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Nilsson brings home JGA’s biggest prize

Posted on 22 September 2016 by LeslieM

sports092216By Gary Curreri

Pompano Beach’s Isak Nilsson called playing on some of the top courses in Broward County every Monday “marvelous.”

He was “marvelous” himself as he finished off his junior golf career with the Junior Golf Association (JGA) of Broward County by winning the prestigious Julius Boros Trophy for having the lowest stroke average for boys for the year.

The 18-year-old freshman at Florida Atlantic University (FAU) averaged 74.6 for the summer competition and was recently presented with the trophy, a large silver bowl donated to the Junior Golf Association of Broward by the late golfing great, Julius Boros.

It was really cool because I am really close with the whole Boros family,” said Nilsson, who also won a four-year grant (McKinney Scholarship) from the JGA. He is majoring in biology.

Ever since I started playing in the JGA when I was 12 as a little kid, I always saw the big trophy being awarded to the big kids and that was something I always wanted to get.”

Being paired with friends every week and being able to play on such a great course was also something I will always remember,” Nilsson added. “It was such a close-knit group.”

Nilsson averaged in the 80s last year; however, he honed his game this year and brought home the coveted prize. He started in Boys D and moved to the Championship Flight three years ago. After the final round of the three-day tournament, Julius Boros III approached Nilsson and asked what he shot.

He had it all calculated and said, ‘Oh, you got me by two strokes,’” Nilsson said. “Winning the trophy makes me want to strive for more obviously. It’s a good feeling and it makes me want to keep practicing and keep playing. It makes me want to try and go to the next step.”

He is sitting out this season at FAU, but hopes to play for the golf team next season. Nilsson said his game really took off last year.

It all started with high school last year,” said Nilsson, a 2016 graduate of Cardinal Gibbons High School. “I was medalist at regionals and then in the summer in the JGA, I put in a lot of practice and effort … I practiced day and night and I had a really good season and it carried over to this summer.”

What will he remember most?

There are a lot of good players that are good friends, and it is always fun to get paired up in the final group and go head-to-head … it is a good atmosphere,” he said. “The bad thing about it now is I am not a junior (golfer) anymore and can’t play all of these great tournaments for such a low price. Junior golf is a great deal.”

Nilsson said the quality of golf in South Florida is high.

South Florida (golf), even at the amateur level, is pretty difficult because that’s where the top golfers are,” Nilsson said. “I have a lot of friends that play in events in the American Junior Golf Association (AJGA) up north because the fields are smaller. They don’t play in Florida because the tournaments are immensely challenging.”

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Broward AM next week

Posted on 30 June 2016 by LeslieM

By Gary Curreri

The Broward County Men’s Amateur Golf Tournament is around the corner. The tournament, which will feature the top players from throughout Broward County, is slated for the Jacaranda Golf Club in Plantation and will be played the weekend of July 9-10.

After receiving valuable feedback in efforts to increase numbers, we have consolidated the tournament into a two-day, 36-hole championship,” said Andrew Michael, director of golf at the Jacaranda Golf Club.

The event was originally slated to be played last December; however, poor weather forced the cancellation of the tournament for the first time in its 48-year history. Michael added some tweaks to the tournament format that he hopes will attract a large field.

Obviously, with the cancellation of December’s tournament, we found an opportunity to see if the two-day series would be better than the three (days) from a participation standpoint,” Michael said. “We are going to test it out and go from there. We are about 80 percent sure that this will be the time frame of the tournament moving forward.”

Michael will also introduce two additional flights. They will have a Super Senior Flight for players 70-Over and a Junior Flight for golfers 13-17. Should they want to play in the open divisions, they would have to declare ahead of time.

We are trying to create more interest and attract more players to participate,” said Michael, who took over as Director of Golf in December 2014. “We are limiting registration to the first 80 players and we would like to get to that number. As long as we keep increasing the mark from the previous year, we will be happy. Our goal is achieve a full course field.”

