A trio of Greater Trail golfers teed off Tuesday at the B.C. Junior Golf championship at the Revelstoke Golf Club.
Rossland natives Braden and Tyler McKay and Brenan Moroney began the hunt for a provincial championship at the par 72 scenic Revelstoke course.
Tyler teed off early Tuesday, firing a 5-over par 77 to sit tied for 28th place. The 17 year old parred every hole on the front nine except for the par-5 fourth hole which he bogeyed for a 38.
However, the Birchbank Golf Course golfer would run into trouble on the back nine, firing a 4-over 39 thanks to a back-to-back bogie and double-bogie on 12 and 13 for the 77. Still McKay is only six shots off the pace set by Tony Mak of Vancouver who carded a 1-under 71 in the first round.
Featuring a number of holes winding in and around the Columbia River, the 6,537 yard Revelstoke Golf Club welcomed a full 156-player field over four days of stroke play competition. Yet only a single player will hoist the championship trophy, joining the likes of past champions Chris Baryla, Nick Taylor, Fred Couples, Jim Nelford and Doug Roxburgh.
Braden McKay, 14, meanwhile shot a 12-over 84 that put him tied for 63rd, still eligible to make the cut. Carson Arcuri of Nelson also teed it up on the boys side to complete the Zone 1 team foursome with Moroney and the McKay brothers. Arcuri carded a 10-over par 82 to sit in a tie for 56th.
Mackenze Field of Christina Lake is also competing in the the Junior Girls championship, shooting an 8-over par 79 to put her in a tie for 13th as well. She sits eight shots back of co-leaders Alix Kong of West Vancouver and Jamie Oleksiew of Surrey each at even par.
Moroney, meanwhile, had a late tee-off time and his result was unavailable at press time.
Defending champion and University of Victoria Viking Matthew Broughton has moved on from the junior ranks, paving the way for a new champion to rise from the field. Moroney, Braden and Tyler, the zone one medalist winner, will join a competitive field that includes early leader board notables Team Canada Development Squad member Nanaimo’s Zach Anderson, 16, who shot even-par 72 in the first round, and Austin Hughes of Delta who also shot a 72.
The Junior Boys championship, for youth 18 and under, will be cut to low 70 and ties following the second round.
The top-three finishers will be chosen to represent British Columbia on Team BC at the 2013 Canadian Junior Boys’ Championship being hosted by Timberwolf Golf Club, July 30-Aug. 2 in Garson, Ont. The Club and Zone Team competitions will be played concurrently with the first and second rounds of the Championship.
Each Zone prior to the start of the competition names four player Zone Teams for their representation. Two player Club Teams are selected after the second round by taking the two players with the lowest score from each club with two or more players in the field.