Scoring [icon name="external-link" class="" unprefixed_class=""] | Scoring (Ages 9 and under) [icon name="external-link" class="" unprefixed_class=""] | Photos (Final round) [icon name="facebook-official" class="" unprefixed_class=""] | Round 1 recap
By Chris Lang
FREDERICKSBURG — A pair of Northern Virginians took home the top prizes at the 11th VSGA Youth Championship, which concluded Wednesday afternoon at Fredericksburg Country Club.
Fairfax’s Bryan Lee (VSGA Junior Golf Circuit) posted a bogey-free, 4-under 68 Wednesday to finish with an aggregate 5-under 139 to win the boys 12-13 age group by two shots over Hardy’s Slade Aliff (Ashley Plantation), the 18-hole leader who returned a 71 Wednesday for a two-day 141.
In the girls 12-13 division, Brambleton’s Julie Shin (VSGA Junior Golf Circuit) returned an even-par 72 in the second round for a two-day 140 and a 13-stroke victory.
Lee, an eighth grader at Rocky Run Middle School in Chantilly, entered the day tied for second with Garrett Kuhla (Willow Oaks CC), a shot behind Aliff. Kuhla and Aliff each shot 1-under 71s on the 5,596-yard Fredericksburg layout, allowing Lee to make his move.
Lee turned at 3-under and suddenly found himself in the lead heading to the back nine.
“I woke up this morning not feeling that confident, since I was behind,” Lee said. “It’s a tough golf course, and I was playing with some people who I knew were really good. So I wasn’t so sure about winning today. I was just trying to focus on my game.”
Lee had to work hard on the inward nine to keep his bogey-free round intact. After making a birdie on the par-5 13th hole, he hit a 10-foot comebacker to save par on 14. On 16, he got up and down for another critical par save, keeping him ahead of his fellow competitors.
“To shoot 4 under, that’s a career low for me, so far,” Lee said. “I think it was my best, and it was good enough to win. But they played great too.”
Aliff, who made one birdie and 17 pars, was unable to put enough pressure on Lee to pass him. Kuhla, who finished in third at 142, was bogey-free at the turn, but a rough stretch on the back (a double bogey on 14 and a bogey on 15) sank his hopes of catching Lee.
Cole Pollard (Hermitage CC) finished alone in fourth at 145, and Chase Nevins (Trump National Washington D.C.) rounded out the top five at 147.
Shin shot a 4-under 68 in the first round, and she entered Wednesday with a nine-stroke lead over Isabel Bae (VSGA Junior Golf Circuit). Shin was never threatened, and she used two birdies in her last three holes to get back to even for the day on Wednesday.
Benjamin Kablach (VSGA Junior Golf Circuit) was the winner in the boys 10-11 division, finishing with a two-day 148 to secure a one-shot victory over Talon Dingledine (VSGA Junior Golf Circuit). Dingledine took a one-stroke lead after a birdie on 16, but he bogeyed his final two holes while Kablach made two pars.
Grant McCall (VSGA Junior Golf Circuit) returned 74 for a three-shot victory in the boys 9-and-under division, in which competitors played nine holes per day.
Chris Lang is the editor of Virginia Golfer magazine and the VSGA’s manager, digital media.