Mountains of Great Shots at Mt. Pleasant
Baltimore Junior Golf Shootout
Baltimore, Maryland, April 22nd, 2024 — Buckeye Junior Golf Tour was at Mt. Pleasant Golf Course for the 2nd year in a row. This course is part of the Baltimore “Classic 5” and is considered a must play if visiting the city. The course has hosted Arnold Palmer where he secured his 2nd PGA victory in his storied career. The course was also host to the Eastern Invitational from 1950-1958. The course has a classic American design and offers up challenging holes, especially Hole-1 that even gave Arnie some trouble back in 1956. Let’s see who was able to join the list of the likes of Arnold Palmer by winning a tournament on this historic course.
You probably noticed Dan out there with his camera taking pictures during the tournament. If you would like to see them or download any from this event or any others, click the link to our Google Photos Drive:
Round 1 – Saturday, April 20th — Wow, our first tournament round of the year where weather really was not a factor. Partly cloud with a high of 72 degrees. It only took until the end of April folks but we are hoping that this Spring weather finally sticks around
Although Hole-1 was playing extremely tough for the Boys 15-19 in Round 1 it was actually Hole-15 that was playing the toughest for them in Round 1. This is a long 420-Yard, Par-4. Sitting at the 6th-handicap this hole offers up all kinds of trouble from its distance to tee its extremely tough approach. You really have to hit this slight dog-leg just right to make sure that you have a chance at scoring well on this hole. Otherwise, there are groups of trees on the left, right and long of the green that can be ready to snag your approach shot out of the air and ruin any chances at distance or a good score. The extremely tiny green is tough to land on in itself even with a good tee shot. A Par on this hole is a great score. The hole only offered up 3 Pars from this Division in Round 1. The players that were able to Par were Matthew Slivosky from Manchester, Maryland, Colton Thomas from Salisbury, Maryland and Clayton Bowman from Ijamsville, Maryland. Great job on pulling off same fantastic Pars, Boys! In a surprising move Hole-12 was playing the easiest for the Boys 15-19 in Round 1. Sitting at the 10th-handicap this hole does not get a lot of attention. This Par-4, sits at 377-Yards and features a major dog-leg. The dog-leg is tough to challenge as the trees on the left side poke in and try to force you to play a draw in and take off any distance. Our Boys are always up for a challenge though and regularly challenged the dog-leg throughout Round 1. Don’t miss right on your approach as there are 2 bunkers sitting on that side that regularly snag shots that miss their mark. Left or long can be trouble as well as there are a ton of trees that you can end up in. Hard-hitting Shane Cole from Westminster, Maryland helped to lower the average on the hole with his Birdie to lead the Division. Noah Wallace from Elkton, Maryland shot an awesome Round 1, 75, to come in as our Round 1 Leader for the Boys 15-19. Noah was followed closely behind by regular top of the leaderboard standout Nathan Eldridge from Owings Mills, Maryland.
Hole-12 was also playing the toughest for the Boys 10-14 in Round 1. Logan Stoney from Hillsborough, New Jersey was able to capture a Par on this tough hole to lead the Division. Hole-6, was playing the easiest for the Boys 10-14 in Round 1. This is the 17th-handicap hole. Sitting at just 113-Yards this Par-3 does not offer up much defense. The only thing you have to make sure that you avoid is the 2 small bunkers that sit in front of the green. Going a little long can be okay so you may as well club up. The green is also extremely large so landing on it and 1 or 2 putting should not be a problem. In a miraculous feat the entire Boys 10-14 Division picked up Pars on this hole. Landon O’Hara from Severn, Maryland continues his absolutely blistering 2024 season and if going by NBA Jam rules he is officially on fire (90’s kid joke). Landon shot a Round 1, 75, to be at the top of the Leaderboard. Logan Stoney also continues his amazing 2024 Season and was right behind Landon after the end of the Round.
