Western Junior
A testing ground for tomorrow's starsThe Western Junior is the tournament that separates the men from the boys. The championship, the oldest national junior tournament in the United States, draws the top junior players from more than 40 states and internationally each year. The field is limited to 156 entrants. The 2012 championship will be held June 18-22 at The Country Club of Florida in The Village of Golf, Fla. Read more about the Western Junior at the event's official website. 2011 WinnerConnor Black, 15, won the 94th Western Junior, held June 20-24 at The Beverly Country Club. At 5-9 and only 140 pounds, Black wasn't the longest hitter in the field, but steady nerves and a solid short game carried him to victory. The high school sophomore from Katy, Texas, won by two strokes over Hunter Kraus of Germantown, Tenn., and by three over Nick McLaughlin of New Castle, N.H. Black, who is ranked the nation’s No. 1 player for the high school class of 2013, said the Western Junior was very special to him. "I told my dad at the beginning of the year that this was the tournament I was looking forward to most, along with the [U.S.] Junior,” Black said. “This tournament is so professionally run. The people at Beverly have been so nice. They have taken us in and put their arms around us and really made us feel comfortable."
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