Brown Takes CIJGT Points Lead, York Moves Up

JOHN CURTIS - Daily Union Sports Editor

Brady Brown found out that sometimes there is a reward for showing up, becoming the points leader.

Four of the top five players in the Srixion Central Illinois Junior Golf Tour did not play in the event at Scovill Golf Course on Monday and that left the door wide open for Brown, who had been third in points at the mid-tour break. Brown had 280 points and was just 80 points behind the leader Jared Paddick (360).

Brown came out at Scovill and shot an 80, good enough to tie for second place and pick up 85 tour points. That helped him to leap frog past 2nd place Ian Connor (300) and former leader Paddick. Brady Welsh (4th-270) and Matt Wooley (5th-260) also missed he event and had distance put between them and Brown.

Another Brown, Zach Brown, won the 16-18 competition at Scovill with a sizzling 74, the lowest round of the day. Brown had only played one another event and it well back in points (170). Evin Faught was the other golfer to tie with Brady Brown for second. Faught has only played three events and is also behind in points (200), although he did win Eagle Creek and now tied for second.

There were two other compelling stories from Scovill, both dealing with 12-13 year-olds. Donovan Resch was the 12-13 leader in points (530) and Hunter York, who has been the hottest golfer on the tour in the first half, was trying to close the gap (500 points) with five tour wins and some of the lowest scores of the season.

York, who had asked to move up to the 14-15 class played his second event from the tees that are farther back. York was not able to take his points from the 12-13 class with him, but it was a sacrifice he was willing to make to improve his game by moving up a division.

York responded with a 2nd place 82 to Christian Crabill’s 79. York has responded well to the challenge of moving up, although his score was elevated by a few strokes compared to his scores from the first half. In his first event in the 14-15 class, Eagle Creek, just before the break, York placed second with an 89.

Although York couldn’t bring his 500 points from 12-13 the class, he has already tallied 180 points in just two events in the 14-15 class, both runner-up finishes.

Resch also responded in the 12-13 class. Resch fired a 78, the third lowest round of the day by any age for his first tour win of the season. Resch picked up another 100 points, increasing his lead in the class. Resch now has 630 points and with York moved up, Alex Brown, who shot a 3rd place 88 at Scovill, has 410 points, second to Resch among current 12-13 division players, now that York is moved up. Jordan Lukaitus, who was tied for fourth, shot a 2nd place 80 and ran his point total to a 3rd place 370 points.

In the Girls Division, the race tightened after Scovill. Hannah Neal has been leading in points, but Hannah Johnston has been lurking in the weeds. Neal shot a consistent 101 and placed fourth, picking up 70 points for a point total of 645, the highest of any point leader at this point.

However, Hannah Johnston won Scovill and closed the gap. Johnston, who was 80 points back at the break, picked up 100 points for the win and now is just 50 points behind Neal (595). Ashley Warrem, who was in third at the break (335), did not play, making the division even more of a 2-man race.

Derrick Herker, who had led the 14-15 class at the break (480), was off the pace at Scovill, shooting a 98 and picking up just 40 points (520).

The event scheduled for Wednesday at Effingham Country Club was rescheduled due to a heavy amount of rain dumped on the course in the wee hours of the morning. The Effingham event will be played Wednesday, July 22, followed by a tournament at Hickory Point on Friday, July 24.

CIJGT Scovill scores

16-18: 1. Zach Brown 74, T2. 80 Evin Faught, T2. Brady Brown 80, 4. Hayden Hillman 83, T5. Matthew Lukaitus 84, T5. Christopher Schultz 84, 7. Tony Wentze 86, T8. Nicholas Day 92, T8. Ryan Schwartz 92, 10. Wes Lindsey 93, 11. Daniel Lechman 97, 12. David Blythe 98

14-15: 1. Christian Crabill 79, 2. Hunter York 82, 3. Michael Clevenger 85, 4. Ian Freeman 86, 5. Anthony Lechman 87, 6. Justyn Blagg 96, 7. Derrick Herker 98, 8. Williams Sands 101, 9. Chase Myers 109

12-13: 1. Donovan Resch 78, 2. Jordan Lukaitus 80, 3. Alex Brown 88, 4. Lewis Brown 89, 5. Jackson Berg 107, 6. Nixon Daughty 109, 7. Tyler Thompson 122

Girls: 1. Hannah Johnston 77, 2. Alanna Dukeman 86, 3. Savannah Myers 89, 4. Hannah Neal 101, 5. Emmie Swartz 119, 6. Annie Heinz 131

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