West End, NC—Katherine Perry of Cary and Logan Harrell of Huntersville have been named the 2009 N.C. Junior Players of the Year by the Carolinas Golf Association (CGA) and the Tarheel Youth Golf Association (TYGA). The N.C. Junior Player of the Year award recognizes one girl and one boy who have had the most successful year in amateur and junior golf events at the local, state, regional and national levels.

Perry, a 17 year old high school senior at Athens Drive High School, had one of the most successful summers for a junior golfer winning the NC Women’s Amateur Championship and competing in the US Women’s Open. In the past year, Perry has won the NC High School Athletic Association’s 4A Girls’ Championship while leading her team to a second straight state championship, the CGA’s Vicki DiSantis Girls’ Championship, the Precision Golf Girls’ Championship, the Peggy Kirk Bell Tour Invitational along with four Peggy Kirk Bell Girls’ Tour events.  Perry also competed in the US Junior Girls’ Amateur where she finished 31^st in the stroke play qualifier and reached the match play portion of the national championship.  Of the 19 events used for the NC Junior Rankings, Perry finished in the top ten 16 times with eight first place finishes.  Perry represented the Carolinas in the Mid-Atlantic Girls’ Challenge Junior Team Matches at Mid Pines Inn and GC.   In September, Perry was awarded the WRAL Extra Effort Award for her efforts on the golf course and in the classroom.  Katherine has signed to play collegiate golf for the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.

Harrell, an 18 year old high school senior at Hopewell High School, placed in the top 10 ten times out of the 13 events he competed in that are used for the NC junior rankings.  In the US Junior Amateur Championship, Harrell was the sectional qualifying medalist and reached the semifinals of match play in the national championship.  Along with playing in the US Junior, Harrell also qualified for and competed in the US Men’s Amateur.  In the Carolinas Men’s Amateur Championship, Harrell reached match play and advanced to the round of 16.  Harrell also finished tied for second in the AJGA Cliff’s Championship, finished fourth in the Carolinas-Georgia Junior Championship, seventh in the Donald Ross Junior Championship and tied for ninth in the AJGA Foot Joy Invitational.  Harrell represented the Carolinas in the Carolinas-Virginias Men’s Team Matches.  Logan has signed to play collegiate golf for the University of South Carolina.

The Player of the Year awards were determined by a combination of each player’s tournament scoring differential and the total points earned in the TYGA NC rankings events from December 1, 2008 through November 30, 2009. These outstanding juniors, along with the 2009 All-State Girls’ and Boys’ teams, will be honored at the N.C. Junior Golf Night Awards Banquet on Saturday, December 26, 2009 at Little River Golf and Resort in Carthage, NC.

Six-Time LPGA Tour Winner and Two-Time Solheim Cup Team Member, Donna Andrews, to Speak at Peggy Kirk Bell Girls Golf Tour Function

            The Peggy Kirk Bell Girls Golf Tour will play its season opener at Pine Needles Lodge and Golf Club this weekend with a full field of 60 players.   Donna Andrews, successful LPGA player and well-known golf instructor, will be a featured speaker at a round table forum to be held on Saturday night from 7-8:30pm following the first round of play.

Andrews was an outstanding junior and amateur golfer, capturing numerous championship titles, and played collegiate golf at the University of North Carolina-Chapel Hill.  She is a six-time winner on the LPGA, two-time member of the U.S. Solheim Cup Team, and Captained the 2007 U.S. PING Junior Solheim Cup Team in Sweden.  Andrews now resides in Pinehurst, NC where she has been the head golf instructor for Pine Needles since 2006.

Andrews will lead the forum by speaking about her experiences through the different stages of her career to inform the audience about what great opportunities can arise through the game of golf.  Other forum speakers at the event include:

·         Robert Linville, Two time National Collegiate Coach of the Year and Director of Instruction at Precision Golf School

·         Chris Haarlow, US Kids Golf Top 50 Kids Teacher in America and Director Instructor for Precision Golf School

·         Ellen Lapierre, LPGA Professional, former Head Coach of Women’s Golf at UNCG & Recruitgolf.net Coordinator

·         Ted Bonham, Certified Titleist Performance Institute Instructor with Precision Golf School

·         Jonathan Dudley, former All-American collegiate golfer at Greensboro College and PKB Tour Director

·         Jessica Hauser, former Academic All-American at East Carolina University and Lead Instructor with the LPGA/USGA Girls Golf of Winston-Salem

The event promises to be very informative through participant driven discussion and the presence of a very successful and experienced panel.  Cost of the event is $5 per person, which includes pizza and beverages.  For more information, please visit http://www.tygf.org or call (336) 510-4653.