Four Take Home Crystal at Shell Point
FORT MYERS, Fla. - Shell Point Golf Club was the host for this week's FJT Shell Point Open (9-12) event. Tucked between Sanibel Island and Fort Myers Beach, 79 of the top juniors from around the state gathered to take on the challenging fairways and greens of Shell Point Golf Club. Four juniors were able to get to the top of thier respective divisions and take home the crystal.
Boys (11-12)
Round 1 would see some good scores posted by the 11-12 year old boys with Jay Huntley taking the lead at 4-under par heading into the final round. Huntley would put together a bogey-free round, making birdies on holes 2,3,8 and 13. The Jacksonville Beach native would be looking to put together another solid round on Sunday with hopes of claiming his first FJT title. Sitting only two shots back would be Jayden Wei at 2-under par. A multiple time FJT winner in the 9-10 division, Wei would look to make his mark early in the 11-12 division. The 2032 grad's first round included four birdies along with only two bogies. Rounding out the top three spots after day one was Benny Minter at even par. The Lutz native played consistent golf, starting his round with 10 consecutive pars. Minter would go on to make two bogies and two birdies to finish his round at even par.
Sunday's final round would bring some excitement as the players headed to their final nine holes. Huntley and Wei would head to the last hole with Huntley grasping to a 1-shot lead. Both players would make birdie on the last and Huntley would claim his first FJT title. The Jacksonville Beach native would finish with scores of 67-71 for a 4-under par tournament total. After putting up a good fight in his first 11-12 division event, Jayden Wei would put together two under par rounds with scores of 69-70, 3-under par to finish as runner up. Rounding out the top three would be Chi San Allen Huang with a brilliant 6-under par performance in the final round.
Boys (9-10)
The Boys (9-10) division would appear to be a battle between two players heading into Sunday's final round. Looking to pick up his first FJT win, Deven Allen would put together an opening round of even par, 71. The Fort Pierce native would make two bogies and two birdies on the day, with birdies coming on holes 4 and 17. Close on Allen's heels though was Victor Monssoh, sitting only one shot back at 1-over par. A multiple time winner on the Florida Junior Tour, Monssoh knows how to close the deal, and would be looking to do just that come Sunday. The 2033 grad had quite a roller coaster first round, making a field-leading 6 birdies on the day. In third place after round 1 was Cameron Middleton at 4-over par.
Come Sunday, Deven Allen would hold onto the lead for most of the first nine holes, making the turn at 1-over par for the event. Monssoh would sit 3 shots back of Allen with nine holes to play with Middleton only 4 shots back. A tough final nine holes would take Allen out of contention as he finished the event at 10-over par, after rounds of 71-81. Standing on the final hole with a 1-shot deficit, Monssoh would need a birdie to force a playoff and he delivered. Monssoh and Middleton would both finish their event at 8-over par and would need extra hole sto determine a champion. After heading to the 10th tee for their first extra hole, all it would take was a par for Monssoh to claim the victory. Cameron Middleton would finish the event as runner-up.
Girls (11-12)
The Girls (11-12) would see some fierce competition and low scores at the top of the leaderboard. Michelle Lu would jump out to the lead on day 1 after opening up with a 4-under par, 67 to tie Huntley for the low round of the day in all divisions. The Orlando native's round was highlighted by an eagle 3 on the par 5, 3rd hole. The 2030 grad would go on to make a lone bogey on the day along with three other birdies on holes 9,11 and 15. Lu would be searching for her first victory on Sunday after multiple top-3 finishes in FJT throughout her career. Sitting three shots back of Lu with 18 holes to play would be Alyna Yensabai at 1-under par. The Lake Worth native would play consistent golf throughout the round and would also make an eagle on the par 5, 3rd hole. Three players would finish round 1 in a tie for third place at 1-over par, five shots back of the leader. Fresh off her victory in the Drive, Chip and Putt, Bella Simoes would look to vault to the top on Sunday. Elize Nograbat would look to earn her second victory and would need some putts to drop to do so. Madelyn Dickerson would turn things around after a dismal front 9, making five birdies on the final nine holes to jump into a tie for third and a shot at the title on Sunday.
Sunday's final round also brought some excitement in the Girls (11-12) division with Michelle Lu and Alyna Yensabai separating themselves from the rest of the field. Lu would start off right where she left off with a quick birdie on her opening hole, the par 4, 10th hole. Yensabai would continue to hang in and make a move as she made birdies on hole 11 and 13. A two shot swing on 15 would be pivotal and would draw the two into a tie at 4-under par after Yensabai made a birdie to Lu's bogey. The final nine holes would determine who takes home the title as Lu and Yensabai battled it out. Yensabai, a 2031 grad, would continue to make birdies and would move to 6-under par with birdies on 2 and 3. Lu on the other hand, would find herself 3-shots back standing on the 6th tee. The turning point in the round would come for Lu on the 6th as she pulled back two shots on Yensabai. Lu would make a run from holes 6 to 8 making three birdies in a row to get to 6-under par. Yensabai would need to make a birdie on the final hole to force a playoff and would be unsuccessful in her attempt. Lu would earn her first FJT title at Shell Point with Yensabai finishing a close runner-up. Bella Simoes would finish in 3rd place after a 3-under par final round.
Girls (9-10)
Scarlett Konecny would hold the lead after round 1 at Shell Point after an opening round of 3-over par, 74. The Gainesville native made a field leading, 15 pars on the day along with three bogies. The 2032 grad would hold a 7-shot lead with one round remaining as she looks to earn her first victory. Jiratarn Pornchai would sit in second place at 10-over par while Lydia Lu would round out the top-3 at 11-over par.
Come Sunday, Konecny would continue her stellar play making 14 pars on the day. Two bogies, one double bogey and one birdie would combine to result in a 3-over par, 74 in the final round. Konecny would fire rounds of 74-74 for a 6-over par total to win by 13 shots. Jiratarn Pornchai and Lydia Lu would finish in a tie for second place at 19-over par.
