Chung Comes Close to the Magical 59
(7:00pm - Monday 22nd April 2024)
Concord’s Bo Chung holds the lead after round one of the Jack Newton Junior Golf Illawarra Junior Masters held at The Links, with Royal Canberra’s Harry Whitelock hot on his heels.
Chung delivered a stunning performance, carding 11 under par, featuring eight birdies and dramatic eagles on both the 8th and 18th holes.
“Honestly everything went pretty well today. The drivers were good, my chipping and putting was phenomenal. I’ve actually surprised myself how I pulled it off, it was a great day,” he said.
“Honestly I haven’t really been playing much golf. This is like the first real tournament I’ve played this year. But I’ve been practising a bit, just got back from a camp.”
Facing the final round as the frontrunner for the first time, Chung is focused on maintaining his composure.
“Honestly Ill try to do the same as today and keep calm because I’ve never put myself in a position like this before,” he added.
“It would be great, but it’s all about the process and the experience.”
Two strokes behind at 9 under is Whitelock, who also notched an eagle today on the 17th in dramatic fashion.
“I played with one of my mates Enzo and I was 6 under teeing off the 17th and I said to him ‘my dads best round is ten under so maybe I’ll finish eagle, eagle. I’ll give that a crack’ and I hit a good tee shot and a real good second up to four foot and we started getting excited. Then I made the four footer, it was pretty cool,” said the teen.
Recently back from competing in Perth at the Australian Junior Championships and the Australian Junior Interstate, Whitelock has honed his skills.
“Wasn’t the best start, I birdied the first and then the next couple of par threes got me. But everything after that was pretty much flawless.”
“Flat stick worked real good. I’ve been away the past couple of weeks, and I’ve been working on it so it was good to see that some of the work paid off.”
Not far behind, tied at 6 under par, are Chayse Thorpe of Concord, Darcy Mackay of The Australian, and Noah Graham from Camden GC, each positioning themselves as contenders.
In the girls' division, Kiara Connolly-Jackson of Kooindah Waters leads with a score of 2 over par.
The 15-year-old, recently crowned the 2023 Most Improved Junior Girl, has quickly ascended from a double-digit handicap to scratch in just three months, showcasing her rapid development.
Connolly-Jackson, who scored three birdies in her round today, leads her nearest rivals by four strokes.
Zoe Arcus of Cromer, Ava Prince of Toukley, and Savannah Webb of Stonecutters Ridge are chasing at 6 over par, with Mirabelle Naaman of Camden holding fifth place.
The competitors are set for an early start with the final round kicking off at The Links at 6:30 AM tomorrow.
2024 Illawarra Junior Masters Underway
(6:30am - Monday 22nd April 2024)
The 2024 Illawarra Junior Masters is underway at Links Shell Cove. A capacity field of 160 players are taking part on the unique South Coast layout, with many of the best juniors from around the state taking part after competing at the Australian Junior in Perth just last week.
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