Kozan, Onishi on top after first round at Sedgefield Country Club
Three players trail by one stroke after shooting rounds of 68
GREENSBORO, N.C. — Andrew Kozan of West Palm Beach, Florida, and Kaito Onishi of Irvine, California, claimed the first-round lead at the Haas Family Invitational after shooting rounds of 3-under-par 67 at Sedgefield Country Club. Three players trail by one stroke after shooting rounds of 68.
Kozan is ranked 25th in the Polo Golf Rankings and was a member of the 2015 Wyndham Cup East Team. The Auburn commit carded eight birdies to help him gain a share of the lead.
“My ball striking wasn’t too great today, it was kind of an up-and-down day,” Kozan said. “I had eight birdies and five bogeys – so it could have gone both ways. I still left some putts out there, but I’m not complaining after today.”
Kozan was in a similar position last year during this tournament. He is hoping to have a different result this time around.
“Last year I shot 68 in the first round, I think I was tied for second,” Kozan said. “I didn’t take that too well the rest of the week, I kind of fell back the next couple days, but I’ve played a few more four-day events and got a lot of experience from those.”
Onishi wrapped up his first round with a 3-under-par 67 to share the lead with Kozan. The University of Southern California commit carded eagles on the only two par 5s at Sedgefield Country Club. Onishi eagled No. 5 sinking a 25-foot putt, and on No. 15 he hit his 4 iron to two feet.
“Obviously I played well, but all I have to do is focus on my game and think about the score later,” Onishi said. “I could play bad or good, but if I enjoy my golf I’ll be happy.”
Currently, Onishi is ranked 26th in the Polo Golf Rankings and his best finish of 2016 was T8 at the TaylorMade-adidas Golf Junior at Innisbrook hosted by Justin Rose.
“I kind of felt some pressure in the morning, but it feels good to play well on the first day,” Onishi said. “We still have three days left so I hope I can finish strong.”
Three players are tied for third at 2-under-par: Dan Erickson of Whittier, California; Chandler Eaton of Alpharetta, Georgia; and Kyle Cox of Carrollton, Texas.
The second round of the Haas Family Invitational begins June 14th at 7:45 a.m.
About the AJGA
The American Junior Golf Association is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization dedicated to the overall growth and development of young men and women who aspire to earn college golf scholarships through competitive junior golf. The AJGA provides valuable exposure for college golf scholarships, and has an annual junior membership (boys and girls, ages 12-18) of nearly 6,500 members from 49 states and more than 50 foreign countries. Through initiatives like the Achieving Competitive Excellence (ACE) Grant, a financial assistance program, and Leadership Links, a service-oriented platform that teaches juniors charitable-giving skills, the AJGA fosters the growth of golf’s next generation.
TaylorMade-adidas Golf became the AJGA’s National Sponsor in 2016 after more than 25 years of support. Rolex, which is in its fourth decade of AJGA support, became the inaugural AJGA Premier Partner in 2004. In 2007, after 12 years of support, Ralph Lauren became the AJGA’s second Premier Partner.
AJGA alumni have risen to the top of amateur, collegiate and professional golf. Former AJGA juniors have compiled more than 600 victories on the PGA and LPGA Tours. AJGA alumni include Tiger Woods, Phil Mickelson, Jordan Spieth, Rickie Fowler, Bubba Watson, Webb Simpson, Sergio Garcia, Hunter Mahan, Dustin Johnson, Patrick Reed, Zach Johnson, Justin Thomas, Stacy Lewis, Vicky Hurst, Alison Lee, Lexi Thompson, Inbee Park, Paula Creamer, Brittany Lincicome, Cristie Kerr and Morgan Pressel.
Sedgefield Country Club | Par: 35-35–70. Yardage: 7107. Rating: 75. Slope: 143
1. Kaito Onishi, (Japan) Irvine, Calif. (2017) 34-33–67
1. Andrew Kozan, West Palm Beach, Fla. (2017) 33-34–67
3. Kyle Cox, Carrollton, Texas (2018) 33-35–68
3. Chandler Eaton, Alpharetta, Ga. (2016) 31-37–68
3. Dan Erickson, Whittier, Calif. (2017) 34-34–68
6. Tyler Strafaci, Davie, Fla. (2016) 34-35–69
