Williams, Boutwell and Cleveland lead at Hampton Cove
Hampton Cove, just outside Huntsville, AL, is our location this week. The 54-hole Robert Trent Jones layout features plenty of elevation, length and hazards. Our 78-player field tackled the Highlands course in round one and saw 76 rounds of over par. Only two players in the field managed to tame the difficult layout and post an even-par 72. Ally Williams leads the overall female championship, after her opening round of 74. Eric Boutwell and Codey Cleveland were the only two players to post blue numbers and lead the overall male championship at 72.
Neysa Dechachutinan leads the female 12-14 division, after her opening round of 82. Playing extremely long, soft and windy, the Highlands course didn’t offer up many birdie opportunities – Dechachutinan played steady golf and posted 11 pars in her opening 18 holes. Avery Weed sits one stroke back at 83. Weed, a 2023 grad, made an excellent birdie on the slightly shorter par-4 2nd hole which helped her to a 38 opening nine.
Ally Williams of Athens, AL leads the female 15-19 division and the overall female championship. Williams posted an impressive 74 in her opening round, which contained three birdies. With a four-stroke lead in the division and overall championship, Williams will hope to hold on during round two and pick up her second win of the 2018 SJGT season. Erika Allen is Williams’s closest challenger, after an opening round of 78. The Berry, AL native came back strong on the back nine, posting 7 pars and two bogeys. Tied for third in the division, with rounds of 80, are Gittle Sciolis and Savannah Johnson. The pair made three birdies between them and sit six strokes behind the leader.
12 pars and six bogeys has Marshall Butler leading the way in the male 12-13 division. Butler’s 78 gives him a one stroke advantage over second place and four strokes ahead of third place. The 2023 grad from Macon, GA will be hoping to produce more of the steady golf displayed in today’s round during tomorrow’s play. Local player, Trent Trousdale of Huntsville, AL, sits in second place in the division. Trousdale used his local knowledge to post a solid opening round of 79 containing two birdies. Rounding out the top-3 in the male 12-13 division is Christopher Yeilding. Despite a shaky start, Yeilding stayed cool and finished with a 10-over par round of 82.
Leading the male 14-15 division, and tied for the overall male lead, is Eric Boutwell. A 20212 grad, Boutwell played at a level beyond his year and posted a very impressive 72 in the opening round. Perhaps the most exciting scorecard of the tournament so far, Boutwell’s 72 contained six birdies, six pars and six bogeys. Sitting one back, after his opener of 73, is Barnes Stacey. The Gadsden, AL native posted four birdies en route to his one-over par total. A further five strokes back is Karsten Bryan on 78. Bryan, a late entry into the field, can be happy with his round that contained 13 pars.
Codey Cleveland leads the most tightly packed division of the tournament – male 16-19 division. Cleveland posted a 72 in his first round, yet sees 15 players in his division within just five strokes of his total. Cleveland also made four birdies over the 6700-yard layout and will hope for more of the same tomorrow. Alone in second place is Cameron Spehar with his opening round of 73. Three birdies in a five-hole stretch over the opening nine holes helped Spehar to a very solid start in this year’s championship. Tied for third place is Hunter Battles and Connor Targonski. Both players posted rounds of 74 and will look to make an early move up the leaderboard tomorrow morning.
Tee times begin at 8:30AM tomorrow morning, with out sunrise Easter service beginning at 7AM on the putting green. Please head to our Facebook or tournament page for today’s pictures!