Michael said the tournament was reduced from three days to two, allowing for players with busy work schedules the opportunity to participate and will give all participants the opportunity to compete regardless of age with the addition of the Super Senior and Junior flights. Golfers also don’t have to be Broward County residents to play.

The tournament was forced to cancel in December because the club received five inches of rain over a 36-hour period. There was four inches of rain on the first day leaving standing water, which washed out the majority of the bunkers. Michael said at the time that the course was unplayable.

The field will offer opportunity to compete for net and gross positions for the Open, Senior (50 and up) and Super Senior (70 and up). The Championship and Junior flights will award gross only positions.

The Broward County Amateur Championship has a storied past and past winners include Chris Couch, Rick Woulfe, Pete and John Wegmann, Ty Strafaci and defending champion T.J. Shuart.

To register for the 2016 event, visit www.Jacarandagolfclub.com or contact the golf shop at 954-472-5836. The final day to register is July 1.

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Grandmother gets ace on Mother’s Day

Posted on 02 June 2016 by LeslieM

sports060216By Gary Curreri

Deerfield Beach’s Roz Lagges spent Mother’s Day playing golf with her daughter, Cheryl DeNoia and it was a memorable occasion.

The 76-year-old great grandmother of nine celebrated the day by getting a hole-in-one at the Crystal Lake Golf Club in Deerfield Beach. She used her 5 Hybrid to ace the Par-3, 103-yard 12th hole.

Cheryl doesn’t golf with us that often because she works so much,” Lagges said. “My husband (Nick) had eye surgery and he hasn’t been able to play.”

Lagges said she thought it might have gone over the green since she lost track of the ball after it flew by the trap at the front of the green.

I thought, ‘Oh boy, here we go again,’” she said. “I thought it went over the green. [Cheryl] said, ‘No mom, you got it in the hole.’”

This was so exciting,” Lagges said. “I was with my daughter and she saw it go in the hole. I insisted it must have rolled off the green and that is why she didn’t see the ball on the green. She got in the golf cart and flew to the green and said, ‘yep, it’s in the hole!’ It was great! It was the best Mother’s Day I ever had.”

Her husband has four hole-in-ones and she is closing in on him. She got her first at the Deerfield Country Club on Nov. 23, 2011 when she aced the 120-yard, 17th hole with a 7-iron. They play together about 4 to 5 times a week.

It was a great thrill,” she said. “It compares to getting a 300 game in bowling. No I have to catch up (to Nick).”

Simply Soccer Camp offered

The Simply Soccer camp returns for its 28th year in Coral Springs. The soccer camp is for boys and girls, ages 5-15, and of all skill levels, who will be taught a variety of soccer skills from dribbling to shooting.

There are three sessions each day ranging from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. with extended hours camp from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m., and a Tiny Tot program for kids ages 5 and 6 from 9 a.m. to noon.

Full day campers must bring a soccer ball, swimsuit, shin guards, water bottle and lunch. You do not have to be a city resident to attend.

The dates are: June 13-17; June 20-24; June 27-July 1; July 11-15; July 18-22; July 25-29; August 1-5; August 8-12; August 15-19.

You can register daily from 8 a.m. to 9 p.m. at the Coral Springs Gymnasium, 2501 Coral Springs Drive, Coral Springs. For information on the Coral Springs camp call 954-345-2200.

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Women in Distress tourney nets $16K

Posted on 07 April 2016 by LeslieM

sports040716By Gary Curreri

Like many of the other players in the tournament, Deerfield Beach’s Marilyn Guisti played for a cause and the competition.

It is very important to support women who are being battered and hopefully this will give them a lot of confidence to do what they have to do,” said Guisti, who was one of 128 golfers in the sold-out field for the 4th annual Women’s Invitational Golf Tournament to Benefit Women In Distress-Broward at Colony West Country Club in Tamarac. “It is very special to be with friends and help women who are being battered.”

Delray Beach’s Tina Ostrowski agreed. After she hit her tee shot into the rough at Colony West Country Club, she looked at her teammates and shrugged her shoulders.

