Feng, 4. Morris, 5. Alison Lee, 7. Beck, 11. Meadow).
• The 8:45 a.m. pairing features Australia’s top-ranked boy (Cameron Smith) and the No. 1 player in the Polo Golf Rankings (Jordan Spieth).
• Patrick Cantlay and Laetitia Beck are looking for their first Invitational victories in their final AJGA events.

Daily Wrap-up: Second Round

Anthony Paolucci (above) built a big lead, lost it, then rebounded to end the second round with a two-shot cushion at the Thunderbird International Junior. Despite three bogeys in a four-hole stretch, Paolucci notched birdies on Nos. 6 and 7 and posted a second-round 69 and a 9-under-par total.

“I knew I needed to finish strong because I saw Justin (Thomas) and a couple other guys who are playing good golf, so the birdies on Nos. 6 and 7 and I made a good putt on No. 9 really helped me finish strong,” said Paolucci, who is currently No. 8 in the Polo Golf Rankings.

But there is plenty of talent lurking in the field behind him. Shun Yat Hak moved 14 spots up the leaderboard with a round of 66 on Saturday and is 5-under-par, while Justin Thomas (7-under-par) and Patrick Cantlay (6-under-par) have the Invitational experience to challenge Paolucci.

“My experience is going to help me a lot because I know that if I ever get down on myself or if Anthony or Patrick is making a run, I know that I’ve beat them before and I know that I’m good enough to be them,” said Thomas, who won the 2009 FootJoy Invitational. “I need to think that way and hopefully that will help me.”

In the Girls Division, Rachel Morris (left) carded a second-consecutive round of 71, but in a very different manner. Sunday’s round featured six birdies against five bogeys, but her 2-under-par total still has her tied atop the leaderboard after 36 holes.

“I thought overall I was playing pretty solid, so if I can eliminate some of those bogeys tomorrow then I think I’ll be in good shape,” Morris said. “I take more good away from today’s round because I made more birdies than I did yesterday, so I know I can do it and it gave me more confidence.”

After a 2-under-par 70, Laetitia Beck (right) moved into a familiar position – into the final group at an Invitational. Most recently, she played with two-time Rolex Junior Player of the Year in the final group at the 2010 ANNIKA Invitational.

“Because I’m used to being in the final group, maybe I won’t feel as much pressure,” Beck said. “It’s just a game, so I just try to have fun and if I play well, I will win.”

Follow all the action during Monday’s final round at the Thunderbird International Junior with FootJoy Live Scoring.

Midday Report: Second Round

The birdie barrage has begun.

Shun Yat Hak (above), carded two birdies and two eagles on his opening nine and has stormed into the second spot on the leaderboard midway through the second round. Also making a move is Gavin Hall, who made seven birdies in his first 10 holes and is 5-under-par on the day.

But don’t expect Anthony Paolucci to give up his top spot easily. The Del Mar, Calif., native is bogey-free on the day and currently holds a five-shot lead at 10-under-par.

In the Girls Division, Laetitia Beck (right) has moved into a tie for the lead, thanks to a front-nine 32. First-round leader Rachel Morris has used three front-nine birdies and is also at 3-under-par for the tournament.

FootJoy Live Scoring has all the latest scores, stats, videos, blogs and Tweets from the second round at the Thunderbird International Junior.

Read more about the Thunderbird Int’l Junior

Need more coverage from Grayhawk Golf Club? Follow these links to read more about the players and tournament.

• English Golf Union
• USA Today
• Arizona Republic
• Golf.com Blog
• Golfweek Preview
• Golfweek first-round recap

Filling the Trophy Case

It’s one thing to claim to be the best, but it’s another to be recognized as the best. Since its inception in 2000, the Thunderbird International Junior has been honored as the AJGA’s Tournament of the Year, Volunteer of the Year and Hospitality of the Year. The tournament co-founders added the biggest award of them all Friday night, as Mike Kennedy and Del Cochran were presented with the Digger Smith Award at the tournament’s welcome dinner.

“This event is really a dream come true,” Kennedy said at the Digger Smith Award Banquet. “This is a group of people who had an idea and try to make it better every year.”

Named after the AJGA’s chairman of the board, the Digger Smith Award has been presented annually since 1991 and praises an AJGA advocate for his/her longtime service and dedication to junior golf.

In 1999, Kennedy and Cochran followed the instructions given by their close friend Phil Mickelson and set out to create the world’s best tournament – both from a standpoint of competition and fun. As a result, players are treated to a tournament experience that includes a glow-in-the-dark putting course, ping pong, air hockey and a players-only dining area.

In addition, the Thunderbird International Junior is a collection of the world’s best juniors. More than 700 players from 31 foreign countries have competed at Grayhawk Golf Club since the tournament began in 2000, including Julieta Granada, Ryo Ishikawa and Anna Nordqvist.

Because The Thunderbirds aim to improve the quality of life in the local communities, the Thunderbird International Junior has adopted similar principles. Each year, players may designate a benefitting charity and The Thunderbirds will donate $1,000 to that charity in the players’ names.

“One of the things that Mike and I are really proud of is the fact that we’ve given more than $220,000 to charities,” Cochran said. “That means that every participant has made a difference and has the opportunity to make a difference in somebody else’s life. If you take nothing else away from this tournament, then we’re happy.”

Thunderbird International Junior

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Extra spotlight

The blazing Arizona sun is bright by itself, but juniors Jordan Spieth and Grayson Murray had a little extra spotlight on them during Friday’s practice round at the Thunderbird International Junior.

The buzz from their performances at last week’s pro events has attracted the attention from newspapers and magazines across the country, and Golf Magazine and Sports Illustrated have made the trip to Scottsdale to see for themselves.

Dave Allen was stationed in the Fairway House Thursday night and Friday morning to do a photo shoot for Golf Magazine. In the next couple months, look for swing sequences, swing tips and What’s in the bag? from Jordan and Grayson.

Sports Illustrated’s Damon Hack and Todd Bigelow followed Grayson and Jordan during their practice round Friday morning, then attended the tournament press conference.

By the end of the day, Jordan and Grayson deflected some of the spotlight, as the Digger Smith Award presentation recognized Mike Kennedy and Del Cochran for their outstanding support of the tournament and junior golf.

Saturday morning is here, which means all 78 players in the field are in the spotlight.

Thunderbird International Junior

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