SALAMANCA — The 49th Penn-York Junior Golf League season teed off Monday morning, with Arcade’s Sam Hyman taking home the first Division I boys trophy of the summer.
Hyman, 17, a rising senior at Pioneer Central who plays at Holland Hills Country Club, carded a 72, two strokes over par at Elkdale Country Club to lead the top boys division, comprised of 16-18-year-olds. He beat out runner-up Josh Sidon (Blueberry Hill GC) and Anthony Gullo (Moon Brook), who both shot a 74.
In total, the league’s first week brought 85 of a registered 111 young golfers to Elkdale. League director Kyle Henzel cited a number of sports camps in the area starting this week for the number of absentees.
The league saw its biggest registration increase among the girls divisions, with 23 girls signed up to play. A first-time Penn-York golfer, Elyse Godding of Bradford, Pa. (Pine Acres), won the Division I girls (ages 14-18) with a 45 over nine holes.
Hyman said he started playing Penn-York, the five-stop summer junior tour through area courses, last year.
“My older brother was actually in it, I believe, as early as 2009 and he did real well and I wanted to see if I could play my golf as good as he could,” he said.
So far, he’s off to a solid start.
“Just kind of course management,” Hyman said of his round, “getting on the greens, keeping the putting low and try to keep the pars rolling I had a couple birdie opportunities. Reading the greens was a little tougher for me today, but I made the putts I needed to make and came out with it.
“The course was very good,” he added of the conditions. “Greens are quicker than what I normally play, so I adjusted quickly to them and got the putts down. Fairways were in very good shape and the rough made it difficult at times but it was doable.”
For Godding, the Bradford junior-to-be played Sunday at Elkdale to get her first glimpse of the course. She hoped to play the tour for the first time last summer, but an injury kept her out.
“My coach introduced it to me a couple years ago … probably a year ago,” Godding said. “But last year I had a little mishap in softball and I broke my finger, so I wasn’t able to golf last year in Penn-York. I was still recovering.”
Godding noted she didn’t think 45 was a great score.
“I left a lot of shots out there,” she said.
“(My goal is) hopefully either first or second and my scores, I want to be low 40s, high 30s, this year.”
THE LEAGUE’S low-average player through five weeks earns the John Forrest Memorial Outstanding Player trophy. The 10 lowest averages at season’s end qualify for the SWNY-NWPA Men’s Amateur at Bartlett Country Club, while the lowest 16 are invited to the Betty Bergreen Junior Championship, another match play tourney at Bartlett.
Olean’s Kamdyn McClain (Bartlett) won the boys’ Division II (ages 14-15) with an 87, followed by runner-up Jarrett Pond of Salamanca (Elkdale), who shot an 88.
Ethan Bailey (Wellsville) won the boys’ Div. III (12-13) with a 47, beating runner-up Curtis Hannon’s (Falconer/Jamestown) 48. Allegany’s Ryan Lechner (Bona) won the boys’ Div. IV (11-under, modified tees) with a 39, followed by Randolph’s Tyler Salvaggio (Cardinal Hills) at 47.
Avery Salvaggio of Randolph (CH) won the nine-hole Division III girls (ages 12-13) with a score of 69. Also from Randolph and Cardinal Hills, Payton Morrison won the Division IV girls (11-under) with a 59 playing on modified tees.
Penn-York takes next week off for the July 4 holiday, returning to play July 9 at Pennhills Club in Bradford.
Top 10 at Elkdale listed below:
Division I Boys
Score Points
1.) S. Hyman (HH) 72 10
2.) J. Sidon (BH) 74 9
3.) A. Gullo (Moon) 74 8
4.) C. Alfieri (Smeth) 75 7
5.) K. Maytum (CH) 76 6
6.) J. Goodenow (ELK) 77 5
7.) Z. Zameroski (LM) 78 4
8.) J. McCollough (BH) 81 3
9.) C. Robbins (SH) 83 2
10.) B. Morrison (CH) 85 1
Division II Boys
Score Points
1.) K. McClain (BAR) 87 10
2.) J. Pond (ELK) 88 9
3.) S. Cashimere (Bona) 90 7.5
3.) C. Salvaggio (CH) 90 7.5
5.) B. Streich (Coud) 93 5.5
5.) S. Cornelius (PA) 93 5.5
7.) C. Barner (Kane) 94 4
8.) M. Davis (BAR) 96 1.5
8.) M. Bizzak (Kane) 96 1.5
10.) D. Henzel (BAR) 99 .5
10.) E. Christoff (RIDG) 99 .5
Division III Boys (9 Holes)
Score Points
1.) E. Bailey (Wells) 47 10
2.) C. Hannon (James) 48 9
3.) D. Brokaw (BONA) 50 8
4.) H. Brairton (BAR) 63 6.5
4.) K. Padlo (BOL) 63 6.5
6.) C. Lyons (BAR) 64 5
7.) A. Giardini (BONA) 66 4
8.) L. Brushingham (BONA) 69 3
9.) T. Bates (BONA) 75 2
Division IV (9 Hole Modified)
Score Points
1.) R. Lechner (Bona) 39 10
2.) T. Salvaggio (CH) 47 9
3.) O. Wright (CH) 55 8
4.) D. Skaggs (PA) 56 6.5
4.) A. Schott (Coud) 56 6.5
6.) J. Marsh (CV) 59 4.5
6.) J. Morrison (CH) 59 4.5
8.) C. Carls (Spring) 60 3
9.) A. Bohdanowycz (CH) 70 2
10.) C. Boutillette (BAR) 71 1
Division I Girls (9 Holes)
Score Points
1.) E. Godding (PA) 45 10
2.) A. Fisher (HV) 51 9
3.) L. Salvaggio (CH) 52 7.5
3.) S. Pillittieri (MOON) 52 7.5
5.) J. Corey (Chaut) 57 6
6.) J. Stockwell (MOON) 62 5
7.) A. Agnell (PA) 64 4
8.) C. Streich (Coud) 65 3
9.) S. Segrue (Maple) 75 2
10.) I. Palermo (James) 82 1
Division III Girls (9 Holes)
Score Points
1.) A. Salvaggio (CH) 69 10
2.) O. Schott (Coud) 73 8.5
2.) R. Maggio (James) 73 8.5
3.) S. Cornelius (PA) 79 7
4.) A. Rosengren (CH) 81 6
5.) A. Morrison (CH) 83 5
6.) M. Triplett (CH) 87 4
Division IV Girls (9 Hole Modified)
Score Points
1.) P. Morrison (CH) 59 10