That was a bad one, but the practice swing was good,” she said with a laugh. “I am a new golfer, so this is only my third tournament, but I am here with dear friends and we are here to support a wonderful cause. It’s great to be a part of it and I look forward to supporting it [for] many years to come.”

Nancy Hersey, Kathy Constantine, Mechelle Brown, and Shauna Federico won Low Gross honors in the tournament with a 63, while Cheryl Johnston, Pat Reid, Lora Hoffman, and Jen Gallaudet captured Low Net honors with a 43.2.

Pompano Beach’s Jan Parke, who chaired the event with Alberta Bove and Penny Eppy, said the fourth annual event has raised more than $37,000 during its history, including a record amount of $16,417.68 this year. That total easily surpassed last year’s previous total of nearly $6,000.

It’s grown by the number of players and the amount of money we are donating to Women in Distress,” Park said. The Colony West Women’s Golf Group hosted the event. “I feel it is an important tournament. It is a tournament by women to help women and Women in Distress is a really important charity.”

The first year, the tournament drew 84 players and raised a little more than $4,000. The tournament sold out for the second consecutive year with 128 players and has been held at Colony West Country Club all four years.

Parke said men have approached her suggesting a coed tournament.

We haven’t gotten to that point,” Parke said. “I know there is another tournament in the fall for Women in Distress that is a coed tournament, so ours is a spring, women’s only tournament.”

Parke said one of the things that stood out this year is the support of the community and the sponsors.

She said there were more auction items and drawing prizes. There were awards for low gross and 1-6 for low net. They received gift certificates. The Low Gross and Low Net winners each won a foursome at the course.

Events Coordinator for Women in Distress Eileen Trower said there are 3 to 4 main events and then smaller “third party” events such as the Colony West tournament. There are more than a dozen third party events annually.

This isn’t considered a main event; however, it is gradually getting closer to that,” Trower said. “The money covers everything…the organization offers [to] the women in the shelter, women in the outreach program…just any of the women, men or children that live in our facilities. It helps in so many ways.”

The shelter consists of 132 beds and there is an outreach program. Both operate at capacity.

As soon as someone leaves, there is someone else who comes right into the facility,” Trower said. “It is very gratifying to know that there are people out there willing to support the organization. It is just amazing. Just the work that goes into organizing something like this is just incredible and we are so thankful for that.”

It does bring awareness to domestic violence,” Trower added. “Events like these, the ultimate goal is to stop domestic violence. With everyone doing events like this, the awareness and the monies brought in to help the individuals we serve, will help us end domestic violence for everyone.”

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Record crowd turns out for Honda Classic

Posted on 10 March 2016 by LeslieM

SPORTS031016By Sandy Johnson

The Honda Classic Golf Tournament was played at PGA National Golf Course in Palm Beach Gardens in front of a record crowd of over 200,000 people.

This is a tribute to the connection that the Honda Classic has made with the community. People enjoy coming out to the tournament and they have a great time once they are here,” said tournament executive director Ken Kennerly.

They were not disappointed by the golfing action that they saw.

Adam Scott held off Sergio Garcia in an exciting down-to-the-final-hole nail biter! But equally important to the pleasure of watching the tournament is the amazing impact it has on the local community. Children’s Health Care Charity contributes to Nicklaus Children’s Health Care Foundation (founded by golfing great Jack Nicklaus) as the major benefactor of the tournament. Over the years, the Honda has given more than $28 million to this foundation and other local children’s charities. This is made possible by the folks that attend, the sponsors, the staff, but, even more so by the thousands of volunteer hours put in by locals.

The CouTOURe Club is a group of over 100 gals who run the hospitality tents all over the course, easily identified by their distinctive pink outfits that change daily. They are on-hand the whole week to make sure everyone is met with a smile and any problems are worked out.

These ladies do not stop at just working the Honda, but have many projects they work on all year long. Next up is gathering an array of gently-used jewelry, then going to the Grove Park Elementary School to let the students “shop” for a piece of jewelry to give to their moms for Mother’s Day.

