Elite golfers take to Green Mountain National in tourney

Close to 200 hundred of the world’s best junior golfers, representing 22 states and 7 countries, visited Killington over the holiday week as the American Junior Golf Association (AJGA) hosted the 8th Annual Killington Junior Golf Championship at Green Mountain National Golf Course.

“It was a great week with the kids and this tournament has grown to be such an exciting and important summertime event for the entire Killington community,” said Green Mountain National’s general manager Dave Soucy.

“The players and their parents always remark how much they love returning to Vermont because of the hospitality and welcome they receive everywhere they go,” he said.

Despite a rainy Saturday before the event, it was a great week of weather for the tournament and the golf course was in nearly perfect conditions for the 54-hole event.

Coco Chai of Monterey, Calif., claimed her first AJGA victory with solid play through the week. The three-year AJGA junior carded four birdies in the final round to finish at 4-under-par 209. Edward Wu of Temple City, California, sunk three birdies in the final round to force a sudden-death playoff against Austin Fox of Delmar, New York. In the playoff, Wu birdied No. 18 to secure his first AJGA title of his four-year AJGA career.

Two Vermont players were in the field as Bryson Richards from East Montpelier and Jared Nelson of Rutland teed it up for the tournament and Richards finished tied for 6th place overall. Despite eight birdies over the 54 holes, Nelson, of Rutland Country Club, struggled on the back nine all week.

Soucy, and the entire staff of Green Mountain National, thanked the AJGA staff & interns for their hard work and would especially like to thank the army of local volunteers who really make the whole event possible.

“Without the hard work and dedication of our local friends who help us out it really would be impossible to host an event of this size and magnitude,” Soucy said.

“It really makes me proud to see the generosity and spirit of our region as the volunteers truly want to show these families why Killington is so special,” Soucy added.

Photo courtesy Green Mountain National Golf Coursse

Winners Coco Chai and Edward Chai, both of California, were the winners of the Killington Junior Golf  Championship at Green Mountain National Golf Course.