One of the top tournaments in Massachusetts golf begins in Franklin County this morning.
The 101st Massachusetts Junior Amateur Championship tees off at Bernardston’s Crumpin-Fox Club, and the event will bring some of the best golfers to town for one of the Bay State’s most prestigious titles. The tournament begins with stroke play today and Tuesday, and the field will be cut to 16 for single-elimination match play beginning Wednesday. The semifinals and finals are set for Thursday.
South Deerfield’s Jonathan Elkins is the local favorite in the field. The 18-year-old, a rising senior at Taft School (Conn.) who recently announced his verbal commitment to play collegiately at Villanova, will play on his home course at CFC. Elkins tees off his opening round this morning at 9:10 a.m. before continuing with a 1:25 p.m. tee time on Tuesday.
Entries to the Junior Amateur are open to amateur golfers who have an active Mass Golf/GHIN Handicap Index at any public, private, semi-private, municipal or non-real estate Mass Golf member course/club and who have reached their 14th birthday and will not reach their 19th birthday by midnight Aug. 22, 2019. There were six qualifiers leading up to this week’s tournament, the lone western Mass. stop coming at Amherst Golf Club back on June 27.
Defending champion James Imai of Brookline is in the field, and he’ll tee off today at 9:10 a.m. Imai, who is headed to Northwestern to continue his golfing career at the collegiate level, rallied from 3 down through 12 holes in the 2018 final against Needham’s David Rogers, ultimately defeating him in a 22-hole marathon match at Belmont Country Club. With his victory, Imai became only the 10th competitor to win multiple state junior titles.
Elkins is seeking an improvement on last year’s tournament, where he posted rounds of 76 and 77 to finish 11-over — six shots off the cut line to get into the Round of 16.
The Junior Amateur Champion (14-18) will be presented the Charles E. Mason Trophy, while the Pre-Junior Champion (14-15) will be presented the Joseph M. Batchelder Memorial Trophy.