Another great volunteer effort goes into the Patriot’s Outpost that honors all veterans past and present [by giving them a] place to watch the tournament, a meal and thanks from everyone in the area. There was even a wall where one could go and write a message of thanks to these well-appreciated Americans.

An interesting fundraiser that everyone can participate in is the Birdies for Children program. Any group can get involved with this. Individuals or businesses can solicit donations in the name of their favorite charity. Checks are sent to the Honda and they send a donation for the full amount plus a 10 percent donation from them to the charity. As a bonus, you get a chance to guess how many birdies will be made in the tournament. Winner receives a brand new Honda! Honda has been sponsoring this tournament for 35 years and has just signed on to continue for the next five years.

So go to the Honda Classic website and think about volunteering next year. Teens are welcome too! www.thehondaclassic.com.

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Johnson gets first ace

Posted on 03 March 2016 by LeslieM

sports030316johnsonBy Gary Curreri

At 81 years of age, Pompano Beach’s Bob Johnson finally got it right.

Johnson recently used a pitching wedge on the Par-3, 115-yard seventh hole on the Greg Norman Signature Pines Course at the City of Pompano Golf Course to pick up his first ever hole-in-one.

Was I lucky or what?” asked Johnson, who was playing in the weekly Pompano Beach Men’s Golf Association tournament. “Fifty years I have been playing and I never came close.”

I just hit it right,” Johnson laughed. “It is pretty amazing for an old bastard like me. The only thing I thought of was that I had good contact. I never thought it was going to be a hole-in-one. It was a thrill. It was a nice feeling, especially after playing all of those years.”

When he returned to the clubhouse, he had to buy drinks for his fellow golfers, as is tradition for someone getting a hole-in-one.

Of course everybody busted me, I had to buy the drinks for everyone,” Johnson said. “The first thing they said was, ‘buy a drink.’ Thankfully, they don’t drink much. If that happened 50 years ago, I’d probably still be there.”

How does he describe his game?

Not good,” he chuckled. “I am average player. I play three times a week – Monday, Wednesday and Friday.”

I haven’t come close since,” Johnson said. “I am lucky if I hit the green.”

Johnson did have one regret.

I should have said I was on a limited income,” Johnson added. His tab was helped out by a $100 check he received from a hole-in-one fund by the association.

Johnson still loves the camaraderie that the sport brings.

When you get to a certain age and you don’t work anymore, it is nice to go out and meet friends,” Johnson said. “That’s the fun part about it. I played sports all my life and I enjoy that part.”

Johnson said it was also fun for the family.

It was fun for my grandkids (Guy, Nick and Patricia) who came down to visit a week later,” Johnson said. “They got a thrill out of it. They are triplets and are 16 years old.”

sports030316harrisHarris hired as Highlands gridiron coach

Highlands Christian Academy has hired Josh Harris as its new varsity football coach.

Knight, who is currently teaching at Somerset Canyons in Boynton Beach and attends Boca Glades Baptist Church, played college football at the University of Miami a freshman before he transferred to Tennessee State University.

Harris was the assistant JV football coach at Miami Northwestern Senior High School in 2011; the assistant varsity football/defensive line coach at Doral Academy in 2012. In 2013, Harris was the assistant varsity football/defensive Coordinator for Somerset Academy in Pembroke Pines.

We are thrilled with Coach Harris accepting the position of Head Football Coach,” said Highlands Christian Academy Athletic Director Jim Good. Harris takes over a Knights program that went 2-7 last fall under interim coaches Sam Oge and Max Fisch. “It’s obvious Coach Harris has a love for the game, but his priorities are in order with God being at the top of the list and then his family.”

Highlands Christian will be competing in a spring jamboree on Thursday, May 19 with Jupiter Christian and Somerset Canyons. Currently, HCA is a member of the Florida Independent Football Conference.

