Backspin Nov_2018 | Page 30

Louisiana Golf Association & Gulf States Section PGA Introduce the Louisiana Junior Golf Tour The Louisiana Golf Association (LGA) and Gulf States Section PGA (GSPGA) announced the introduction of a new junior golf initiative, the Louisiana Junior Golf Tour (LJGT). The LJGT will provide a first-class experience for competitors, and it will foster the valued traditions of the game through character development, self-reliance, and sportsmanship. “We are looking forward to promoting and elevating junior golf in Louisiana,” said LGA Executive Director Logan Ray. “The LJGT will create affordable playing opportunities for junior golfers at premier LGA member club facilities, and we are pleased to partner with the Gulf States PGA on this initiative that will benefit the game in Louisiana.” The LJGT will help junior golfers build a foundation of skills and knowledge that they will be able to use for the rest of their lives. “The Gulf States PGA cherishes its 50-year relationship with the Louisiana Golf Association. We are excited to have the opportunity to join with the LGA in the buildout of the Louisiana Junior Golf Tour. The focus of the LJGT on youth player development, organized competition and teaching the core values of golf, will positively impact our game for generations,” said Gulf States Section PGA Executive Director Robert Brown. Louisiana Junior Golf Tour membership is open to juniors of all skill levels, ages 11-18. 30 The LJGT will feature six new competitive opportunities for junior boys and girls in its inaugural year, in addition to the LGA Junior Amateur, Gulf States PGA Junior Championship, and the Junior River Cup. Each event will provide an opportunity for competitors to garner Player of the Year points, which will earn the top players invitations to participate as a member of Team Louisiana in the Junior River Cup and the season finale Tour Championship in October. The LGA and the Gulf States PGA are tremendously excited about this program and are optimistic that this will create more opportunities to help teach and grow the game of golf in Louisiana. The LJGT will serve as a one-stop-shop for competitive junior golf in Louisiana. For more info, visit: http://www.lgagolf.org/LJGT. The inaugural season will kick off in spectacular fashion with the Sam Burns Junior Four-Ball Championship at Squire Creek Country Club in Choudrant the weekend of February 23-24, 2019. Burns, a Louisiana native, needs no introduction to golf fans in the Bayou State. He has graciously offered to serve as host for the first ever Junior Four-Ball event in the state at his home club Squire Creek. Burns is beginning his rookie season on the PGA Tour and has a promising career ahead of him. Most recently, he finished tied for third place in the Sanderson Farms Championship in Jackson, Mississippi. Burns started exactly where many of the Louisiana Junior Golf Tour competitors are now, rising through the junior ranks at the local level before dominating the national junior golf scene. Burns won the LGA Junior Amateur Championship in 2012 at the age of 15, and he played college golf at LSU. He exemplifies golf in Louisiana and is a role model for today’s LJGT competitors. As he starts on his professional journey, Burns has made it one of his missions to give back to the game, and to have his support of the Louisiana Junior Golf Tour is tremendous. This Sam Burns Junior Four-Ball Championship will combine the fun, competitive atmosphere that a Four-Ball event can create w a o fi f F t s c i f g S f F M h o i s t i u a e s T O d O y f a a t m i F t L e C L f p o a R C u J O A