orth florida PGA north florida PGA north florida PGA north florida PGA north
By Daniel Calderon
A Drive, Chip and Putt Season to Remember
After three months of fierce competition, the Drive, Chip and Putt qualifying season has officially wrapped. After kicking off in May at Leadbetter Academy at the Omni ChampionsGate, hundreds of kids have taken their swing and utilized the opportunity to see how they stack up against their fellow competitors. As summer slips away, the competition is intensifying and will soon reach new heights in the forthcoming months. However, the journey thus far has been one filled with competitive spirits, impressive achievements and notable acknowledgments. The nationwide program is free for children ages 7-15 and aims to grow the game of golf by spotlighting the three fundamental skills of the sport- drive, chip and putt. The competition enables participants to become more passionate about the sport, play alongside their peers and improve their individual skills. Each competitor has the ability to hit three shots per skill, giving them a total of nine shots. Points are gathered per shot, and the champion with the greatest total of points earned is victorious. There have been a total of 12 local qualifiers over the course of the summer. The qualifying season’s locations have ranged from Rogers Park Golf Course in Tampa to World Golf Village in St. Augustine. Come rain or shine, each round has provided its players the ability to advance to the Sub-Regional rounds at The Leadbetter Academy and at TPC Sawgrass. Not only has each qualifier been extremely competitive, for some there has been a bit of added pressure. The season has been quite the family affair, as sibling rivalry has been on full display.
Leadbetter Academy Sub-Regional Sibling Qualifiers: Alli and Nina Aristondo, Jeremy and Joshua Castellanos, Isabella and Sofia Melendez, Angela and Gordon Nip, Liam and Liana Odendal, Abby and Bradley Royer, Jack and Luke 36
Vanderschuur, Isabella and Olivia Versetto, Berkeley and Sydney Young and Atom and Avan Zhang.
TPC Sawgrass Sibling Qualifiers: Emily and Kaitlyn Brackley, Madeline and Emily Burda, Sofie and Trace Carter, Sahana and Simryn Choski, Harper and Taylor Galavis, Grant, Savannah and Hudson Goodman, Danielle and Samantha Hernandez, Madison and Mckenna Murphy, Carson and Vanessa Perry, LeilaAlexis and Arnold Pouncy, Riley and Kiley Ward and Bentley and Savannah Williams. The top two competitors in each division from both SubRegionals will compete at The Bears Club in the Regional Competition in Jupiter, FL on October 3rd. The top qualifiers in each age and gender division will advance to the National Finals at Augusta National on April 3, 2022.
Regional Qualifiers: Girls 7-9: Sophia DeBaise, Lily Wachter, Luana Biccari A. Matheus and Abby Royer Boys 7-9: Lucas Lu, Adan Moore, Tobias GordicRonderos and JT Stricklin IV Girls 10-11: Alyssa Sumulong, Ivey Tsouklaris, Alexandra Snyder and Celma Sterman Boys 10-11: Ty Bogey, David Cochran, Jeremy Castellanos and Michael Shane Frasure Girls 12-13: Sofia Macapagal, Angelina Pacheco, Phoenix Scanlan and Aua Zhang Boys 12-13: Lion Ziao Lu, Arnold Pouncy IV, Josh Orgen and Jyden Sonnabend Girls 14-15: Alyzabeth Morgan, Vanessa Perry, Olivia Hasselbach and Angela Nip Boys 14-15: Trace carter, Anthony Monteleone, Cameron Baez and Nicholas Pisarski Golf Central • Volume 22, Issue 5
