Guernsey Golf Junior Academy supported by ABN AMRO enjoyed its first on-course competition of the season in unseasonably warm conditions.
The Junior Academy is entering its seventh year of sponsorship by private bank, ABN AMRO who are really encouraged by the growing number of juniors involved and how they are developing.
43 junior players competed in the event (held on Sunday 31 March, 2019) in what was the largest field to date for the Junior Academy and for 12 of the golfers it was their very first competition.
The juniors in the Academy are split into two groups. Those in the “Par/Birdie” level who play off the junior tees and have handicaps between 36-54 and those in the “Eagle/Albatross” level who play off the adult tees and have handicaps of 50 and lower.
The stableford competition was played over six holes at The Golf Club @ St Pierre Park’s course off both the junior and adult tees.
Edward Robinson (playing off a handicap of 49) was the winner of the Par/Birdie group clocking up a total of 20 points. The highlight of Edward’s game came when he scored a birdie on the fifth. He was followed closely by Jamie Campbell (54) with 18 points and George Lillington (52) and Spencer Torode (54) with 16 points. George also made a birdie on the sixth hole.
The Eagle/Albatross Group’s title was claimed by Josh Neville (40) with a score of 16 points followed by Oliver Trudgeon (40) with 12 points. There was then a three way tie for third place by Joshua Crosland (50), Lewis Blondel (50) and Joel Hoolahan (50) all with 11 points.
Beki Le Cheminant, Senior Golf Assistant and Golf Professional at The Golf Club was absolutely thrilled to see so many juniors participate in the first Junior Academy competition of 2019.
“We have got some really promising players coming through. Giving them the opportunity to compete against each other on-course is a perfect way to start putting all the skills they have learned in their coaching sessions to the test. In our previous competition last year we had just 27 entrants. This time around we almost doubled that number which just goes to show how the Junior Academy has developed and how popular it is among the island’s youngsters.”
The Golf Club’s Managing Director and PGA Professional, Matt Groves said: “When talking to investors about funding the development there were as many questions about growing the game of golf, and especially junior golf development, as there were about the money involved.
“It’s fantastic to see that within 18 months of opening the new complex we have continually increasing numbers of children attending regular coaching sessions and over 40 now playing regular golf tournaments.”
ABN AMRO is entering its seventh year of sponsorship of the Guernsey Golf Academy and is really encouraged to see that its investment has helped to nurture more budding golfers who may potentially become the island’s future champions in years to come.
