On Sunday, June 16, the Peggy Kirk Bell Girls’ Golf Tour played the final round of the 2019 PKBGT Valley Junior Girls Open at Hidden Valley Country Club in Salem, Virginia.
Entering the final round in Salem on Saturday, the Bell National division remained up for grabs. Though Sue Lee (Lorton, VA 2022) held a three-stroke lead over the next closest competitor, there were 18 holes of golf to make up ground.
The dedicated golf dads of the PKBGT spent Father’s Day along the fairway, gazing on at the glistening course hidden in the valley, caps of the Appalachians towering off in the distance. Closing out an ideal weekend in Virginia, the simmering sun was a representation of the on-course performance from our Bell National leader.
In the Futures National division, the race was on – three players atop the leaderboard battling it out for the championship trophy. Opposite of the Bell National division, the Futures contest came down to the wire with a nail biting finish.
In total, the field of 26 who traveled to Salem for a sensational Father’s Day weekend of golf were blessed with pristine conditions in the air and on the course. Let’s take a look at how the leaderboard panned out following Sunday’s final round.
Bell National
Running away with the title and posting a final round three-under-par 69, Sue Lee (Lorton, VA 2022) earned her first PKBGT national victory on the season! Lee set the pace early, rounding the turn with a three-under-par 33 including back-to-back birdies on the final two holes. She closed out her round with an even-par back nine on the way to an 11-stroke victory at Hidden Valley Country Club. Her two-day total score was 72, 69 = 141 (-3).
Maddie Smithco (Cranberry Township, PA 2020) and Melissa Meng (Blacksburg, VA 2020) finished in a tie for second place, each posting two-day total scores of 152 (+8). Smithco started off red-hot, making the turn at even-par. She cooled off on the back nine, closing out her weekend with back-to-back scores of 76. Meng stumbled early but regained her footing, finishing the tournament with two birdies on the last three holes. She posted scores of 75 and 77.
Finishing the tournament in fourth place, Rachel Detore (Fredericksburg, VA 2020) posted a two-day total score of 78, 81 = 159 (+15). Detore made two birdies in her Sunday afternoon round, with one on each half of the golf course.
Rounding out the top five in the Bell National division, Ester Choi (Midlothian, VA 2021) took fifth place honors at Hidden Valley Country Club this weekend. Choi carded a two-day total score of 84, 79 = 163 (+19).
Futures National
Fighting down to the very end, Kathryn Ha (Roanoke, VA 2025) ended the tournament at the top of the leaderboard as champion of the 2019 PKBGT Valley Girls Junior Open in the Futures National division. Ha posted a two-day total score of 78, 76 = 154 (+10). She set the tone by making two birdies on the front nine in her round on Sunday.
Finishing one stroke behind Ha, Ellen Yu (High Point, NC 2026) fell just short of the championship trophy this weekend in Salem. Yu matched the final round score of 76 that Ha posted, but her first round performance proved to be the difference maker. She closed out the weekend with a two-day total score of 79, 76 = 155 (+11).
In third place, with a two-day total score of 77, 86 = 163 (+19) was Amelia Cho (Ashburn, VA 2024). Cho faced her fair share of struggles on Sunday, but made the highlight of her day with a birdie on the 7th hole.
Standing alone in fourth place, Kaitlyn Mosdell (Roanoke, VA 2021) finished off her weekend performance with a total score of 81, 84 = 165 (+21). Closing out the top finishers at the Valley Girls Junior Open was Grace Addison (Abingdon, VA 2023) and Maddison Messimer (Myrtle Beach, SC 2025) who tied for fifth place. They both finished the weekend with two-day total scores of 168 (+24).
Closing Remarks
We would like to thank the entire staff at Hidden Valley Country Club for their gracious hospitality in hosting this weekend’s 2019 PKBGT Valley Junior Girls Open. We would also like to thank our partner, the Valley Junior Girls Open Scholarship Fund, for their support in this event. Congratulations to all of our top finishers!
Final Results
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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