We knew that Hole-1 would get the better of one Division and unfortunately it was the Girls 14-19 who were struggling with it the most in Round 1. Hole-1 holds the 3rd-handicap out at Mt. Pleasant but many argue that it is the 1-handicap. Either way it is an extremely difficult hole. Sitting at an extremely far 542-yards from the Buckeye-White Tees this hole’s main defense is its total yardage. Getting to the hole in 2 shots is extremely difficult. The trees start becoming numerous on the left side as you approach the hole. The green is also extremely small so landing on it even on a 3rd-shot can be very difficult. There are also 2 massive bunkers sitting on either side of the green making for any shots that land on either side will cost you usually an extra stroke. The smart play on this hole is just to take your medicine and layup short. A trio of Double Bogeys led the Division. 2-holes later the Girls got back into a rhythm. They played Hole-3 the best in Round 1. A short 279-Yard, Par-4 this hole can be taken down with the right shot selection. Sitting at the 11th-handicap this hole offers up a couple of strange defenses. First of all the major dog-leg can add some distance but if you cut the hole right it can be make for an extremely easy approach. This is easier said than done though as the fairway is short and narrow. Trying to cutoff the hole too much can make for a an extremely difficult approach as a large tree guards the right side of the green along with a trio of bunkers. The left side offers up another bunker and long and slightly left also has a bunker. Best to play a couple of fade shots landing safely on the back right of the green. Emily Rensch, our Champion of the Harrisburg Junior Golf Championship, from Chambersburg, Pennsylvania earned herself an early Birdie and led the Division on the hole. Tatayana Smith from Pikesville, Maryland led the Division after Round 1. Tatayana was followed closely behind by Emily Rensch.
Round 2 – Sunday, April 21st– Another nice Spring Day in Baltimore, Maryland!
Hole-11 proved to be the hardest for the Boys 15-19 in Round 2. It is always strange to see a Par-3 playing the toughest for the Boys 15-19 as accuracy is rarely a problem for them. However, as the hardest Par-3 on the course and the 8th-handicap overall this Par-3 can be quite tricky. At 198-Yards it is pretty long for a Par-3. The green, just like many other holes at Mt. Pleasant, is extremely small and dime-shaped. The green is also guarded on the left side by low hanging trees. The real problem with the hole lies in the 4 bunkers that surround it. There are ones on each the left and right side as well as 2 behind it. Playing the hole short is probably the best bet but our Boys 15-19 hate taking any yardage off so many went straight at the flagstick. Only 33% of the field was able to pick up Pars on the hole. The Boys took some notes from the Girls from Round 1, they played Hole-3 the best in Round 2. This hole was giving up a ton of Birdies throughout the weekend and Round 2 was no different. Nathan Eldridge continued his strong top of the leaderboard performance with a Birdie on the hole. Clayton Wright III from Baldwin, Maryland has proven that he can go extremely low in any given Round and was able to pick up a Birdie as well. Noah Wallace was just way to strong the entire weekend and went wire-to-wire to claim the Champion Flag. Noah picked up the very much desired stat of having the Most Pars with 23. The only player in the Division to have more than 20. Noah’s 6-Hole Bogey-Free-Streak to start the tournament was a huge way for him to jump to the top of the Leaderboard and not give up that position. Congratulations on a fantastic tournament and earning your first career BJGT Champion Flag, Noah! Nathan Eldridge always seems to find himself in the final pairing in Round 2 and the Baltimore Junior Golf Shootout was no different. Nathan earned himself the Runner-Up Flag this weekend. After taking 2nd-place at this tournament last season and living so close to the course Nathan knew how to navigate Mt. Pleasant and land near the top of the Leaderboard. Nathan’s 4 Birdies in the tournament led the Division. Nathan also led the Division on the Par-4 Holes, which is always a key stat in landing in the top players. Nathan also went on an 8-Hole Bogey-Free-Streak of his own in Round 1 from Holes 3-10 putting himself in early good position. Congratulations on another fantastic tournament Nathan and earning your 2nd Trophy Flag of your BJGT Career!
