Press Release
March 14, 2022
Emma Varela, AJGA
(678) 425-1787 | evarela@ajga.org
Bethpage State Park’s Black Course to host Polo Golf Junior Classic in June
Tradition-rich venue to
host 43rd edition of only match play event on AJGA schedule
Farmingdale, NY – The
American Junior Golf Association's Polo Golf Junior Classic will be conducted
at the historic Bethpage State Park on the Black Course from June 27 to July 1.
The Polo Golf Junior
Classic, now in its 43rd year, is steeped in history from noteworthy
past champions to famed host venues. The annual match play event is the only
true match play format event on the AJGA schedule. All but two years of the 43-year
history have been played as match play. The top-32 boys and top-32 girls compete
over four days in a round robin match play tournament styled after the PGA
TOUR's World Golf Championships-Dell Technologies Match Play.
"Bethpage State Park is
proud to hos the 43rd edition of the Polo Golf Junior Classic at the
legendary Bethpage Black, a jewel in our state park system," New York State
Parks Commissioner Erik Kulleseid said. "We are excited to showcase these
talented young golfers here at our exceptional public golf course, and expect
that the display of their skills on one of the nation's most difficult courses
will inspire more youth to discover the thrill of golf."
Some noteworthy past champions of the Polo Golf Junior Classic
include, in the Boys Division, Tiger Woods, Trevor Immelman, Stewart Cink,
Brian Harman, Morgan Hoffman, Akshay Bhatia and Matthew NeSmith. On the Girls
Division side, Vicki Goetze-Ackerman, Grace Park, Paula Creamer, Morgan
Pressel, Ariya Jutanugarn, Heather Farr, Rachel Heck and Sierra Brooks.
2021 champion Nicholas Dunlap of Huntsville, Alabama, went on
from the Polo Golf Junior Classic to win the 73rd U.S. Junior
Amateur at The Country Club of North Carolina a month later and earn Rolex
Junior Player of the Year honors for 2021.
The Polo Golf Junior Classic has occurred annually since 1978,
with a variety of host venues over its tenure. Noteworthy past host courses
have included Liberty National Golf Club, PGA National Resort and Spa –
Champion & Fazio Courses, Sea Island Golf Club, and Innisbrook Resort-
Copperhead Course.
The 2022 move of the
Polo Golf Junior Classic to Bethpage Black marks the first time the event is being
played on a public course. The Black Course is rich in tradition having hosted
three major championships, two FedEx Cup playoff events and the upcoming 2025 Ryder
Cup.
The course which opened
in 1936 as part of the Depression Era public-works project that build Bethpage
State Park burst onto the scene in 2002 with its first hosting of the U.S.
Open. It was this year that a young Tiger Woods, who won the Polo Golf Junior
Classic in 1991, captured his second U.S. Open title. The Black Course again
hosted the U.S. Open in 2009 where AJGA alumni Lucas Glover took home the
title. The ‘extremely difficult course' recommended ‘only for highly skilled
golfers' also hosted the 2012 and 2016 FedEx Cup playoff event, The Barclays. AJGA
alumni Brooks Koepka won the 2019 PGA Championship when the course hosted its
first major in ten years.
"We are so excited to
bring the longstanding Polo Golf Junior Classic to Bethpage Black," said AJGA
Executive Director Stephen Hamblin. "The partnership we have with Polo Ralph
Lauren combined with the rich history of Bethpage Black is going to be a
special treat for the field in 2022 and we cannot wait to help promote junior
golf at such a historic venue as Bethpage State Park."
All proceeds from the
2022 Polo Golf Junior Classic will benefit the Natural Heritage Trust. For over
50 years, the Natural Heritage Trust has worked to preserve New York's public
lands and enhance programs at state parks and historic sites. Learn more at https://www.naturalheritagetrust.org/.
This event also seeks to
give back and grow the junior golf program at Bethpage State Park. The event
will include an opportunity for junior golfers to interact with the top-64
juniors in the country through volunteering.
For more information
about the Polo Golf Junior Classic please contact Emma Varela (evarela@ajga.org)
in the AJGA Communications Department.
About Polo Ralph Lauren
Polo Ralph Lauren,
a premium lifestyle brand, has been a partner for more than three decades.
Since 1995, Polo Ralph Lauren has supported junior golfers who become the next
generation of college graduates and business leaders. Every week through AJGA
social and digital content, Polo Ralph Lauren celebrates the top performances
of AJGA members worldwide, through Polo
Ralph Lauren #InspiredPerformances. Polo Ralph Lauren hosts
the Polo Golf Junior Classic, an Invitational dating back to 1978 and one of
the longest-running events in AJGA history.
About Bethpage Golf
Bethpage State Park is a
mecca for public golf, featuring five 18-hole regulation golf courses including
the world-renowned Black Course which was the site of the United States Open in
2002 and 2009, the Barclays in 2012 and 2016, the PGA Championship in 2019 and
will host the Ryder Cup in 2025. For more information, visit https://parks.ny.gov/golf/11/details.aspx.
About the American Junior
Golf Association
The American Junior Golf
Association is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization dedicated to the overall
growth and development of young men and women who aspire to earn college golf
scholarships through competitive junior golf. The AJGA provides valuable
exposure for college golf scholarships and has an annual junior membership
(boys and girls, ages 12-19) of more than 7,000 members from 50 states and 60
foreign countries. Through initiatives like the Achieving Competitive
Excellence (ACE) Grant, a financial assistance program, and Leadership Links, a
service-oriented platform that teaches juniors charitable-giving skills, the
AJGA fosters the growth of golf's next generation.
TaylorMade and adidas are the
AJGA's National Sponsors, supporting the AJGA for more than 25 years.
TaylorMade has served as the Official Ball of the AJGA since 2016. adidas has
been the Official Apparel and Footwear of the AJGA since 2017. Rolex, in its
fourth decade of AJGA sponsorship, became the inaugural AJGA Premier Partner in
2004.
AJGA alumni have risen to the top of amateur, collegiate, and professional golf. Former AJGA juniors have compiled more than 900 victories on the PGA and LPGA Tours. AJGA alumni include Rickie Fowler, Sergio Garcia, Dustin Johnson, Phil Mickelson, Patrick Reed, Jordan Spieth, Justin Thomas, Tiger Woods, Paula Creamer, Ariya Jutanugarn, Cristie Kerr, Stacy Lewis, Brittany Lincicome, Anna Nordqvist, Inbee Park and Lexi Thompson.