Carl Spence, Gleaner Writer
TWO OF Jamaica's junior golfers, Jonathan Newnham and Isabelle Marley, both had impressive showings in the just-concluded Junior British Open Golf Championships, hosted in Heswall, England from July 16 to 19.
Eleven-year-old Newnham, who was the youngest golfer at the Open, finished third in his males 'Bronze' 10-21 par-handicap while Isabelle, playing in the same handicap, finished ninth, giving Jamaica good ratings in the tournament considered one of the four Majors in the world.
The Junior Open, hosted every two years, accommodates the best boy and girl junior golfer from each country that is a member of the Royal & Ancient Club of St. Andrews. It is scored on a strokeplay format with three categories, Gold, Silver and Bronze.
The Gold category is for the handicap/stroke group (3 and under), Silver for handicap group (4-9) and Bronze for the (10-21) handicap group. Competition in the Gold category is over three rounds, while the Silver and Bronze competitions are decided after two rounds.
The tournament gives ratings both in the three respective categories as well as in the combined categories for an overall tournament rating. Newnham's 67th place finish is credited to 85 and 86 rounds for a total par/stroke of 171. Marley's total par of 183 came through rounds of 92 and 91 in her two rounds, placing her 80th in a field of 96 players.
Patrick Reed of the United States won the overall championship with a total par of 217 over three rounds playing in the Gold category. Junguen Han of The Republic of Korea shared second place with Maximilian Kramer of Germany with a total of 220, while fourth was shared between four players, including three girls just a stroke shy of second place with 221.
Immediately following the Juniors was the British Open which teed off at the Royal Liverpool Golf Club on Thursday, and which saw Tiger Woods emerging champion.
The Junior golfers stayed to watch part of the Open and returned to the island yesterday on Air Jamaica, which is also a major sponsor of their tour.
