MJT Odlum Brown Champions Crowned At World Amateur Golf Ranking Stop In Chilliwack
- Details
- Category: Inside Golf
- Published: 2021-08-09
CHILLIWACK, British Columbia — The Maple Leaf Junior Golf Tour’s top-rated three-day event took place this past week in Chilliwack, BC, with a wait-listed field of 100 elite young golfers in the 17th annual, World Amateur Golf-ranked MJT Odlum Brown Classic at Chilliwack Golf and Country Club. The tournament ran in beautiful sunshine with fantastic golf conditions, yielding great scores from all six divisions. The event also featured a cut after two rounds to the top 60% of the field in each division.
The MJT Odlum Brown Low Overall Champion for 2021 was 18-year-old Brycen Ko, of Richmond, BC. The UBC recruit made a comeback to win low overall with his MJT Junior Boys title, shooting outstanding scores of 71, 71, and 68 (210, -6). “I felt confident in my short game and my tee shots,” commented Ko. “I’m really happy that all the work I’ve done leading up to the tournament paid off.” Runner-up was rival SFU recruit, Bailey Bjornson, 18, of Surrey, BC, who fired 69, 70, and 73 (212, -4) while 18-year-old Adrian Murray, of Delta, BC, rounded out the podium in third place with scores of 68, 77, and 69 (214, -2).
Low Overall Girls score was in the MJT Girls U15 Division where a close contest took place between two previous champions. Coming out of the three-day tournament with a one-shot victory as MJT Girls U15 Odlum Brown Champion was 14-year-old Ling Yu (Katherine) Hao, of Burnaby, BC. Hao’s great scores of 73, 69, and 77 (219, +3) earned her fourth MJT title of the season. “There were some very talented players in the field, so I was a bit nervous at the start,” she said. “After not sinking my putts in the second round, I started to relax and let it go and the putts began to go in.” Langley, BC, golfer Amy Lee, 13, was rock solid with rounds of 72, 74, and 74 (220, +4) to finish runner-up.
The MJT Odlum Brown Classic Juvenile Boys trophy was won by 16-year-old Caleb Davies of Langley, BC, who shot excellent rounds of 67, 72, and 72 (211, -5) to win. Davies showed off his consistency, never giving up the lead after shooting a 67 on the first day despite charges from multiple players in the division. “I thought my game was in good shape coming into the tournament,” he said. “My putting was the reason I won and I did a great job fighting the wind on the final day.” Low round of the entire tournament was carded on day two by runner-up, Stewart Walker, 16, of Whistler, BC (79, 65, 74 = 218, +2) while 15-year-old Nathan Szpakowicz, of Vancouver, BC, placed third in the division (73, 74, 73 = 220, +4).
Showing her consistency over 54 holes of competition and winning the MJT Girls 15-19 Odlum Brown Classic trophy was 17-year-old Abby Chow, of Coquitlam, BC. Chow, who won at the MJT Ford Series at Rivershore just a couple of weeks ago, shot 73, 75, and 74 (222, +6) to earn another MJT title this season. “I feel pretty great to get back-to-back wins,” commented Chow. “My irons were the strongest part of my game and set me up for some good birdie chances.” After moving up and down the division’s leaderboard, 14-year-old Luna Lu, of Burnaby, BC, came second with scores of 68, 83, and 74 (225, +9).
The MJT Odlum Brown Classic Bantam Boys Champion was Coquitlam, BC, golfer Eric Joo. The 14 -year-old golfer fired scores of 70, 75, and 70 (215, -1) to win the title by three shots. “I had some trouble with the driver, but overall my game was pretty good,” commented Joo. “It feels good to get the win at this event.” Runner-up was North Vancouver, BC, player Hyunjun Lee, 14, fired rounds of 71, 78, and 69 (218, +2).
Ethan Zeng, 12, of Vancouver, BC, captured the MJT Peewee Boys Odlum Brown Classic trophy with a trio of 75s (225, +9). Zeng, who has played 50 events on the MJT Mini and Junior Tours since joining a few years ago, earned his first 2021 MJT Junior Tour title of the season. “My driver was the best part of my game,” commented Zeng, who found fairways for most of the competition. “I was just thinking about having lots of fun and keeping a steady pace.” Showing score improvements each day was runner-up Jaden August, 12, of Pitt Meadows, BC, who recorded scores of 83, 75, and 70 (228, +12).
MJT Booster Juice BounceBack awards for most improved score from round one to round two went to Hui Yu, Jaden August, Joey Brandt, Stewart Walker, and Bryan Chan. Full results of this major event can be viewed here.
The next stop in BC takes place in Langley for the MJT G&G Prodigy Series at Pagoda Ridge Golf Course on August 26 and 27. More details can be found online at www.maplejt.com.
About Odlum Brown Limited
Odlum Brown Limited is an independent, BC-based, full-service investment firm providing disciplined investment advice and objective research with a singular focus on clients. Established in 1923, the firm offers a full range of investment products including equities, fixed income, mutual funds and GIC’s; and financial, retirement and estate planning through its wholly-owned subsidiary, Odlum Brown Financial Services Limited. For more information visit www.odlumbrown.com/ Member-Canadian Investor Protection Fund.
About the MJT
The non-profit Maple Leaf Junior Golf Tour is Canada’s number one-played Junior Golf Tour as well as the only national junior tour run exclusively by PGA of Canada Professionals and the ‘Road to College Golf’ in Canada. The organization is supported by valued Premier, Tournament and Product Partners. The MJT hosts close to 90 events across Canada, including free Ford Go Golf Junior Clinics, the MJT Mini Tour for 12U and multi-day events for competitive players aged 11-19 which also offer qualifiers for international tournaments. The program has annual awards, scholarships and incentives to help reward performance and participation throughout each season. MJT alumni include many Professional Tour players and PGA of Canada Professionals, as well as Canadian Amateur, National and Provincial Junior Champions. The MJT aims to develop champions, in golf and in life, promoting the game from grassroots through to the provincial, national, university and professional levels.