Top Rhode Island Juniors Tee it Up in 100th Junior Amateur
The top junior players in Rhode Island have converged on Rhode Island Country Club for the 100th playing of the Junior-Amateur.
The tournament consists of one stroke play qualifying round (today) and then match play the rest of the week with the championship taking place on Friday.
Gianna Papa and Jon Baldwin are the defending champions. Baldwin is not in the field this year.
Star Studded Field
The field consists of a men’s and women’s division.
Each will have their own championships on Friday.
The women’s division is led by Vinny and Gianna Papa. As mentioned above, Gianna is the defending champion, while her sister has been on a roll this summer.
Vinny won the NEPGa Junior Championship earlier this summer and competed in the PGA Junior Championship at Valhalla.
Gianna is coming off a top ten finish at the Northern Junior Championship in Connecticut.
The rest of the women’s field consists of two-time Kirkbrae club champion Kylie Eaton and two-time Kirkbrae club championship runner-up Jordan Vrees.
Olivia Williams, Adrianna Eaton, Lily Dessel are other notables in the women’s field.
The boys field is led by La Salle phenom Max Jackson and 2020 RI Junior Amateur runner up Harry Dessel.
Despite no victories to show for it, Dessel is having a great summer.
He advanced to the quarterfinals of the Rhode Island Amateur at Kirkbrae, played in the North-South Junior Amateur at Pinehurst #2 and then held the lead for a good portion of the Rhode Island Stroke Play Championship.
Jackson is coming off a top ten finish at the Northern Junior Championship in Connecticut last week.
Earlier this summer, he won the World Series of Junior Golf event at Triggs and made the match play at the Rhode Island Amateur.
Other notable players on the boys side include former Hendricken stars Ricky Angeli and Harry Grimes, East Greenwich star Ryan Marcantonio and recent Drive, Chip and Putt alum Aj Colonna.