Fresh off a second-place finish at the Willie Low Invitational presented by MJ Insurance days before, George Markham of Phoenix broke through to the winner circle at the Thunderbird Junior Classic, held June 11-12 at Biltmore Golf Club’s Adobe Course. Both he and Trevor Werbylo of Tucson finished the event with identical 8-under-par 136s (68-68). Markham went on to edge Werbylo in a playoff to take top honors.
On the Girls side, Jenny Bae of Chandler posted a 1-under 143 (73-70) to defeat Alisa Snyder of Phoenix – also in a playoff. She adds this win to a couple T9s earlier this year along with a win at the Spring Stableford and a fifth-place finish at the Charlie Beljan Invitational.
Tom Katsenes of Scottsdale won the Boys 15-18 Division at 5-under par (70-69—139). John Menne of Surprise won the Boys 13-14 Division at 7-under par (71-66—137). Mahanth Chirravuri of Chandler took top honors in the Boys 11-12 Division at 7-under par (69-66—135), which was contested at Stonecreek Golf Club, and Henry Dall of Scottsdale won the Boys 10 and Under Division at 7-over par (35-42—77), also at Stonecreek.
Madison Voisard of Scottsdale won in the Girls 15-18 Division at 2-over par (71-75—146). Ashley Menne of Surprise won the Girls 13-14 Division at 1-under par (73-70—143). Bailee Tayles of Scottsdale won the Girls 11-12 Division at 24-over par (80-86—166), and Abbey Schutte of Goodyear won in the Girls 10 and Under Division at 9-over par (38-41—79).
“Thanks to some great play by our juniors and the gracious support for the event by The Thunderbirds, this event has really taken off over the years,” said Scott McNevin, Executive Director of the JGAA. “The Biltmore and Stonecreek couldn’t have been more supportive as well. On behalf of the JGAA and all the junior who played, thank you.”
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Best known as the civic-minded philanthropic organization that hosts the Waste Management Phoenix Open, The Thunderbirds also energetically support amateur golf in the Valley of the Sun such as the Thunderbird Junior Classic. Other events include the Sun Devil Thunderbird Collegiate-Am tournament; Thunderbird Invitational; Thunderbird High School Classic; Winn Grips Heather Farr Classic Hosted by Longbow Golf Club, and the JGAA Thunderbird JR Classic. The Thunderbird International Junior – considered the “Masters” of junior golf – has been showcasing the best junior golfers world-wide at Grayhawk Golf Club since 1999. The Thunderbirds also support local and national junior golf organizations such as the JGAA, American Junior Golf Association and The First Tee of Phoenix.
