Headline: Richy Werenski Makes Bay State History by Earning Rolex Junior All American Honorable Mention Status
For Immediate Release: October 29, 2009
Norton, MA — Congratulations goes out to Bay State native Richy Werenski who earned Rolex Junior All American Honorable Mention status as a result of his outstanding performance this past season.
Werenski was one of only 48 boys and 48 girls to have been named Rolex Junior All-Americans. This year's teams comprised of player's from 20 states and 7 foreign countries.
The 17 year old from South Hadley is currently a high school senior at the Hank Haney International Junior Golf Academy in Hilton Head Island (SC). This past season he competed in 21 national events in which he maintained a stroke average of 2.02 strokes under par. His finishes included five top 5's, nine top 10's and fourteen rounds in the 60's.
He becomes only the second junior golfer from Western Massachusetts and the 10th from Massachusetts to be named to the team.
Werenski, who will be attending Georgia Tech beginning in January 2010, will be honored at the Rolex Junior All-America Awards Banquet on Sunday, November 22 in The Grand Ballroom at PGA National Resort & Spa in Palm Beach Gardens, Fla.
Here is a copy of the official press release... way to go Richy!
Rolex Junior All-Americans announced by AJGA, Rolex
Richy Werenski earns Honorable Mention Status
BRASELTON, Ga. – For the 32nd consecutive year, 48 boys and 48 girls have been named Rolex Junior All-Americans. The Rolex Junior All-America Teams annually recognize those players who have established themselves as the world's premier junior golfers. This year's selections distinguished themselves through their outstanding play in 82 national events, 66 of which were conducted by the AJGA. This year's teamis comprised of player's from 20 states and 7 foreign countries.
"It feels great to make the same team that countless PGA Tour players made as juniors, but even more important to me is to make the same team as my role models from Massachusetts made. I grew up trying to get my game to the level of Peter Uihlein, James Driscoll and John Curran who were all Rolex Junior All-Americans. All three of them have played at the very highest level at every stage of their development, which is what I hope to continue to do. Hopefully someday, I will be a role model to other junior golfer's from Massachusetts and give them the inspiration to get themselves to the same level.It is a very long process to work your way up to the highest level of this game and being rewarded with awards like this along the way sure makes all of the hard work that we put in well worth it."
The teams – with 12 boys each on the first and second teams and 24 on honorable mention – were determined exclusively through the 2009 Polo Golf Rankings. The point rankings were based on weighted tournament finishes at 82 national events, 66 of which were conducted by the AJGA.
Werenski, 17 years old, competed in 21 national events in which he maintained a stroke average of 2.02 strokes under par. His finishes included five top 5's, nine top 10's and fourteen rounds in the 60's.
Among the three major worldwide junior ranking systems, Werenski is ranked high in his graduating Class of 2010. He is ranked 18th in the world by Junior Golf Scoreboard, 17th in the world in the Golfweek/Sagarin rankings and 21st in the world by Polo.
Werenski is currently a high school senior at the Hank Haney International Junior Golf Academy in Hilton Head Island, S.C. Due to several academic courses that he took this past summer and by taking an extra course this semester, Werenski will be graduating ahead of schedule and will finish high school this December. He will enroll as a freshman at Georgia Tech in January and will red-shirt during the spring semester while on scholarship at the Division I school. During this time he will live with the rest of the team and will do everything with them on a daily basis beginning with 5:30 a.m. workouts in the gym followed by attending classes, playing and practicing. The only thing that he will not be able to do during the red-shirt period is to play in collegiate tournaments.
Werenski will be honored at the Rolex Junior All-America Awards Banquet on Sunday, Nov. 22ndin The Grand Ballroom at PGA National Resort & Spa in Palm Beach Gardens, Fla.
Rolex, a supporter of the AJGA since 1983, became an AJGA Premier Partner in 2004. The distinguished timepiece manufacturer is the proprietor of the Rolex Junior Players of the Year, Rolex Junior All-America Teams and the Rolex Junior All-America Awards Banquet. Rolex also sponsors the Rolex Tournament of Champions and Rolex Girls Junior Championship, two of the AJGA's most competitive major championships. As a Premier Partner, Rolex is the Founding Partner to the Achieving Competitive Excellence (ACE) Grant program and an Official Partner of the biennial PING Junior Solheim Cup.
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 largest Association of its kind, the AJGA has an annual junior membership of more than 5,000 junior golfers from 49 states and 30 foreign countries.