New Era

New Era Junior Championship

AJGA

Tournament Fact Sheet

Quick Facts

  • 96 boys and girls, ages 12-18
  • 54-hole, stroke play
  • Three players have signed a National Letter of Intent and two have verbally committed to play college golf
  • Countries represented: Canada, China, Mexico, Paraguay, South Korea and Thailand
  • States represented: 21 and Washington D.C.

Tournament Storylines

College bound: Five players have committed to play golf at the college of their choice.
Boys Division Grad Signed Commitment Verbal Commitment
Kevin Borowicz 2014 Greensboro College
Edric Wung 2014 Dartmouth College*
Girls Division Grad Signed Commitment Verbal Commitment
Chelsea Dantonio 2015 Winthrop University
Katie Kim 2015 Boston College
Emily Mills 2014 Rutgers University
Local flavor: 18 players from New York will compete.
Boys Division Hometown Grad
Alec Bard New Hartford 2016
Kevin Borowicz Grand Island 2014
Gilbert Chang Smithtown 2015
Colin Dubnik Rochester 2016
Joshua Goldenberg Scarsdale 2015
Isaac Gorenstein Nyack 2015
Lee Hammerschmidt Armonk 2015
Mike May Auburn 2016
James Pelcher Baldwinsville 2015
JP Rehak Williamsville 2015
Ben Reichert East Amherst 2016
Gregory Sibick Williamsville 2015
Christopher White Garden City 2015
Zitong (Ezekiel) Zhao Hartsdale 2015
Girls Division Hometown Grad
Maren Cipolla Lewiston 2016
Chelsea Dantonio Lancaster 2015
Marah Penn Hamburg 2015
Sara Riso Hamburg 2015
River Oaks Golf Club
The River Oaks Golf Club will host the AJGA for the first time in 2014. The Grand Island, N.Y., club was designed by architect Desmond Muirhead in 1972, and has hosted the LPGA Tour twice in it’s 42-year history. Much of the course is lined with towering oak trees, giving players a challenging yet scenic experience.
New Era partners with the AJGA
As one of the newest sponsors of the AJGA, New Era Cap Company, Inc., became the official hat of the AJGA and sponsor of the New Era Championship in 2014.

Schedule of Events

Monday, July 14
8 a.m. shotgun Practice Round
Tuesday, July 15
7 – 12:10 p.m. First Round off No. 1 Tee
Wednesday, July 16
7 – 12:10 p.m. Second Round off No. 1 Tee
Thursday, July 17
7 – 12:10 p.m. Final Round off No. 1 Tee
5:30 p.m. Awards Ceremony

Top Players to Watch

Seiya Liu, Beverly Hills, CA (2015)
Liu, a rising senior has collected four top-15 finishes in his five AJGA seasons. His best finish came at the 2012 AJGA Florida Junior where he finished in a tie for third after firing rounds of 67-78–145.
Belinda Hu, San Ramon, Calif. (2017)
Hu, the highest-ranked player in the field at No. 177 in the Polo Golf Rankings, has already collected two top-10 finishes in 2014, making four throughout her career. Her most recent AJGA event, the Killington Junior Golf Championship, proved to be her best as she finished second with tournament rounds of 71-74-71-216.
Ana Paula Ramirez, Pachuca, Mexico (2016)
Ramirez, the only champion in the field, comes in at No. 190 in the Polo Golf Rankings. Her AJGA victory came at the 2013 Junior All-Star at Talbot with rounds of 77-74-69–220. In 2014, Ramirez has added two more top-10 finishes to her résumé at the AJGA St. Louis Junior and the Ryan Moore Junior Championship.

Media Accommodations

The New Era Junior Championship will have AJGA communications representatives on hand to assist media throughout the week. Prior to the tournament the AJGA will provide information about the event and its participants, as well as assist with player interviews.

After each round, media officials on-site will write a recap with the day’s results. These will be emailed to all media outlets. Interviews with AJGA Tournament Directors, Tournament Chairmen and juniors may be conducted before or after tournament rounds.

For more information about the AJGA and tournaments, please refer to ajga.org. Tournament websites are accessible from the homepage and include recaps, list of participants, tee times, live scoring, course and sponsorship information.

About the AJGA

The American Junior Golf Association is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization dedicated to the overall growth and development of young men and women who aspire to earn college golf scholarships through competitive junior golf. The AJGA provides valuable exposure for college golf scholarships, and has an annual junior membership (boys and girls ages 12-18) of approximately 6,000 junior golfers from 49 states and more than 50 countries. To ensure scholarship opportunities for all junior golfers who have the skill, the AJGA created the Achieving Competitive Excellence (ACE) Grant program to provide financial assistance to young players in need.

Titleist, the AJGA’s National Sponsor, has been the catalyst and driving force behind the Association’s success since 1989. Rolex, which is in its fourth decade of AJGA support, became the inaugural AJGA Premier Partner in 2004. In 2007, after 12 years of support, Ralph Lauren became the AJGA’s second Premier Partner.

