The 2024 State Fair Junior Tournament Shines Through the Storm

The State Fair Junior Tournament was held at Mather Golf Course. We had showers, more showers in the morning. In the afternoon, we had a downpour! The umbrellas were out, and the weather did not dampen the player’s attitude to have a great tournament. We had 127 players: 38 in the 7-11 age division, playing the back nine; 93 in the 12-18 age division, playing 18 holes.

The overall girls champion was Sophia Lee with a score of 73. Drue Henry Sanchez was the overall boys champion with a score of 63. By winning the State Fair Junior, he automatically got into the State Fair Men’s Amateur Championship coming up this Labor Day weekend. I would like to give a shout out to two players in the Girls 10-11 division – Tina Choe shooting a 7 under par for nine holes, and Vaanya Behl shooting a 6 under par for nine holes. It is great to see talented players coming up through the age groups!

I want to extend a special thanks to Lance Fong, the GM at Mather Golf Course, and Thomas Wary, the Tournament Director. They both were hands on all day. We did not have one complaint about the course conditions. Additionally, we were able to use the grill room to do our scoring and present the winners’ trophies – so helpful on a rainy day.

The tournament would not have been a success without the help from all my volunteers. New Golf Council members and first-time volunteers – Viola McNally, Bob McConnell, Tony Paulson and Linda Bigler. And my reliable GC volunteer team – Steve, Rhea, Tommy, Bobby, Chuck, Dave, Larry, Janice and Charlie. Thanks to Pat Keys and Chris Bitticks for being the Rules Officials. Thanks to Hannah Lee from the First Tee for helping with scoring. Thanks to Maynard Pace for his expert help with all the equipment needed to run the tournament. Thanks to Allen Luis for helping where needed – set-up and take down, spotting the first hole, and driving the water cart the rest of the day. The tournament ran smoothly thanks to the hard work of all my volunteers.

I am looking forward to next year’s State Fair Junior Tournament – save the date: August 23, 2025!