Ashley Menne notches fourth consecutive title; Ben Lorenz earns his first; Preston Summerhays honored for US Junior Amateur win.
The JGAA announced the 2019 Sportsmanship and Player of the Year Awards across five age divisions at the annual awards banquet held October 20 at Papago Golf Course.
“The level of play and incredible performances throughout the season continue to amaze me,” said Scott McNevin, Executive Director of the JGAA. “The season-long points race, and all of the tournaments that contribute to it, give players both long-term and short-term goals to reach for. They complement each other. And what an incredible year for Preston Summerhays. To follow up back-to-back Utah Men’s State Amateur wins with a US Junior Amateur championship is simply incredible.”
In honor of Summerhays’ big win, the awards event took a special detour to recognize his incredible play back in July. With the victory, the recent verbal commit to Arizona State University became the third Arizona resident to win the tournament in recent years. Charlie Beljan won in 2002 at Atlanta Athletic Club, and Philip Francis won in 2006 Rancho Santa Fe Golf Club in California. Summerhays also is exempt to play in next year’s US Open.
Ashley Menne, 17, has become a permanent fixture at the awards banquet. She earned Player of the Year honors in the Girls Championship division for the fourth consecutive year (2016-2019), Moreover, the Surprise resident won the Player of the Year Award in the Girls 13-14 division in 2015 as well as Girls 11-12 division in 2014 and 2013. All told, she has been the player of the year for an astonishing seven consecutive years across four JGAA age divisions.
In the Boys Championship division, Ben Lorenz earned first place in the season-long race for 2019 JGAA Player of the Year honors. He climbed up the rankings quickly since entering the Boys Championship division in 2016 when he finished T127 for the season. In 2017, Lorenz jumped to the 25th spot before making another leap to 4th place in 2018.
“The Sportsmanship Award is one of my favorites,” said McNevin. “It really goes to heart of the game, how it is different from most sports and why it’s such a great sport for kids to learn and play.”
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- (Back row) Ashley Menne, Brennan Korn, Adam Miller, Ashley Shaw, Vincent Cervantes, Marsa Waite. (Front Row) Natalia Lamadrid, Everett Corwon and Annie Dawson. Missing Ben Lorenz
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- (Back Row) Jayden Jevnick, Nicholas Kling, Kylee Loewe, Owen Bolles, Cade Seymour. (Front Row) Hannah Nguyen, Isabella Piazza, Zachary Schaefer, and Elisabeth Axen. Missing Tyler Spielman
2019 JGAA Awards Recipients
| Player of the Year
Boys Championship: Ben Lorenz – Peoria Girls Championship: Ashley Menne – Surprise Boys 15 – 18: Vincent Cervantes – Chandler Girls 15 – 18: Marsa Waite – Chandler Boys 13 – 14: Adam Miller – Phoenix Girls 13 – 14: Annie Dawson – Phoenix Boys 11 – 12: Brennan Korn – Phoenix Girls 11 – 12: Natalia Lamadrid – Phoenix Boys 10 & Under: Everett Corwon – Sahuarita Girls 10 & Under: Ashley Shaw – Litchfield Park |
Sportsmanship Awards
Boys Championship: Nicholas Kling – Paradise Valley Girls Championship: Kylee Loewe – Scottsdale Boys 15 – 18: Cade Seymour – Buckeye Girls 15 – 18: Elisabeth Axen – Tucson Boys 13 – 14: Tyler Spielman – Cave Creek Girls 13 – 14: Jayden Jevich – Cave Creek Boys 11 – 12: Owen Bolles – Goodyear Girls 11 – 12: Isabella Piazza – Phoenix Boys 10 & Under: Zachary Schaefer – Tucson Girls 10 & Under: Hannah Nguyen – Phoenix |
| Hole-in-One Awards
Kailani Deedon – 2/9/2019 Phoenix Metro Junior Championship No. 14 at Ahwatukee Country Club 144 yards, 8-iron
Dallin Delgado – 3/9/2019 Desert Mashie Spring Championship No. 11 at Grand Canyon University Golf Course 167 yards, 7-iron
Kaleo Cabardo – 3/9/2019 Desert Mashie Spring Championship No. 14 at Encanto 9 Golf Course 245 yards, driver
Gianna Marretti – 6/28/2019 Mesa City Jr/IMG Junior World Qualifier No. 4 at Dobson Ranch Golf Course 125 yards, pitching wedge |
Most Improved Awards
Boys: Marcus Guzman – Mesa 2018 – 98.43 2019 – 84.75
Girls: Abigale Morris – Buckeye 2018 – 102.79 2019 – 84.83
Volunteer of the Year Jerry Glover |
2019 Player of the Year Season Recaps
Boys Championship – Ben Lorenz
Lorenz’s three wins this season in JGAA play came at the Thunderbird Junior Classic, State Junior Golf Championship and Willie Low Invitational, a coveted PING Junior Masters Series tournament. In all, the verbal commit to the University of Oklahoma has played in nearly 80 JGAA tournaments since joining in 2008. Lorenz, 18, also notched his first win in an American Junior Golf Association tournament (AJGA) this year at the AJGA Junior at Big Sky. Currently ranked 50th in the Rolex AJGA Rankings, he adds the victory to seven other top-10 finishes on the AJGA circuit since 2017.
