West Team claims Wyndham Cup for third straight year, 27.5-22.5

West Team claims Wyndham Cup for third straight year, 27.5-22.5

West claims 11.5 of 20 points in singles matches en route to victory

WINSTON-SALEM, N.C. – Carrying a slim two-point lead into the 20 singles matches, the West Team scored five of the first six points Thursday en route to its third straight Wyndham Cup victory, 27.5-22.5. With the win, the West improved its record to 14-9-3 in the all-time series.

Though the East Team carried momentum from Wednesday night, the West Team added to its two-point lead early in the day. Jacob Solomon, who was added to the West roster less than a week ago, led with a 1-up victory, bringing his record for the week to 3-0-1.

Haley Moore followed with a win in the second match, bringing her record to 4-0-0 in her Wyndham Cup debut.

“It means a lot to get a win in an early match because that gives the team confidence in their matches,” said Moore, who was the only player to win four matches on the week. “It’s great to be undefeated and get points on the board for the West. It’s been one of my goals since I’ve been on the AJGA and I’m very happy I was able to play.”

In the third match, Sam Burns defeated Braden Thornberry, 2 and 1, and the West quickly built a five-point lead, 19-14.

The East Team rallied and pulled to within 24.5-20.5 by winning five of six matches midway through the day. Jillian Hollis was part of that afternoon surge, and her 1-up win added to an unblemished 3-0-1 record for the week.

“I made my putt on the last hole to win and I got off the green and started tearing up immediately because this is my last AJGA event,” said Hollis, who will play for University of Georgia this fall. “This is my favorite tournament of the entire year. It’s tough losing, but it’s still so much fun to be a part of.”

In the end, the West’s lead proved to be insurmountable. Nathan Jeansonne clinched the Wyndham Cup by guaranteeing a half-point when he went dormie 3 in his match, but it was reigning U.S. Junior Amateur champion Philip Barbaree who put the Cup-clinching point on the board. A two-putt par on No. 18 gave him a 1-up win over Won Jun Lee, giving the West 25.5 points and the Wyndham Cup victory.

“This means so much to me, to have so many of my close friends on the West Team with me. I’m really proud of how all of the West players played today,” said Barbaree, who went 2-2-0 in his Wyndham Cup debut. “It was an awesome atmosphere here. Having teammates cheering me on as I came down the stretch really helped me come out with a win.”
For more information about Wyndham Cup, please contact Chris Richards (crichards@ajga.org), or visit ajga.org.

Tuesday Morning Four-Ball: West 5, East 5
Tuesday Afternoon Mixed Foursomes: West 3, East 2
Wednesday Morning Foursomes: West 6.5, East 3.5
Wednesday Afternoon Mixed Four-Ball: East 3.5, West 1.5
Thursday Singles: West 11.5, East 8.5

TOTAL: West 27.5, East 22.5

Jacob Solomon, Dublin, Calif. (2015) WEST def. Gabriel Lench, Lake Mary, Fla. (2015) EAST, 1-up

Haley Moore, Escondido, Calif. (2016) WEST def. Shannon Brooks, Vienna, Va. (2015) EAST, 1-up

Sam Burns, Shreveport, La. (2015) WEST def. Braden Thornberry, Olive Branch, Miss. (2015) EAST, 2 & 1

Kaitlyn Papp, Austin, Texas (2017) WEST def. Maddie Rose Hamilton, Louisville, Ky. (2015) EAST, 2 & 1

Eugene Hong, Sanford, Fla. (2018) EAST def. Matthew Wolff, Agoura Hills, Calif. (2017) WEST, 3 & 2

Maria Hoyos, (Colombia) Howey-in-the-Hills, Fla. (2017) EAST vs. Kathleen Scavo, Benicia, Calif. (2015) WEST, halved

Ryan Grider, Lewisville, Texas (2017) WEST def. Andrew Kozan, Palm Beach Gardens, Fla. (2017) EAST, 3 & 1

