Diana Gao Wins Girls 14-18 and Vic Witlox Ties for Second at the Hilton Head Junior Classic
by Keith Bach · PGA Member, President and Director of Instruction JPGA (Also called JRPGA)
Some weekends just feel like home. This was one of them. Over 36 holes at Palmetto Dunes Golf Club on Hilton Head Island, Diana Gao won the Girls 14-18 division at the Hurricane Junior Golf Tour’s Hilton Head Junior Classic by 19 shots. Vic Witlox tied for second in a deep Boys 16-18 field. Add it all up and eight JPGA golfers finished inside the top 15 in a 24-player division
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Diana Gao Wins by 19
Diana shot 77 on Saturday and 77 on Sunday for a 36-hole total of 154, which is 14 over par on a par-70 course. Sara Rooney finished second at 173, and our own Grace Kearns took third at 184. That puts Diana 19 shots clear of the field.
Two identical rounds tell me a lot. Her score did not swing up or down when the second day brought new pressure. She played her game both days, and that is exactly what we work on every week. This win also follows her victory at the World Golf Village Fall Junior Open, so the momentum is real.
Grace deserves a shout too. She opened with a 95 and came back with an 89 on Sunday, a sixshot improvement in one day. That is how good players are built.
Vic Witlox Is Right in the Mix
Vic opened with a 74, the second-lowest first round in the whole Boys 16-18 field. He followed it with a 76 for a 150 (+10) and tied for second with Sawyer Scatcherd of Canada. Only winner Ezra Hartland of England, who shot 72 and 71 for a 143, finished ahead of them. Vic ended up seven shots off the lead against a field that included players from around the world.
The depth is what made me smile most. Behind Vic, Julien Kocatas and Renzo Ochotorena tied for sixth at 157 (+17). Julien shot 79 and 78, and Renzo shot 78 and 79. Mike Gallina placed eighth at 158. Asbjorn Mogelberg tied for ninth at 159, and Loren Jones and Jagger Yates tied for 12th at 160. Bobby Rickford took 15th at 162 and shaved two shots off on Sunday, going from 82 to 80.
Ben Mac, one of our youngest golfers, played up in the 16-18 field and tied for 17th at 165. Murk Oechies tied for 21st at 169, and Piero Luna tied for 23rd at 178. Eleven of our golfers teed it up in this division, and five finished in the top 11.
Eight Countries, One Team
Look at the names on that leaderboard and you will see how global this team is. Our golfers at the Classic came from the United States, the Netherlands, Denmark, Canada, England, Slovakia, Peru and China. They competed side by side against some of the best juniors the Hurricane Junior Golf Tour brought to the island. That is what a real program looks like.
Two Rounds at Palmetto Dunes
The Hilton Head Junior Classic was played October 31 and November 1 on the George Fazio course at Palmetto Dunes Golf Club. It was 36 holes of stroke play on a par-70 layout. The boys played the blue tees at 6,593 yards, and the girls played the white tees at 5,556 yards. Across four divisions the field held 37 players, with 24 in Boys 16-18, seven in Boys 14-15, two in Boys 12-13 and four in Girls 14-18. Competing in that kind of field, right on Hilton Head Island, is a big part of what makes this a great place to train. You can learn more about our Hilton Head academy and why the island is such a strong place to train in our guide to golf training on Hilton Head Island.
Looking Ahead
Congratulations to Diana, Vic, and every JPGA golfer who competed this weekend. Winning is great, but what I am proudest of is the work that sits behind every one of those scores. We will keep building, keep competing, and keep sharing the results here.
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