The IMG Junior Golf Tour was developed to fill a key niche in junior golf, the IMG Junior Golf Tour provides an elite setting for junior golfers to compete and gain exposure to college golf, professional golf, national junior rankings and athletic excellence.
Held in Florida every December, and open to boys and girls ages 11-18, the the IMG Academy Junior World Florida Challengeis a qualification and invitation only event featuring an international field of over 200 players.News
IMG Junior Golf Tour hits the links at Juliette Falls Golf Club in Dunnellon, Fla.
Austen Truslow of New Smyrna Beach, Fla. wins the Boys 15-18 Division; Mexico's Viviana Vazquez wins by one stroke in the Girls 15-18 Division; Japan's Kaito Onishi dominant in Boys 11-14 Division
The IMG Junior Golf Tour returned to action at Juliette Falls Golf Club in Dunnellon, Fla., Mar. 2-3. Winds up to 30 mph on Saturday and temperatures in the 30s on Sunday made for tough playing conditions throughout the weekend. However, a full field of 88 players from nine states and 19 different countries rose to the challenge. Austen Truslow of New Smyrna Beach, Fla. made his first-ever appearance on the IMG Junior Golf Tour and won after shooting 75+72=147 (+3) through the weekend. Truslow edged out Colombia’s Mauricio Cuartas and Venezuela’s Manuel Torres, who each shot four-over 148 to tie for second. Truslow is ranked as the No. 94 player in the country by Junior Golf Scoreboard and is committed to the University of Virginia.
“It’s a rewarding feeling after playing in tough conditions and it feels good to win,” said Truslow on the victory. “It’s a great golf course. I played in the high school state championships here a couple of years ago and have always liked it.”
Mexico’s Viviana Vazquez, another first-timer on the IMG Junior Golf Tour, took home a tightly-contested win in the Girls 15-18 Division. Vazquez recorded a solid six-over 150 to edge out China’s Vivian Chen (+7) by one stroke.
“I worked on tweaking the putter all weekend, so I played with a different putter each day, but my driver really won the tournament for me,” said Vazquez of her performance. “Conditions were difficult and threw me off at first, because I’m not used to it being so cold coming from Mexico.”
Meanwhile, Japan’s Kaito Onishi cruised to an easy win in the Boys 11-14 Division. Onishi was consistent, shooting 76+76=152 (+8) to best Singapore’s Qi Ming Wong (+16) by an eight-stroke margin. It was Onishi’s fifth event this season, and his first victory after two second place finishes earlier in the season.
Additionally, the points race in the Girls 15-18 Division for the Symetra Tour exemption continues to heat up down the stretch. Maria Rodriguez moved into sixth place in the exemption standings with a third place finish over the weekend (+8), and could now potentially tie for the lead with a win at Victoria Hills in two weeks. Lisa Unterganschnigg maintained her spot in fourth place in the exemption standings, finishing in fifth place (+12), after leading the Girls Division following the first round.
Juliette Falls is ranked by Golfweek as the No. 11 course you can play in the state of Florida. The event was ranked by Junior Golf Scoreboard and AJGA Performance Based Entry Status was awarded to top finishers. Truslow and Vazquez each earned four performance stars for AJGA Performance Based Entry status, while the Boys 15-18 top five each earned one star. Winners in each division also qualified for the prestigious Callaway Junior World Golf Championships, to be held in San Diego, Calif., July 15-19. The IMG Junior Golf Tour gets back to action at Victoria Hilla Golf Club in DeLand, Fla., Mar. 16-17.
For full results, visit the IMG Junior Golf Tour leaderboard by clicking HERE.