Youngin Chun, Austin, Texas (2018) WEST def. Ana Paula Valdes, (Mexico) Bluffton, S.C. (2016) EAST, 1-up

S.M. Lee, Buford, Ga. (2016) EAST def. Hidetoshi Yoshihara, (Japan) Irvine, Calif. (2016) WEST, 4 & 2

Jillian Hollis, Rocky River, Ohio (2015) EAST def. Xinying Wang, (China) Pleasanton, Calif. (2017) WEST, 1-up

Garrett Barber, Stuart, Fla. (2018) EAST def. Spencer Soosman, Westlake Village, Calif. (2016) WEST, 3 & 2

Cheyenne Knight, Aledo, Texas (2015) WEST def. Emilia Migliaccio, Cary, N.C. (2017) EAST, 1-up

Yechun (Carl) Yuan, (China) Lake Mary, Fla. (2015) EAST def. Brad Dalke, Hobart, Okla. (2015) WEST, 1-up

Lauren Stephenson, Lexington, S.C. (2015) EAST def. Hailee Cooper, Montgomery, Texas (2018) WEST, 3 & 2

Philip Barbaree, Shreveport, La. (2017) WEST def. Won Jun Lee, (South Korea) Wesley Chapel, Fla. (2017) EAST, 1-up

Rachel Dai, Milton, Ga. (2015) EAST vs. Alyaa Abdulghany, Newport Beach, Calif. (2017) WEST, halved

Norman Xiong, Canyon Lake, Calif. (2017) WEST def. Cameron Young, Scarborough, N.Y. (2015) EAST, 5 & 4

Bailey Tardy, Norcross, Ga. (2015) EAST def. Stephanie Lau, Fullerton, Calif. (2015) WEST, 7 & 6

Nathan Jeansonne, Keithville, La. (2015) WEST def. Davis Shore, Knoxville, Tenn. (2017) EAST, 2 & 1

Sierra Brooks, Sorrento, Fla. (2016) EAST vs. Hannah O’Sullivan, Chandler, Ariz. (2016) WEST, halved

About Wyndham Cup

Since 1990, Wyndham Cup has brought together 40 of the country’s top junior golfers in an East-versus-West team match play tournament. Five match-play formats are played – four-ball, mixed four-ball, foursomes, mixed foursomes and singles – and every player competes in singles matches and three of the four other formats.

About Wyndham Worldwide

One of the world’s largest hospitality companies, Wyndham Worldwide (NYSE: WYN) provides a wide range of hospitality services and products through its global portfolio of world-renowned brands. The world’s largest hotel company based on the number of properties, Wyndham Hotel Group is home to many of the world’s best-known hotel brands, with over 7,670 franchised hotels and over 667,000 hotel rooms worldwide. Wyndham Exchange & Rentals is the worldwide leader in vacation exchange and the world’s largest professional manager of vacation rentals business, providing more than 5 million leisure-bound families annually with access to over 109,000 vacation properties in over 100 countries through its prominent exchange and vacation rental brands. The industry and timeshare ownership market leader, Wyndham Vacation Ownership develops, markets, and sells vacation ownership interests and provides consumer financing to owners through its network of 210 vacation ownership resorts serving approximately 904,000 owners throughout the United States, Canada, Mexico, the Caribbean, and the South Pacific. Based in Parsippany, NJ, Wyndham Worldwide employs over 34,000 associates globally.

For more information, please visit www.wyndhamworldwide.com.

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 more than 6,300 members from 48 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.

Titleist, the AJGA’s National Sponsor, has been the catalyst and driving force behind the Association’s success since 1989. 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 Jordan Spieth, Brandt Snedeker, Bubba Watson, Webb Simpson, Hunter Mahan, Phil Mickelson, Tiger Woods, Stacy Lewis, Vicky Hurst, Inbee Park, Paula Creamer, Cristie Kerr, Brittany Lincicome and Morgan Pressel.