Royce Brook Kids Gain PGA Junior League Finals In Florida

Junior golfers representing Royce Brook Golf Club in Hillsborough and the State of New Jersey have advanced to the PGA Junior League Golf Championship in Lake Buena Vista, Fla., for third time in the four-year history of the event.

The state champion squad from Royce Brook will be among the eight finalist teams from around the United States when the competition is conducted Nov. 5-8, at Disney’s Palm Course at the Walt Disney Resort in Florida.

After shooting a combined 63-under par to win the state championship among 60 teams at Fiddler’s Elbow, the Royce Brook squad advanced to the PGA Junior League Golf Mid-Atlantic Regional Sept. 12-13 at Hampshire Greens Golf Course in Silver Spring, Md.

Of the 108 holes played in the regional, Royce Brook had zero bogeys, which included teams from Pennsylvania, Maryland, Virginia and North Carolina.

Team New Jersey, sponsored by the New Jersey Golf Foundation of the NJPGA, won all three matches in the regional to defeat two teams from Virginia and one from Philadelphia.

Teams in the Disney finals are from New Jersey, California, Connecticut, Georgia, Illinois, Ohio, Oklahoma and South Carolina. PGA Junior Golf is a part of PGA Outreach headed by former NJPGA executive director Scott Kmiec, recent winner of the NJSGA/NJPGA Distinguisghed Service Award.

Royce Brook’s team includes Louis Giovi, 11, of Ewing; Jeffrey Li, 13, of Basking Ridge; Egan McDermott, 13, of East Brunswick; Owen Rossman, 2, of Summit; Joshua Ryan, 12, of Philadelphia; Calen Sanderson, 11, of Princeton; Ethan Trinh, 10, of West Windsor; Hannah Trinh, 10, of East Windsor; and Franklin Zhu, 11, of Basking Ridge. Alternates are Katie Li 10, of Basking Ridge, and Logan Paczewski, 11, of Yardley, Pa. Team captain and coach Tony Latham and instructor Bill Blash will also accompany the team.

The team was given a key to the city by the Township of Hillsborough on Tuesday, October 27.

“It’s more difficult to qualify for the finals of the PGA Junior League than it is to the U.S. Open. There are 2,500 teams with 25,000 players throughout the United States and only eight make it to the finals,” said Royce Brook’s Latham, the coach and Director of Junior Player Development there. “We’re very proud of our kids, especially to make it for a third time in four years.”

PGA Junior League Golf is a fun, social and inclusive opportunity for boys and girls ages 13 and younger. Kids learn the game with their friends in a recreational environment under professional instruction and direction of PGA/LPGA professionals.

Participants wear numbered jerseys and play on teams in a popular scramble format.