Simply Soccer Camp starts soon

Simply Soccer Camp, which has boys and girls, ages 5-14 of all skill levels, and has attracted children from throughout Broward County, will host its Spring Break Camp at Mullins Park in Coral Springs.

The camp will be held from March 21-25.

There are three sessions ranging from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m.; from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. and a Tiny Tot program from 9 a.m. to noon. Players will be taught a variety of soccer skills from dribbling to shooting.

It is the longest running soccer camp offered by the city. Campers must bring a soccer ball, swimsuit, shin guards, water bottle and lunch. For information on the Coral Springs camp, call 954-345-2200.

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Allianz Golf Championship returns Feb. 1 – 7

Posted on 28 January 2016 by LeslieM

sports012816By Sandy Johnson

The Allianz Champions Golf Tournament is returning to the Old Course at Broken Sound Country Club from Feb. 1 to 7.

Imagine people all over the world, shivering in the winter cold, tuning in to the Golf Channel and watching beautiful, sunny, warm South Florida!

This annual event is enjoyed by many and has a major impact on our local area. Last year alone, they contributed over $600,000 to local charities, including Boca Raton Regional Hospital, Junior Achievement and many others. The estimated effect on our local economy is $29 million for the week’s events.

The activities begin on Monday, Feb. 1 with a women’s event hosted by PGA Hall of Famer Annika Sorenstam. The actual tournament runs from Friday at 10 a.m. through Sunday starting at 9 a.m. (Earlier Sunday start so that everything will be buttoned up by 3 or 4 o’clock in time for the Super Bowl!) Admission is free Monday through Thursday for practice rounds and Pro-Am and is free for the entire weekend for those under 17 and over 70.

Last year’s champion, Paul Goydos, returned last week for media day and talked at length about his win. It was his first tournament as a senior, as he had just turned 50. He said that he was here for just one week, but the tournament organizers and the Broken Sound people worked the other 51 weeks to make everything so perfect for players and spectators.

The PGA Tour, both the regular and the championship, has contributed over $120 million to charity! Think about the fact that there are no team owners to take a lion’s share of the profits. The money goes to the golfers with a huge amount going right back to the community charities in all the local venues!

For more information and full schedule of events, go to www.allianzchampionship.com.

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Disch gets first ace

Posted on 30 December 2015 by LeslieM

sports123115By Gary Curreri

George Disch recently picked up his first career hole-in-one when he aced the Par-3, 125-yard 7th hole at the Pompano Beach Golf Course.

I had no idea it was going in,” Disch said. “I hit a nice high shot straight at the cup and knew it was going to stop. It hit the hill and the hole was back in the green that day.”

Disch used an 8-iron to get the hole-in-one during a four-man scramble event for the Pompano Beach Men’s Golf Association at the Greg Norman Signature Pines Course.

There was a very strong wind, so I used my 8 iron,” said Disch, 67, of Pompano Beach, who has been playing golf for 35 years and is a 17-handicap. “It bounced once, hit an upslope and went right into the cup.”

Disch said he normally would hit a wedge on the hole, but went with the 8-iron because of the wind and pin placement.

It is my first one, I was really excited,” Disch said. “Hopefully, I’ll get another one. It was great that we won (the tournament).”

Disch and his partners, Paul Murphy and George Torres, won the tournament by two strokes with a 63. Since they were a threesome, they played alternate shots.

Cote pockets $2,250 with win

Charles Cote of Pompano Beach, birdied three of his last nine holes to pull out a one-shot win on the Florida Professional Golf Tour (FPGT) Tuesday at Wekiva Golf Club in Longwood, FL.

Cote outdueled Patrick Sheehan of nearby Oviedo 133 to 134. They were tied for the first round lead at seven under par 65. Sheehan led by two after 27 holes but parred the back nine as Cote birdied Nos. 10, 15 and 16.

In regulation, Cote made 12 birdies and a bogey, at the par-4 seventh hole the final round, for a closing 68. Sheehan also had seven birdies Monday but just three on the front nine Tuesday, on the first two holes and at the 9th for 69.

