PALM BEACH GARDENS, Fla. | Tee times for the first round of the Optimist International Junior Golf Championships came out Wednesday, a day ahead of the opening round of the prestigious annual tournament.
Among the fields of boys golfers ages 16-18 and girls 15-18 from across the country and around the world are five qualifiers with ties to local high schools: Grandview graduate Randy Urso and the duo of Regis Jesuit seniors-to-be Jake Kelley and Chris Korte in the boys competition, along with Grandview’s Morgan Sahm and Regis Jesuit’s Mary Weinstein in the girls.
The tournaments will be played on two of the five courses at the PGA National Resort & Spa, with the boys taking on the Palmer course and the girls playing the Fazio.
First off the tee among locals is Korte, who opens at 6:10 a.m. MT on Hole No. 10 in a foursome that also includes Patrick McGinley (Bedford, N.H.), Bryce Johnson (Oakton, Va.) and Adam Mallette (Canton, Ohio).
Thirty minutes later, Kelley begins on the same tee along with Alejandro Lopez of Boca Del Rio, Mexico, Jesse Peck of Ankeny, Iowa, and Dylan Macqueen of Waterloo, Ontario.
Urso — who also played in the Optimist tournament in 2010 — tees off on Hole No. 1 at 7 a.m. as part of a group rounded out by Lucas Vaughn of Yuba City, Calif., Jack Ritchay of De Pere, Wis., and St. Charles, Mo.’s Kyle Szyhowski.
In girls play, Weinstein is in the group that tees off on Hole No. 10 at 6:51 a.m. MT. Rounding out Weinstein’s international playing group is Maria Andre Merchan of Caracas and Elizabeth Parsons of Smiths (Bermuda).
Sahm tees off on the same hole 18 minutes later at 7:09 a.m. with a pair of Americans, Chelsea Dantuniu of Lancaster, N.Y., and Bhielle Ward of Fhiscu, Texas.
Two other Colorado boys and five other girls from the state are also in the Optimist field.
Reach Sports Editor Courtney Oakes at sports@aurorasentinel.com or 303-750-7555. For additional Aurora prep news, notes, scores and schedules, follow @aurorasports on Twitter or find the Aurora Prep Sentinel page on facebook.
COLORADO TEE TIMES AT 2013 OPTIMIST INT’L JR. GOLF CHAMPIONSHIPS
BOYS 16-18
TEE 1
7 a.m. (MT): RANDY URSO (AURORA, COLO.), Lucas Vaughn (Yuba City, Ga.), Jack Ritchay (De Pere, Wis.), Kyle Szyhowski (St. Charles, Mo.)
TEE 10
6 a.m. (MT): Behrod Keshtavar (Erie, Colo.), Linus Lo (Heathrow, Fla.), David Hicks (Cape May Court House, N.J.), John Mancinotti (Toledo, Ohio)
6:10 a.m. (MT): CHRIS KORTE (LITTLETON, COLO.), Patrick McGinley (Bedford, N.H.), Bryce Johnson (Oakton, Va.), Adam Mallette (Canton, Ohio)
6:40 a.m. (MT): JAKE KELLEY (HIGHLANDS RANCH, COLO.), Alejandro Lopez (Boca Del Rio, Mexico), Jesse Peck (Ankeny, Iowa), Dylan Macqueen (Waterloo, Ontario)
7:10 a.m. (MT): Donny Kinnaman (Clifton, Colo.), Will Holmgren (Corcoran, Minn.), Daniel Mosher (North Canton, Ohio), Josh Krutchik (Encino, Calif.)
GIRLS 15-18
TEE 1
5:48 a.m. (MT): Gillian Vance (Lakewood, Colo.), Ashley Malinchak (Parkland, Fla.), Ashton Goodley (Eldorado, Ill.)
6:15 a.m. (MT): Sarah Hankins (Thornton, Colo.), Ayelen Irizar (Las Grutas), Radi Sauro (Lake Worth, Fla.)
6:51 a.m. (MT): Megan McCambridge (Boulder, Colo.), Brookelin Powers (Taylors, S.C.), Virgie Velazquez (Roseville, Calif.)
7:36 a.m. (MT): Jenni Chun (Lone Tree, Colo.), Timbrelee McNair (Girard, Kan.), Florencia Vinagre (Santiago, Chile)
TEE 10
6:51 a.m. (MT): MARY WEINSTEIN (HIGHLANDS RANCH, COLO.), Elizabeth Parsons (Smiths, Bermuda), Maria Andre Merchan (Caracas, Venezuela)
7:09 a.m. (MT): MORGAN SAHM (CENTENNIAL, COLO.), Chelsea Dantonio (Lancaster, N.Y.), Brielle Ward (Frisco, Texas)
7:18 a.m. (MT): Jaylee Tait (Littleton, Colo.), Thamonpat Siriko (Bangkhean, Ba.), Tyler Dawson (Woodstock, Ga.)
