910-673-1000
Ten to Watch at NC Junior Boys'
Ten Players to Watch at 48th N.C. Junior Boys' Championship
State 4A champion, Eric Bae of Pinehurst, NC, tops the list of potential champions
155 junior boys from across North Carolina will convene at Country Club of Salisbury in Salisbury, NC this week to compete in the 48th N.C. Junior Boys' Championship of the Carolinas Golf Association (CGA).
The golf course at CC of Salisbury is a Donald Ross design that has hosted 18 CGA championships dating back to 1951 along with many other prestigious amateur and professional events. This will be the first time CC of Salisbury has hosted the NC Junior Boy's Championship. The perpetual tournament trophy is named for Mr. Harry Lee Welch who served has President of the CGA from 1959-1960 and was a long-time member of CC of Salisbury.
All 155 junior boys will compete in the 18-hole stroke play qualifier on Tuesday, June 23rd with the top 64 advancing to match play. Six rounds of match play will begin on Wednesday, June 24th at 8 am off #1 and #10. Two rounds of match play will be played each day with the championship match scheduled to begin on Friday, June 26th at 12:30 pm.
Here are 10 players to watch at this year's NC Junior Boys' Championship
1. Eric Bae of Pinehurst, N.C. Bae, a rising high school senior, recently won the NC 4A state championship and the 3rd Jimmy Creed Junior Boys' Invitational at Camden CC. Bae has verbally committed to play collegiate golf at Wake Forest University and is currently ranked #2 in the NC junior boys’ rankings.
2. Patrick Stephenson of Four Oaks, N.C. Stephenson, a rising high school senior, recently won the TYGA Bojangles Junior and finished second in the NCHSAA 3A state championship. Last summer Stephenson was one of the youngest player to compete in the U.S. Amateur Championship. Stephenson is currently ranked #4 in NC and has verbally committed to play college golf at East Carolina University.
3. Nicholas Lyerly of Salisbury, N.C. Lyerly, a rising high school senior, reached the semi-finals in the 2014 NC Junior Boys' Championship and is the 2015 NCHSAA 3A state champion. Lyerly is currently ranked 7th on the NC junior boys' rankings.
4. Michael Childress of Salisbury, N.C. Childress, a high school sophomore, is a member of CC of Salisbury and is currently ranked 58th on the NC junior boys' rankings.
5. Walker Simas of Charlotte, N.C. Simas, a high school junior, won the PGA Junior series event at Columbia CC and finished second in the 2015 Creed Boys and is ranked 46th on the NC junior boys’ rankings.
6. Logan Shuping of Salisbury, N.C. Shuping, a rising high school senior, finished tied for fourth in the prestigious Carolinas-Georgia Junior over the winter and is currently ranked 16th in NC. He has verbally committed to play college golf at East Carolina.
7. Reilly Erhardt of Greensboro, N.C. Erhardt, a recent high school graduate, won the NCHSAA 1A state title by seven shots this past May. Erhardt will begin his college golf career this August at University of Maryland and is ranked 17th in NC.
8. John Freeman of Asheville, N.C. Freeman, a rising high school senior, finished tied for sixth in the 2014 Carolinas Junior Boys' Championship and is currently ranked 19th junior boy in NC.
9. Michael Sanders of Davidson, N.C. Sanders, a rising high school sophomore, finished in third place in the NCISAA 3A state championship and tied for sixth in the TYGA North State High School Challenge. Sanders has verbally committed to play college golf at LSU and is currently ranked 41st in NC.
10. Allen Smith, III of Durham, N.C. Smith, a rising high school junior, finished tied for sixth in the TYGA Bojangles Junior and has qualified for the U.S. Junior Amateur. Smith is currently ranked 88th in NC.
Others to watch are Blake Taylor of Atkinson, NC; AJ Beechler of Pinehurst, NC; Stephen Carroll of Concord, NC; Robert McPartland of Cary, NC; Mason Elmore of Charlotte, NC; Austin Harrill of Hickory, NC; Hardin Councill of High Point, NC; Wesley Simmons of Kinston, NC; Jack Speer of Winston-Salem, NC; Walter Brinker of Sanford, NC; Brian Chen of Cary, NC and Michael Wicker of Rougemont, NC.
About CC of Salisbury
The Country Club of Salisbury offers something for the entire family. Golf is just the beginning. Your family will enjoy playing tennis on our hard or soft courts, or perhaps cooling off in our junior Olympic size swimming pool on hot summer days. The clubhouse is often the site for wedding receptions, cocktail parties, outdoor dining, wine tasting, international cuisine and other events for members of all ages. For the golf enthusiast, the Country Club of Salisbury offers an 18-hole course designed by Donald Ross with a par 71 measuring 6,558 yards from the blue tees. It features a U.S.G.A. rating of 71.6 and a slope of 129, carefully maintained by our outstanding professional staff. Our course offers a challenge to any golfer. A perfect compliment to our fine golf course is the list of amenities that accompany it. The Country Club of Salisbury employs an experienced, dedicated golf staff overseen by a P.G.A. Certified Class A Professional. Excellent practice facilities with a putting and chipping greens as well as a driving range are available.
About the Carolinas Golf Association (CGA)
The CGA is a 501(c)(3) not-for-profit educational organization that was founded in 1909 to promote and to protect the game of golf in the Carolinas by providing competitions, education, support and benefits to golf clubs and golfers. The CGA is the second largest golf association in the country with over 700 member clubs represented by nearly 150,000 individuals.
Now in its 106th year, the CGA annually conducts 43 championships and five team match competitions for men, women, juniors, and seniors. It also runs over 140 One-Day (net and gross) events and qualifying for USGA national championships. The CGA serves golf in the Carolinas with numerous programs such as: the USGA Handicap System; tournament management software and support; course measuring and course/slope ratings; agronomy consultation; answers about the Rules of Golf, Rules of Amateur Status, and Handicapping; Carolinas Golf Magazine; Interclub series; Tarheel Youth Golf Association; Carolinas Golf Hall of Fame; expense assistance for USGA Junior and Girls' Junior qualifiers from the Carolinas; and the Carolinas Golf Foundation (CGF). The CGF has distributed more than $1,500,000 since 1977 to benefit Carolinas' golf initiatives including junior and women's programs.
For more information about the CGA, visit www.carolinasgolf.org.