Scoring his first FPGT win, Cote earned $2,250 from the $13,150 purse. Sheehan, second among 62 entries, collected $1,520. Sheehan has five FPGT victories over the past five seasons.

After a short Christmas break, the FPGT resumes its 10th season Jan. 4-5 in the New Years Open at Black Bear GC in Eustis. For information and entry, go to www.floridaprofessionalgolftour.org.

Local skater takes 12th at Championship

Pompano Beach’s Lara Annunziata, 12, recently placed 12th in the Eastern Sectional Figure Skating Championships in Simsbury, CT with a score of 87.10.

Annunziata, who represents the Skating Club of Florida out of the Palm Beach Iceworks in West Palm Beach, qualified for the Sectional competition when she won the Novice Ladies Group B session en route to a 3rd place finish overall in the South Atlantic Championships in Aston, PA one month earlier. She was second after the short skate.

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Stuart wins tourney

Posted on 27 November 2015 by LeslieM

By Gary Curreri

Janet Stuart is showing no signs of age as she won her 5th Pompano Beach Women’s Golf Association 2015 Past President’s Cup Championship recently.

Stuart, 82, won in a tiebreaker of a match of scorecards over Debbie Brown, 58, of Deerfield Beach. Stuart shot an 85 (net 67) on the second day after an opening round 95 (77 net). The winner was decided by using the USGA recommended method and going back on the last nine holes played to determine the winner.

Stuart scored a 43, less nine handicap strokes for a net total of 34, while runner-up Debbie Brown, of Deerfield Beach, shot a 42, less seven handicap strokes for a total of 35. Stuart won the tiebreaker by one stroke.

(Winning) this particular tournament was a surprise to me because I hadn’t done too well on the first day,” said Stuart, of Oakland Park, who won her 5th President’s Cup title after shooting a two-day net score total of 144. “I didn’t figure I had a chance so I wasn’t paying much attention to it, so maybe that was good. I didn’t get nervous.”

Brown, 58, of Deerfield Beach, said she knew when they tied with the 144s that she would be runner-up.

Janet and I played together the last round of the President’s Cup,” Brown said. “When they announced the tie, I knew right away I had lost the competition because of our back nine scores and our handicaps.

When they announced I had won, I also knew that was incorrect,” Brown added. “I refrained from the discussion and allowed those present to resolve it … Of course, I was disappointed, but Janet Stuart has long been my hero when it comes to golf. I admire her and I am encouraged by her that the future holds many more bright sunny days of golf.”

Stuart also won the President’s Cup titles in 2000, 2001, 2010 and 2012. She’s won a couple of Club Championships at the Pines Course at the Pompano Beach Golf Course too.

It was more of a surprise because I am getting up there and all these young girls are playing well,” said Stuart, who is currently a 17 handicap. “I almost shot my age the second round and I was thinking more of that than winning the tournament. I was hoping to sneak in a couple of more pars or birdies coming in.”

Bucks blanked; season over

Deerfield Beach saw its seven-game winning streak and hopes for a state championship come to a screeching halt on Friday as visiting Flanagan blanked the Bucks, 17-0, in the Class 8A regional semifinal.

Deerfield Beach (10-2) entered the game averaging 32.2 points per game; however, Flanagan (10-2) gave up just three first downs and 79 total yards in a dominating defensive performance.

Devin Bush broke a scoreless tie with a 21-yard touchdown early in the second quarter, and Angel Trujillo added a 32-yard field goal with three seconds left in the first half to give the Falcons a 10-0 lead. Flanagan’s defense held the Bucks to 21 yards in the first half and no first downs.

Flanagan, which avenged a 14-7 overtime loss to Deerfield Beach in the 2013 regional quarterfinals, iced the game on Dredrick Snelson’s 25-yard TD run with 7:50 remaining in the game.

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Wyatt Wins; Hopes for more

Posted on 25 June 2015 by LeslieM

sports062515By Gary Curreri

A chance encounter with Phil Mickelson as a 10-year-old helped launch Wyatt Rubin’s golfing career.

