Trusted Choice® Big “I” National Championship
Old York Country Club at Chesterfield
Chesterfield, N.J.
July 27-30, 2010
Bunner and Termeer Atop the Boys’ Leaderboard at Trusted Choice® Big “I” National Championship
Tsukiyama extends her lead to six in the Girls Division
Chesterfield, N.J. — The second round of the Trusted Choice® Big “I” National Championship concluded with a tie for first in the Boys Division. Greg Bunner of Cherryville, N.C., and Tayler Termeer of Austin, Texas, fired a pair of 3-under-pare 68s to jump to the top of the leaderboard. In the Girls Division, Kuriko Tsukiyama of Bogota, N.J., shot a second-round 71 to push her lead to six strokes at 3-under-par 141.
The Trusted Choice® Big “I” National Championship is a 72-hole stroke play event hosted at Old York Country Club at Chesterfield. The tournament field boasts 102 boys and 54 girls, ages 12-18, from 35 states, with nine juniors representing the host state of New Jersey. Second-round cuts were made at 155 in the Boys Division and 159 in the Girls Division to include 55 boys and 27 girls for the third and final rounds.
Bunner started off the day with back-to-back birdies on Nos. 1 and 2 and kept the momentum going, tallying four birdies in his first six holes and six birdies for the day. This is Bunner’s last junior golf appearance as he will continue his career at Western Carolina University in the fall.
“It’s my last junior tournament before I go to college,” Burnner shared. “So it means a lot to me to play well.”
Tayler Termeer also moved up the boys’ leaderboard, matching Brunner’s six second-round birdies. Staying on Burnner’s heels all day, Termeer made two crucial birdies on the back-nine to secure the tie.
“Make sure you choose the right clubs off the tee,” Termeer advised. “You definitely need to place it under the hole so you can have uphill putts all day. It’ll make it a lot easier on yourself.”
Darren Simons of Saint Marys, Pa., sits in third with a 3-over-par 145 followed by Caleb Sturgeon of Laurens, S.C., at 146. Tied for fifth at 5-over-par 147 are T.J. Morgan of Bruce, Miss., Mark Reilly of Babylon, N.Y., Ryan Cole of Mount Airy, Md., Matthew Yelverton of Matthews, N.C., and Sean Friel of Rochester Hills, Mich.
In the Girls Division, Kuriko Tsukiyama made birdie on her first hole to increase her first-round lead and will enter Thursday’s third round six shots ahead of her nearest competitors. Although she admits that the course is tough, the New Jersey native recorded five birdies on the day and credits her success to playing conservatively.
“You can’t overpower this course,” Tsukiyama said. “Sometimes you have to keep your driver in the bag on a couple holes.”
Ally McDonald of Fulton, Miss., and Erica Herr of New Hope, Pa., both shot even-par today 72s to stand tied for second at 3-over-par 144.
The Trusted Choice® Big “I” National Championship is one of the nation’s premier junior stroke-play championships. Organized by the Independent Insurance Agents & Brokers of America, The Big “I” attracts the nation’s top junior golfers. Notable past participants include Tiger Woods, Phil Mickelson, Charles Howell III, David Duval, Justin Leonard, Candie Kung, Cristie Kerr and Grace Park.
The Big “I” is able to provide an opportunity for juniors to compete thanks to its title sponsor Trusted Choice, presenting sponsor Harleysville, and its partners Allied Insurance and Nike Golf.
For more information about the Trusted Choice® Big “I” National Championship, please contact Media Relations Manager Chelsea McCullough (TrustedChoiceBigI@gmail.com) at (404) 242-7435 or visit the tournament website at bigigolf.com.
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