Girls Championship – Ashley Menne
Menne, 17, finished in the top 25 in 11 of 16 JGAA tournaments she entered this year, winning eight of them along the way including the IMG Academy Junior World Qualifier, State Junior Golf Championship and Scottsdale Junior Championship. But her biggest win of the year came at an official PGA TOUR Champions tournament where she claimed the girl’s title at the PURE Insurance Championship contested at Pebble Beach Golf Links and Poppy Hills Golf Course in late September. A verbal commit to Arizona State University, Menne will join Sun Devil Women’s Golf in the fall of 2020.
Boys 15-18 – Vincent Cervantes
Cervantes, 13, played most of his 2019 tournaments in the Boys 15-18 division where he made the top 25 in all seven events entered, six top-10s and four wins including three in a row over the summer at the Prescott City Jr Championship, IHOP Classic and Scottsdale Junior Championship.
Girls 15-18 – Marsa Waite
Waite, 16, made the top 25 in all 12 events she entered in the Girls 15-18 division as well as the top 10 in all but one tournament. Her three wins in 2019 came at the IMG Academy Junior World Qualifier, Bruce Brown Yuma City Jr and Prescott City Jr Championship.
Boys 13-14 – Adam Miller
Miller claimed an astonishing six wins in nine tournaments in the Boys 13-14 division: New Year Classic, Phoenix Metro Jr, Antigua Milt Coggins AZ Jr Stroke Play, Thunderbird Junior Classic, Mesa City Jr/IMG Jr World Qualifier, and Antigua Tour Championship. Miller, 14, also notched three top-25 and one top-10 finish in three events entered in the Boys Championship Division.
Girls 13-14 – Annie Dawson
Dawson’s 2019 season started with two wins in Tucson at the Tucson Conquistadores Spring Classic and the Tucson City Jr Championship. She added a third win at the Phoenix City Junior Championship before ending the season with top-5 finishes all 10 starts.
Boys 11-12 – Brennan Korn
Korn posted a third-place finish at the New Year Classic and went on to reel off first- or second-place finishes in the remaining 12 events of the season. At one point, he won five times in six events, and the one that got away was a second-place finish.
Girls 11-12 – Natalia Lamadrid
Lamadrid turned in nine wins in 13 tournaments, which amounts to nearly a 70 percent win rate. She also added two runner-ups, one third place and one T6 performance to take Player of the Year honors in the Girls 11-12 division by more than a 900-point margin.
Boys 10 & Under – Everett Corwon
Corwon started out the season with wins at the Phoenix Metro Jr and Tucson Conquistadores Spring Classic before ending with a third win at the Scottsdale Junior Championship. In between, he placed T2 at the Tucson City Jr Championship and 3rd at the PING Invitational.
Girls 10 & Under – Ashley Shaw
Shaw entered an ambition 15 tournaments in 2019, racking up seven wins along the way. She place third or better in all 15 events with seven second-place finishes and one third place finish.
