Six months and 11 events following Kick-Off weekend alongside Mickey Mouse and friends at Walt Disney World Resort (Lake Buena Vista), the PKBGT Central Florida Series Finale marked the season’s end in Wesley Chapel this weekend.
Partnering with Insurance of America, who served as the presenting sponsor of the series, the Peggy Kirk Bell Girls’ Golf Tour concluded our Central Florida Regional Series’ second season on Sunday afternoon.
The 2019 series featured six new events in the Greater Tampa area, in addition to six in Greater Orlando. Over 60 junior girls’ golfers from Florida and surrounding regions took part in the continued expansion of the tour’s regional series as they played their way up through the Storie Apparel Central Florida Series Order of Merit, which concluded as the final putt dropped in yesterday’s final round of the Series Finale at Saddlebrook Resort.
Caroline McConnell (2019 Prep Division Champion)
Though she only appeared in two events this season, Caroline McConnell (South Fayette, PA 2022) took advantage of her time in sunny Central Florida. McConnell opened her 2019 season with a nail-biting victory at Mayfair Country Club, taking home first-place honors by one stroke. She won her next event, the two-day Alaqua Classic, in commanding fashion. McConnell earned the Order of Merit Championship by 1.50 points and finished the season with an average score of 82.00.
With her victory on the Storie Apparel Central Florida Series Order of Merit, Carolina has earned her way into the 2019 PKBGT Tournament of Champions presented by Golf Pride, the 2019 PKBGT Prep Invitational – a new event in which the winner of the event will earn a spot in the prestigious PKBGT Invitational- and the 2020 PKBGT Linville Cup Team Challenge and Leadership Retreat held at the famed Mid Pines Inn and Golf Club in Southern Pines, NC.
Abigail Fernandez (2019 Futures Division Champion)
Abigail Fernandez (Windermere, FL 2023) dominated the Futures division in her second season with the tour. Fernandez earned her first career PKBGT win in Disney and followed with five more first-place finishes. She closed out the season with back-to-back victories at LPGA International and Saddlebrook Resort, both two-day events. Padded by a comfortable cushion, Fernandez’s phenomenal 2019 performance resulted in an average score of 83.19.
Abigail’s victory on the Storie Apparel Central Florida Series Order of Merit has earned her way into the 2019 PKBGT Tournament of Champions presented by Golf Pride, the 2019 PKBGT Futures Invitational and the opportunity to represent Central Florida at the 2020 PKBGT Linville Cup Team Challenge and Leadership Retreat in January of next year.
Bretton Mackiewicz (2019 Discovery Division Champion)
Opening 2019 on a high note, Bretton Mackiewicz (Longwood, FL 2025) never looked back and closed the year in a similar fashion. Mackiewicz went on a tear from late-February through early-April, winning three straight events. She capped off her season with a win at this weekend’s Central Florida Series Finale, and earned her first Order of Merit title! The Longwood native earned four victories on the year with a scoring average of 79.56.
Bretton’s continued success in the Discovery Division of the Central Florida Series Order of Merit has earned her way back into the 2019 Discovery Invitational, where she won the Sub-Junior title in the 2018 championship event. Bretton has also secured her spot at the 2020 PKBGT Linville Cup Team Challenge and Leadership Retreat, where she will represent Central Florida.
About the PKBGT
Founded in 2007 by the Triad Youth Golf Foundation, a non-profit 501(c)(3) charitable organization, as a local girls’ golf tour in the Triad region of North Carolina, the tour began as a simple concept: create more effective competitive playing opportunities for girls. By utilizing innovative yardage-based divisions instead of the traditional age-based format, the tour focused on developing tournament experience at the player’s pace. The 2019 season will feature over 90 tournaments in 9 states on the East Coast and with over 900 members, the PKBGT is the largest girl’s only tour in the country. Learn more about the PKBGT at http://www.pkbgt.org/.
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