The Boys 10-14 found the 2nd-hardest hole on the golf course, Hole-10 to be playing the toughest in Round 2. A long 536-Yard, Par-5 this hole features a lot of different areas that can be extremely tough to come back from. The hole is tree-lined on both sides making accuracy the entire length of the hole extremely important. You are most likely going to have to layup on this Par-5. Laying up can prove to be difficult with the two bunkers that sit on the front right and left sides of the green. Players may want to take 30+ yards off their layup shot to make sure that they do not end up in one of these bunkers. The 30-Yard green also might be the smallest on the golf course of a course with already really tiny greens. Bogeys from Logan Stoney and Vyom Shukla from Berwyn, Pennsylvania led the Division on the hole. The Boys 10-14 took Hole-4 below Par in Round 2, making it the easiest hole for them in the Round! Hole-4 is a short 295-Yard, Par-4. The Boys 10-14 can take Par-4’s below 300-yards down in their sleep. The hole features probably the most extreme dog-leg of the course with about 70-yards of added distance from it. Watch out for the huge front center-right bunker when approaching the green as this massive sand trap can ruin great drives in instant. Landon O’Hara’s Birdie on the hole led the Division and put him even further atop the Leaderboard of a strong Division. Landon eventually came in as our Champion. Landon is just so darn good. In his 3 BJGT tournaments in 2024 he has posted 1st, 1st and 2nd. His score of 74 in Round 2 beat his Round 1 score of 75. He led the tournament with 27 Pars or Better. His consistency was further shown as he led the Par-4’s with an awesome +4, taking 17 Pars and 3 Birdies on those holes in the tournament. Congratulations to Landon on a fantastic tournament and getting back in the Winner’s Circle this week! Logan Stoney came in as our Runner-Up. Logan has had an unbelievable start to the 2024 BJGT Season. Logan has come in 3rd or better in 4/5 tournaments this season. Logan’s 5-Hole Bogey-Free-Streak from Holes 3-7 in Round 1 started him off in great shape and he did not let it go to waste. Congratulations on another fantastic tournament and leading the Boys 10-14 Player of the Year Standings Logan!
Hole-15 gets featured again here as it was playing the toughest for the Girls in Round 2. This hole was causing issues for a lot of players and was a Bogey trap late in the Rounds. Tatayana Smith’s Bogey on the hole helped to lead the Division. Hole-6 was once again playing extremely easy from the Buckeye-White Tee’s. The Girls Division dominated the hole and took it under-par as a Division! Faris Smith from Bethesda, Maryland helped to get to that under-par mark by leading the Division with a Birdie! In the end Tatayana Smith was just playing lights out in the tournament to come in as our Champion. Tatayana led the Division with 15 Pars. Where Tatayana really shined was she took advantage of an easier Back-9 out at Mt. Pleasant. She led the Division by going an awesome +11 on those 18-Holes throughout the entire tournament. Congratulations to Tatayana on a fantastic tournament and earning herself her first career BJGT Champion flag! Emily Rensch continued her strong 2024 Season to come in as our Runner-Up. Emily led the Girls Division in Birdies. Emily’s accuracy which is always on point was showcased with her Division leading Even Par on the Par-3’s Holes in the tournament, which also featured 2 Birdies on those 6-Holes. Emily has now earned herself a Trophy flag in all 3 BJGT tournaments that she has played in the past two seasons. Congratulations on a fantastic tournament Emily!
Thank you to everyone for joining us at Mt. Pleasant this weekend. This is a course with a lot of history and we really enjoy their love for having the juniors out on their course. We are about one-third of the way through the 2024 Season and the Player of the Year Points are really starting to come together. Remember that those really come in handy when trying to get your invite to the 2024 Buckeye Cup. Next up we have our tournaments Eagles Crossing. Then 2 events in May including Reston National and the always high turnout Oakmont Green!