11 local golfers set to represent Colorado in Girls Junior Americas Cup, Pacific Coast Amateur and boys Junior America’s Cup
By Gary Baines – 7/19/2021
If it’s late July, it’s that time of year. Teams of golfers from the Centennial State will represent Colorado and the CGA or the Junior Golf Alliance of Colorado in prestigious regional or national golf competitions.
There’s the Girls Junior Americas Cup at BanBury Golf Course in Eagle, Idaho Tuesday through Thursday (July 20-22).
There’s the Pacific Coast Amateur at Chambers Bay in University Place, Wash., Tuesday through Friday (July 20-23), with the Morse Cup team competition set for the first two days. Chambers Bay hosted the U.S. Open in 2015.
And then there’s the boys Junior America’s Cup at Powder Horn Golf Club in Sheridan, Wyo. July 27-29.
Representing Colorado and the JGAC at the Girls Junior Americas Cup will be Jessica Mason of Westminster, Katelyn Lehigh of Loveland, Kaylee Chen of Parker, and Sofia Choi of Littleton. Mason recently won both the 4A girls state high school individual title and the girls division of the Colorado Junior PGA. Lehigh claimed the 4A girls state high school championship and qualified for the U.S. Girls’ Junior this year. Chen won the 2019 girls portion of the Colorado Junior Amateur. And Choi was runner-up in the Colorado Junior PGA and the 4A girls state high school tournament in 2021.
Teeing it up for Colorado and the CGA at the Pacific Coast Amateur will be Nick Nosewicz of Aurora, Josh McLaughlin of Loveland and Ryan Axlund of Englewood. Also in the field is University of Denver golfer John Sand. Nosewicz, who finished 36th individually at the 2016 Pac Coast Am, won the CGA Match Play in 2015. McLaughlin claimed the CGA Match Play title in 2019 and Axlund the CGA Mid-Amateur in 2019.
And at the boys Junior America’s Cup, playing for Colorado and the JGAC will be Hunter Swanson of Denver, Matthew Wilkinson of Centennial, Jeff Nelson of Commerce City and Owen Cornmesser of Fort Collins. Wilkinson and Swanson finished 1-2 in the Colorado Junior PGA and both have qualified for this week’s U.S. Junior Amateur. Wilkinson owns two JGAC major titles. Swanson was the JGAC Boys Player of the Year for 2020 and finished runner-up in a playoff at The First Tee National Championship this season. Cornmesser won the boys title at the AJGA Hale Irwin Colorado Junior. And Nelson qualified for the U.S. Junior Amateur and placed fourth at the AJGA Hale Irwin.
The Junior America’s Cup features some of the top male junior golfers from the western U.S., Canada and Mexico, while the Girls Junior Americas Cup includes some of their female counterparts from the same three geographical areas.