AJGA alumni have risen to the top of amateur, collegiate and professional golf. Former AJGA juniors have compiled more than 500 victories on the PGA and LPGA Tours. AJGA alumni include Brandt Snedeker, Bubba Watson, Webb Simpson, Hunter Mahan, Phil Mickelson, Tiger Woods, Stacy Lewis, Vicky Hurst, Paula Creamer, Cristie Kerr, Brittany Lincicome and Morgan Pressel.

Tournament field

– Bold indicates New York native
Boys Division
Jared Barclay Weston, Fla.
Alec Bard New Hartford, N.Y.
Eduardo Blochtein Delray Beach, Fla.
Kevin Borowicz Grand Island, N.Y.
Caleb Bryant New Freedom, Pa.
Chase Cameron Rancho Santa Fe, Calif.
Hoke Carlton Charlotte, N.C.
Frank Cestone Clarks Summit, Pa.
Justin Chae Summit, N.J.
Gilbert Chang Smithtown, N.Y.
Jeg Coughlin III Dublin, Ohio
Nicklaus Cuny Cranberry Twp, Pa.
Joe Dancsecs Murrysville, Pa.
Nathaniel Dong Glastonbury, Conn.
Colin Dubnik Rochester, N.Y.
Thomas Dzwonczyk North Abington Twp, Pa.
Maxwell Ferrari Framingham, Mass.
Zachary Ford Cochranton, Pa.
Joshua Goldenberg Scarsdale, N.Y.
Isaac Gorenstein Nyack, N.Y.
Stephen Gretchen Mcmechen, W.Va.
Riley Griffin Barrington, R.I.
Lee Hammerschmidt Armonk, N.Y.
Tyler Hatton Southborough, Mass.
Jimmy Hervol Hopkinton, Mass.
Matt Hutchins Sudbury, Mass.
Zachary Iannone North Haven, Conn.
Jack Kennedy Bettendorf, Iowa
Manuel Kent (Paraguay) Weston, Fla.
John YounSung Kim (South Korea) Toronto, Ontario
Yoojin Kim Centreville, Va.
Ross Lazar Okemos, Mich.
Leonard Lee Wyckoff, N.J.
Seiya Liu Beverly Hills, CA
Mike May Auburn, N.Y.
Caden Mclaughlin Maryville, Tenn.
Curren Mody Monmouth Junction, N.J.
Robert Nixon Washington, D.C.
Evan Overcash Mechanicsburg, Pa.
James Pelcher Baldwinsville, N.Y.
Ryan Podufal Erie, Pa.
Drew Powell Bangor, Maine
Trey Razzetti, III Glen Allen, Va.
JP Rehak Williamsville, N.Y.
Ben Reichert East Amherst, N.Y.
Peter Richards Westport, Conn.
Tim Rotermund Madison, Conn.
Kevin Shafer Castle Rock, Colo.
Gregory Sibick Williamsville, N.Y.
Alejandro Soto Newton, Mass.
Noah Steele Kingston, Ontario
Charles Sun Bradenton, Fla.
Kelly Sun Bradenton, Fla.
Zack Taylor Pittsburgh, Pa.
Tyler Tsay Los Angeles, Calif.
Michael VanDerLaan Southbury, Conn.
Harrison Vonderau Columbia Station, Ohio
Steven Weingroff Upper Saddle River, N.J.
Christopher White Garden City, N.Y.
Thomas Winters Marble Falls, Texas
Edric Wung McLean, Va.
Zitong (Ezekiel) Zhao (China) Hartsdale, N.Y.
Jerry Zhu (China) Lake Mary, Fla.
Girls Division
Cara Basso Downingtown, Pa.
Katie Behnert Montandon, Pa.
Graysen Bright Rockville, Md.
Kristin Dahee Chung (South Korea) Buena Park, Calif.
Maren Cipolla Lewiston, N.Y.
Chelsea Dantonio Lancaster, N.Y.
Lauren DeJoe Candia, N.H.
Sara Feith Dover, N.H.
Carley Hopton Madison, N.J.
Belinda Hu San Ramon, Calif.
Hanna Jia Potomac, Md.
Katie Kim Riverwoods, Ill.
Jessica Li Thornhill, Ontario
Emily Mills Farmingdale, N.J.
Eun-Won Park (South Korea) Tenafly, N.J.
Marah Penn Hamburg, N.Y.
Ana Paula Ramirez Pachuca, Mexico
Sara Riso Hamburg, N.Y.
Alexandra Sazhin (Russian Federation) Old Greenwich, Conn.
Lauren Thibodeau Hampstead, N.H.
Nattcha Treevichaphan Nonthaburi, Thailand
Alexa Tsay Los Angeles, Calif.
Isabella Wang Renton, Wash.