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 lights up the links at Juliette Falls Golf Club
Lee, Dechathipat prevail in exciting Sunday finish
IMG Junior Golf Tour lights up the links at Juliette Falls Golf Club
Tiger Lee conquers Boys 15-18 division; Mai Dechathipat wins Girls 15-18 division; Jason Jin notches fourth win in Boys 11-14 division; Kanyanat Saithip gets first victory in Girls 11-14 division
BRADENTON, Fla. (March 5, 2014) - The IMG Junior Golf Tour got underway for the third consecutive season at Juliette Falls 
Golf Club in Dunnellon, Fla., Mar. 1-2. The event attracted a field of 89 players from eight states and 15 countries, with the participants in the Boys and Girls 15-18 divisions in the hunt to qualify for the Callaway Junior World Golf Championship. The Boys 15-18 division came down to an intense duel between Japan’s Kaito Onishi and Hong Kong’s Tiger Lee. Onishi and Lee played to a tie, each finishing at three-under 141 to force a thrilling three-hole playoff, with Lee emerging victorious in his first-career Tour appearance.
“I was definitely nervous but not scared (during the playoff),” remarked Lee after the win. “I still had to make the putt on the 12th hole, and I had the same putt during the round so it was good for me to see that again.”
Meanwhile in the Girls 15-18 division, 14-year season points leader Jaravee Boonchant of Thailand faced stiff competition from her countrywoman, 16-year old Mai Dechathipat. Boonchant paced the field on Saturday with a round of 69 (-3), with Dechathipat close behind with at 70 (-2). However, on Sunday Dechathipat roared back to tie things up at three-under 141 to force the second playoff of the weekend. Dechatpihat, an Auburn University verbal commit for 2015, won on the first playoff hole to card her first-career Tour win.
Other winners at Juliette Falls included China’s Jason Jin taking home his fourth Tour victory of the year in the Boys 11-14 division. Jin finished with scores of 75, 80 to finish two-strokes ahead of Michael Wijas of Ivanhoe, Ill. and Ryan Kinkead, who tied for second. In the Girls 11-14 division, Thailand’s Kanyanat Saithip broke through to card her first Tour win of the year in the Girls 11-14 division with solid scores of 81, 76, four-strokes ahead of runner-up Caitlin Cotterill of Australia.
Juliette Falls is ranked by Golfweek as the No. 12 course to play in the state of Florida. The event was ranked by Junior Golf Scoreboard and AJGA Performance Based Entry Status was awarded to the top-five boys in the 15-18 division, and the Girls 15-18 champion. With their victories, Tiger Lee and Mai Dechathipat qualified for the storied Callaway Junior World Golf Championships, to be held in San Diego, Calif., July 15-18.
The IMG Junior Golf Tour will be back in action Mar. 15-16 at Victoria Hills Golf Club in DeLand, Fla.
For full results, visit the IMG Junior Golf Tour leaderboard by clicking HERE.
