August 20 at Grayhawk Golf Club, 16 junior golfers from the Southwest edged a little closer to their dream of competing at Augusta National in the Drive, Chip and Putt finals to be broadcast live by Golf Channel the Sunday before the 2018 Masters Tournament.
Nearly 150 juniors – boys and girls ages 7-15 – were on hand for the subregional event, including many who play JGAA tournaments throughout the season. In fact, JGAA member and Scottsdale resident, Mason Quagliata, won in the Boys 14-15 age group at Augusta National last April. To secure the victory, he carded a 270.2 yard drive (3rd best in the field), an 11’1” chip aggregate (2nd best in the field) and a 5’10” putt aggregate (5th best in the field).
“Playing in front of a big crowd for the first time was incredible,” said Quagliata. “I had to take deep breaths and play quickly to keep from thinking about it too much. My dad, as well as my coach, John Kostis, gave me tremendous support and I can’t thank them enough.”
Who will be the next Arizona junior to follow in his footsteps? We’ll have a better idea after one more hurdle – the Regional Event at Torrey Pines on Saturday, September 30.
Participants in the field include:
Girl’s Division
7-9
Cameron Huang – Las Vegas, NV
Bree Howard – Scottsdale, AZ
10-11
Yana Wilson – Henderson, NV
*Kalyn Doss – Litchfield Park, AZ
12-13
*Abbey Schutte – Goodyear, AZ
*Raina Ports – Oro Valley, AZ
14-15
*Katie Stinchcomb – Cave Creek, AZ
*Mackenzie McRee – Tucson
Boy’s Division
7-9
Preston Ross – Page, AZ
E Butters – Chandler, AZ
10-11
*Oliver Uribe – Scottsdale, AZ
*Jonathan Tso – Humboldt, AZ
12-13
*Anawin Pikulthong – Gilbert, AZ
*Mason Snyder – Las Vegas, NV
14-15
*Cameron Kaiser – Scottsdale, AZ
*Jacob Tarkany – Scottsdale, AZ
*JGAA Member
