ITASCA, Ill. – The third day of the 36th Chick Evans Jr Am Championship came to a close Wednesday after two rounds of match play were conducted. The morning matches consisted of the Girls Division Round of 16 and the Boys Division Round of 32. The afternoon matches consisted of the Girls Division Quarter-Final matches and the Boys Division Round of 16.
This is the 36th Annual Chick Evans Jr Am Championship features 195 junior golfers from throughout the state of Illinois ages 12 to 18. This event is a 36-hole, stroke play event where players are attempting to qualify for the match play rounds. The Boys Division will be cut to the low 32 boys for up to five rounds of match play, while the Girls Division will be cut to the low 16 for up to four rounds of match play. The Boys Division is playing the par 72 Itasca CC from 6,467 yards, while the Girls Division played the course from 5,518.
The Illinois Junior Golf Association is a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization dedicated to providing playing opportunities for its members ages 8-18, conducting educational clinics and events, and serving as a junior golf informational clearinghouse.
MORNING MATCHES
In the opening match in the Girls Division, Margaret Hickey (2017) of Glencoe, Ill., defeated Priya Desai (2017) of Wheaton, Ill., 2&1. Haeri Lee (2018) of Buffalo Grove, Ill., defeated Elyse Emerzian (2018) of Deerfield, Ill., 4&2. In the third match, Jasmine Yi (2018) of Arlington Heights, Ill., defeated Stephanie Mroz (2018) of Wood Dale, Ill., 1up. Josie Kurosky (2016) of Elgin, Ill., fell to Amy Kucera (2017) of Riverside, Ill., 3&2. Brianne Bolden (2019) of Mokena, Ill., took a commanding lead defeating Molly Lyne (2020) of Cary, Ill., 5&3. Lauren Nay (2018) of Naperville, Ill., defeated Hanna Tanaka (2019) of Glenview, Ill., 4&3. Hadley Moritz (2018) of Wheaton, Ill., was eliminated by Caroline Smith (2020) of Inverness, Ill., 3&1. In the last Girls Division match of the morning, Grace Curran (2019) of New Lenox, Ill., defeated Rosemaire Bundy (2017) of West Chicago, Ill., 1 up.
In the opening match of the Round of 32 in the Boys Division, Paul DiFranco III (2016) of Park Ridge, Ill., defeated David Lipan (2016) of Aurora, Ill., 5&4. Charlie Van Cleave (2017) of Northbrook, Ill., defeated Daniel Anfield (2017) of Channahon, Ill., in 21 holes. Also decided in 21 holes, Cameron Karney (2018) of Crystal Lake, Ill., defeated Christian Early (2016) of Hinsdale, Ill. Devin Johnson (2017) of Geneva, Ill., defeated Sam Stapleton (2018) of Clarendon Hills, Ill., 4&3. Connor Polender (2018) of Lake Bluff, Ill., fell to Charlie Nikitas (2017) of Glenview, Ill., 2&1. Ethan Schmitt (2016) of Winnetka, Ill., defeated Jackson Castellon (2018) of Clarendon Hills, 5&3. Connor Hansen (2016) of Winnetka, Ill., fell to Mac McClear (2019) of Hinsdale, Ill., 2&1. Bradley Goldstein (2019) of Highland Park, Ill., was eliminated by Nick Tenuta (2017) of Mt. Prospect, Ill., 5&4.
Payton Kim (2016) of Palatine, Ill., defeated Raymond Sullivan (2018) of Lemont, Ill., 4&3. Jack McGuire (2017) of Park Ridge, Ill., moved to the next round after defeating Brian Joseph (2020) of Wilmette, Ill., 3&2. Evan Myers (2019) of Northbrook, Ill., was eliminated by William Marshall (2019) of Elburn, Ill., 5&4. Jake Wright (2016) of Naperville, Ill., defeated Scott Frevert (2018) of Lake Bluff, Ill., 2&1. Robert Garmoe (2017) of Arlington Heights, Ill., won his match 3&2 against Nicholas Huggins (2017) of Aurora, Ill. Jack Vercautren (2018) of Naperville, Ill., lost his match 2down to Michell Kenston (2018) of Libertyville, Ill. In the final matches of the morning, Jason Folker (2017) of Lake Forest, Ill., defeated Ricky Leme (2016) of Lake Villa, Ill., 3&2 and Brian Favia (2018) of Mundelein, Ill., defeated Clayton Miller (2017) of Arcola, Ill.
AFTERNOON MATCHES
The afternoon matches in the Girls Division finished with Hickey defeating Lee 3&1 in the first match. The second match was taken by Kucera, who defeated Yi 2&1. Bolden defeated Nay 6&5 and Smith defeated Curran in the last match of the afternoon.
The Girls Division Semi-Finals will consist of two matches: Hickey vs. Kucera and Bolden vs. Smith. The Girls Division Championship match will take place Thursday afternoon.
The Round of 16 matches in the Boys Division finished in the afternoon with eight players advancing to the Boys Division Quarter Finals. DiFranco defeated Van Cleave 4&2 in the opening match of the Boys Division in the afternoon. Johnson moves on to the next round after defeating Karney 2&1. In the third match, Nikitas defeated Schmitt 4&2. McClear went 2up on Tenuta to take the match. McGuire defeated Kim 4&3. Match six was decided in 19 holes, which ended with Wright defeating Marshall. Garmoe defeated Kenston 2&1, and in the final match of the afternoon, Folker defeated Favia 5&4.
