We are just over a week away from the culmination of the last 12 months on the PKBGT with the playing of the 10th PKBGT National Tournament of Champions. Contested as part of the 2022-23 PKBGT National Series, the National Tournament of Champions participants earned their way to this invitation only event through their outstanding play this past year. In all, 61 girls will tee it up in the 36-hole championship event played on South Course at Forest Creek Golf Club in Pinehurst, North Carolina!
Strong Field of Champions Comes to Pinehurst
Another year, another strong field for the National Tournament of Champions. There are 19 players ranked inside the national Top 500 playing in the Bell National division. But the strong field does not end there, with the Prep Preview field featuring 15 top 2,000 players amongst its 28 competitors. With this depth of players, this field will provide a strength of field number as strong as any other field in the region!
Take Me To Your Champions… Past champions some of the best and brightest
9 players have claimed the National Tournament of Champions crown. The event began in Hilton Head Island back in 2013 with Virginia Tech alum Jessica Spicer taking the crown. Following a move to Pinehurst in 2015 to Pinehurst No. 8, some of the top players in the country have claimed the crown. Current LPGA Symetra Tour professional Brynn Walker won in 2015 followed by University of Virginia alum Haeley Wotnosky in 2016. NCAA powerhouse, Wake Forest University’s Rachel Kuehn won in 2017 with UAB star Melanie Green in 2018 and College of Charleston signee Adrian Anderson in 2019. The 2020 event saw the tournament move to the Forest Creek Golf Club where recent Michigan University commit Sydney Yermish took the crown with a 2 shot victory over James Madison University signee Maria Atwood and most recently Elizabeth Rudisill won the 2021 event.
About our Host: Forest Creek Golf Club
Forest Creek Golf Club – South Course | Pinehurst NC
Tom Fazio’s graceful South Course weaves through pleasantly rolling terrain, giving it an unforced, natural feel that fits right in with the broad swaths of pines. He didn’t move much dirt – there was no need. The result is one of the finest routings in the Pinehurst area since Donald Ross walked these same sandy soils.
Opened in 1996,Tom Fazio’s South Course drew inspiration from Augusta National’s rolling, parkland style layout. The South Course has an understated appeal, flowing gracefully across the land for an unforced, natural appearance.
Upon opening, the South Course was selected by Golf Digest as the third-best new residential course in the country. Pinehurst Magazine named it the second-best golf experience in the Pinehurst area based on votes of area head golf professionals – second only to the famed Pinehurst No. 2.
Highest Ranked Players
In the Bell National field, 7 players in the field are currently ranked inside the top 250 players in the country by the Junior Golf Scoreboard. They are:
- Kiera Bartholomew (Wake Forest, NC 2023) — 75
- Avery McCrery (Wilmington, DE 2025) — 79
- Kate Barber (Savannah, GA 2025) — 124
- Anna Howerton (Winston Salem, NC 2023) — 172
- Maya Beasley (Pinehurst, NC 2023) — 179
- Kathryn Ha (Roanoke, VA 2025) — 194
- Jenna Kim (Raleigh, NC 2027) — 243
In the Prep Preview field, 7 players in the field are currently ranked inside the top 1,750 players in the country by the Junior Golf Scoreboard. They are:
- Riley Grimm (Pinehurst, NC 2028) — 611
- Sophie Cao (McLean, VA 2027) — 1338
- Elizabeth Sullivan (Atlanta, GA 2025) — 1485
- Kathryn DeLoach (Athens, GA 2026) — 1514
- Zoe Cusack (Potomac, MD 2026) — 1662
- Cailynn Winford (Mooresville, NC 2023) — 1724
- Lila Smith (Raleigh, NC 2024) — 1749
Verballed, Sealed, Delivered
5 players in the field have verbally committed to play collegiate golf:
- Heather Appelson — University of Richmond
- Kiera Bartholomew — University of Virginia
- Maya Beasley — University of Richmond
- Anna Howerton — High Point University
- Mckenzie Weddle — Radford University
Follow the Action…
The first round of the 10th PKBGT National Tournament of Champions, begins Saturday, December 10th, on the South Course at Forest Creek Golf Club. We look forward to a great event!
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