6. Sachin Kumar, (Trinidad and Tobago) Port Saint Lucie, Fla. (2017) 31-38–69
6. William Nottingham, Kingsport, Tenn. (2016) 35-34–69
6. Joshua McCarthy, Danville, Calif. (2016) 33-36–69
6. Eugene Hong, Sanford, Fla. (2018) 33-36–69
11. Pierceson Coody, Plano, Texas (2018) 33-37–70
11. Brandon Mancheno, Jacksonville, Fla. (2017) 36-34–70
11. Karl Vilips, (Australia) Wesley Chapel, Fla. (2020) 36-34–70
14. Spencer Ralston, Gainesville, Ga. (2016) 36-35–71
14. Andrew Walker, Battle Creek, Mich. (2016) 34-37–71
14. Devin Hua, Barrigada, Guam (2016) 36-35–71
14. Noah Norton, Chico, Calif. (2017) 35-36–71
14. Walker Lee, Houston, Texas (2017) 34-37–71
14. Garett Reband, Fort Worth, Texas (2016) 34-37–71
14. David Laskin, Elk Grove, Calif. (2016) 34-37–71
14. John Pak, Scotch Plains, N.J. (2017) 33-38–71
14. Garrett Barber, Stuart, Fla. (2018) 37-34–71
14. Ryan Hall, Knoxville, Tenn. (2018) 34-37–71
14. Josef Dransfeld, Huntington, W.Va. (2018) 36-35–71
14. Andrew Spiegler, Abingdon, Va. (2017) 34-37–71
26. Aman Gupta, Concord, N.C. (2017) 35-37–72
26. Parker Gillam, Cary, N.C. (2017) 35-37–72
26. Nate Menon, Wyomissing, Pa. (2017) 37-35–72
26. Sen (Tommy) Cao, (China) Lake Mary, Fla. (2017) 35-37–72
26. Goodman Rudolph, Cordova, Tenn. (2017) 33-39–72
31. Joshua Gliege, Eagle, Idaho (2016) 34-39–73
31. Davis Shore, Knoxville, Tenn. (2017) 34-39–73
31. Wilson Furr, Jackson, Miss. (2017) 37-36–73
31. Charlie Miller, Jackson, Miss. (2017) 36-37–73
31. Ryan Gerard, Raleigh, N.C. (2017) 36-37–73
31. Devondeep Bling, Ridgecrest, Calif. (2017) 37-36–73
31. Trent Phillips, Inman, S.C. (2018) 37-36–73
38. Ethan Ng, New York, N.Y. (2018) 37-37–74
38. McClure Meissner, San Antonio, Texas (2017) 37-37–74
38. Sam Bennett, Madisonville, Texas (2018) 34-40–74
38. Eddy Lai, San Jose, Calif. (2017) 36-38–74
38. Koichiro Ishika, (Japan) Bradenton, Fla. (2017) 34-40–74
38. Andy Mao, Johns Creek, Ga. (2019) 36-38–74
38. Michael Sanders, Davidson, N.C. (2018) 34-40–74
38. Sean Maruyama, (Japan) Encino, Calif. (2018) 35-39–74
38. Michael Saccente, Edgewater, Fla. (2016) 38-36–74
47. Joseph Chun, (South Korea) Irvine, Calif. (2017) 38-37–75
47. Mason Nome, Houston, Texas (2019) 39-36–75
47. Brock Goyen, Gilbert, Ariz. (2017) 38-37–75
47. Zack Justice, Orlando, Fla. (2016) 37-38–75
47. Cooper Dossey, Austin, Texas (2016) 35-40–75
47. S.M. Lee, Buford, Ga. (2016) 38-37–75
47. Shiso Go, Hiratsuka, Japan (2017) 35-40–75
47. Reese Ramsey, Austin, Texas (2017) 39-36–75
55. Luka Karaulic, Dacula, Ga. (2018) 37-39–76
55. Ben Smith, Novi, Mich. (2017) 35-41–76
55. Youxin (Robin) Wang, (China) Lake Mary, Fla. (2017) 40-36–76
55. Hayden White, Benton, La. (2018) 42-34–76
55. Varun Chopra, Champaign, Ill. (2017) 39-37–76
55. Andy Spencer, Prairie Village, Kan. (2016) 41-35–76
55. Spencer Soosman, Westlake Village, Calif. (2016) 38-38–76
55. Rij Patel, Hunt Valley, Md. (2016) 38-38–76
55. James Piot, Canton, Mich. (2017) 38-38–76
55. Ryan Grider, Lewisville, Texas (2017) 40-36–76
55. Sam Tidd, Meridian, Idaho (2018) 40-36–76
66. Thomas Hogan, St. Simons Island, Ga. (2018) 38-39–77
66. Zhengkai (Bobby) Bai, (China) Lake Mary, Fla. (2016) 37-40–77
68. Carlos Tercero, Xalapa, Mexico (2017) 39-39–78
68. Chase Furey, Newport Beach, Calif. (2017) 37-41–78
70. Chase Cutshall, Melbourne, Fla. (2016) 38-41–79
70. Yash Majmudar, (India) Singapore, Singapore (2016) 40-39–79
70. Brandon Yoon, Brambleton, Va. (2017) 39-40–79
70. Will Dickson, Providence, R.I. (2017) 36-43–79
74. Brendan O’Reilly, Hinsdale, Ill. (2017) 41-39–80
75. Jake Milanowski, Peachtree City, Ga. (2017) 40-41–81
75. Pone Pyae Han, Yangon, Myanmar (2017) 38-43–81
75. Evan Sun, Wesley Chapel, Fla. (2019) 43-38–81
75. Sean Yi, Auburn, Wash. (2017) 38-43–81
75. Harrison Ott, Brookfield, Wis. (2017) 40-41–81
75. Russell Matos, Lombard, Ill. (2016) 40-41–81
81. Tobin Niblett, Austin, Texas (2016) 42-40–82
82. Christian Fanfelle, San Antonio, Texas (2018) 42-41–83
82. Greyson Porter, Clearwater, Fla. (2016) 37-46–83
84. Ahmed Ali, Palo Alto, Calif. (2018) 45-39–84
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Chris Richards, Senior Communications Director