I was just starting out in golf in 2007 and me and my dad went to Doral and we followed Phil Mickelson during his round,” said the 18-year-old Rubin, who lives in Pompano Beach. “He had just finished the 13th hole and flipped his golf ball to me. He said, ‘here you go kid.’ I still have that ball today. It was the Holy Grail for me.”

Rubin recently won the Junior Golf Association of Broward County’s Boys Championship Flight by firing an even par, 72 (35-37) at the Plantation Preserve Golf Club. Fellow Pompano Beach resident Isak Nilsson tied for sixth just four shots back after shooting 38- 38-76.

Rubin hit 13 of 18 greens for his win and putted well as he totaled six birdies in his round. He recorded birdies on 1, 7, 9, 11, 15 and 17 and came back from a double bogey on 10.

He started playing in the Junior Golf Association (JGA) of Broward County when he was 10 and was in the lower flights as he worked his way up. The best he had done in the JGA of Broward was tying for third at Plantation Preserve last year.

The recent Calvary Christian Academy graduate is in the process of walking on at Florida Atlantic University. He is preparing for a September tournament staged by the school for walk-on golfers.

It would be amazing to play college golf,” said Rubin, who helped his high school team win district and regional titles in golf. “Just like going to states in high school was a big deal, to be able to say I played a Division 1 sport in college would be a really good accomplishment. I am going to try my best and we’ll see.”

Golf almost wasn’t in his future. He made the Calvary Christian school team as a seventh grader, but gave up the sport in the eighth grade.

I was sick of golf,” Rubin said. “I played in a lot of tournaments that required me driving like two hours when I was younger. I played both days on the weekends and it took all of my time. I wasn’t playing very well. It was just so time consuming and it was frustrating.”

Rubin didn’t even watch golf on TV and didn’t play the sport at all for a year.

When I came back for my freshman year, I was refreshed and from then on I kept getting better and better,” Rubin said. “It was exciting because I got to hang out with all of my friends and my coach Marty Fanning, who was my teacher in the third grade and is like a mentor of mine.”

He said the JGA of Broward County has been the majority of his competitive golf experience. He likes the players and the organizers.

It is such a cool thing to wake up on a Monday morning and go play some competitive golf,” Rubin said. “Competitive golf is a feeling you can’t replicate anywhere else.”

Knowing he won a tournament that a current PGA golfer has probably won in their history is also exciting.

I was thinking the whole week after I won I was like the big man on campus for one week,” Rubin said. “I am sure there have been some really good golfers who have won the boys championship in the past.

Every time I won a lower flight tournament in the past, it felt good, but it wasn’t the Championship Flight,” he added. “And to finally pull off a championship where all the best players were in and to call myself the best in the entire JGA for that week, really felt good.”

In other divisions involving local golfers at Plantation Preserve, Pompano Beach’s Daria Korovina shot a 30 to place fourth in the Girls B Division. Weston’s Polina Anisimova carded a 25 to win the division.

Two Pompano Beach golfers finished fourth and sixth respectively in the Boys Junior Division. Dylan Glatt shot a 42-41-83 to finish fourth, while Nicklaus O’Bryan was sixth just three shots back with a 43-43-86.

Deerfield Beach’s Justin Danzansky carded a 48 to finish seventh in the Boys A Division. He was seven shots back of Sunrise’s Orangel Machado. In the Boys E Division, Daniel Melnick of Pompano Beach shot a 24 to finish four shots behind winner Evan Kuperman of Parkland.

Pompano Beach’s Mateo Desmond carded a 14 to tie for second with Lauderhill’s Israel Bailey in the Boys F Division. Pembroke Pines’ Jose Esteras also shot a 2-over par, 14 and won the division on a tiebreaker.

There are five more weeks left in the JGA of Broward season, including the three-day final tournament to be held at the end of July at Jacaranda Golf Club, Woodlands Country Club and Ft. Lauderdale Country Club.

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