The 55th Girls' Junior Amateur Championship was conducted at The Oaks Club, in Sarasota. The Girls 16-18 and 13-15 Divisions played 18 holes each on the Eagle and Heron courses for the first two rounds. After 36 holes, the field was cut to approximately the low 70 players and ties. The cut breakdown consisted of the low 42 and ties in the 16-18 Division, and low 28 and ties in the 13-15 Division.
The Girls 12 & Under Division competed in an 18-hole event, over the span of two days. The first 9-holes were conducted on Monday, June 27th on the front-9 of the Heron course. The second 9-holes were conducted on Tuesday, June 28th on the back-9 of the Eagle course.
Round One
Jenny Kim leads the 16-18 Division with an impressive first round of two under-par, 70, on the Eagle course. Kim, of Heathrow, finished strong with three birdies on the back nine including one on the final hole. Alyssa Lamoureux, of Seminole, does not linger far behind with a one under-par, 71. Lamoureux finished second in the 2015 Girls’ Junior Championship (13-15 division) and is seeking redemption this year. Tied with Lamoureux, one shot behind, is Hannah Berman, of Ponte Vedra Beach.
Leading the 13-15 Division is Siyan Chen, of Howey-in the-Hills, with a two under- par round of 70. In second place, two strokes behind, is 11 year old Alexa Pano, of Lake Worth. Four girls enter round two tied for fourth at three over-par, 75, including; Taylor Roberts, Megan Ikeda, Taylor Dedmen, and Juliana Camargo. Izzy Pellot, 2015 Champion of the 12 and under Division, sits in a tie at 11th with a five over par round of 77.
Karoline Tuttle, of Lake Mary posted a low round of two under-par 34 for nine holes to lead the 12 & Under Division by one stroke. Sarasota resident, Jacqueline Putrino, sits in second place with a first round of 35.
Round Two
The leaderboard in the 16-18 Division saw a change after day two. Alyssa Lamoureux moved into first place after a second round of one over-par and 144 two round total. One stroke behind was Yurika Tanida, of Port Saint Lucie. Tanida carded five birdies on the Eagle Course to capture second place with rounds of 74-71—145. Morgan Baxendale, 2014 Girls’ Junior Champion (13-15 Division), remained consistent with rounds of 74-73 to sit in third place heading into the final round. First round leader, Jenny Kim, struggled on day two and after posting a 79 finished tied for sixth. The cut was made at 14 over-par, 158 two round total, and 42 girls would play the final round on Wednesday.
Siyan Chen remains in the lead in the 13-15 Division with a second round of one under-par 71 on the Heron Course. Her lead has been narrowed to one stroke after Alexa Pano’s impressive two under-par second round! Pano carded five birdies to keep her in second place, six strokes ahead of Juliana Camargo, of Winter Garden, in third place. The cut was made at 16 over-par, 160 two round total, and 28 girls would advance to the final round.
In the 12 & Under Division, a wire-to-wire victory was earned by Karoline Tuttle who posted a second round 37, tournament total 71. Jacqueline Putrino finished one stroke behind in second place after a day two score of 37 and 72 tournament total. Addison Klonowski rounded out the top three with rounds of 38-44--82.
Final Round
An impressive low round of the day in the 16-18 division gave Alyssa Lamoureux a four-stroke victory! Lamoureux was runner-up in the 13-15 Division last year and came back to seek redemption in the 16-18 Division this year. Despite a double bogey on the second and 13th hole, Lamoureux never ran out of positive energy. In her final nine holes she carded four birdies to finish with a two under-par, 70 
to seal her win. Lamoureux was the only player in her division to finish in red numbers with a two under-par tournament total of 214. Yurika Tanida finished in second place, four strokes from first, after a final round of one over-par, 73, tournament total 218 (+1). Kendall Griffin, of Sebring, made a chase for the lead by following up her first round 77 with two one under-par 71’s. Griffin finished five strokes from the lead in third place with a 219 tournament total.
Siyan Chen went wire-to-wire to win the 13-15 Division by one-stroke after a final round two under-par, 70, tournament total 211 (-5). Chen was challenged by Alexa Pano, who posted the same two under-par final round score, but held tight to her lead. Starting out strong, Siyan birdied the first, third, and sixth hole to make the turn at two under-par. Pano played tough starting out her front nine with two back-to-back birdies followed by two more birdies on holes four and seven to make the turn at three under-par, one shot behind Chen. Consistent straight pars on Siyan’s final nine holes allowed her to remain in first place. Pano struggled to a final nine-hole score of one over-par, 37, and finished with a tournament total 212 (-4). Celeste Valinho, of Jacksonville, shot three under-par, the low round of the tournament, to finish tied for third place with Jillian Bourdage. Siyan was the only player to post three rounds in the red to win her first FSGA Championship!
