Maple Leaf Junior Golf Tour's National Award Winners Unveiled for 2023 Players of the Year, Junior and Mini Tour Order of Merit
Vancouver, BC – (October 11, 2023) - The non-profit Maple Leaf Junior Golf Tour (MJT), Canada's number one junior golf tour, is pleased to announce the major award winners for 2023, namely the MJT Players of the Year and the MJT Order of Merit winners in every region across the country.
With regards to the national 2023 Players of the Year, the top juniors in each of the six divisions based on their scoring averages in a required minimum number of tournament rounds are as follows:
MJT Girls U15 Player of the Year: Yeeun (Jenny) Kwon (Vancouver, BC)
MJT Girls 15-19 Player of the Year: Tessa Ion (Calgary, AB)
MJT Peewee Boys Player of the Year: Tiger Zhao (Vancouver, BC)
MJT Bantam Boys Player of the Year: Jaden August (Pitt Meadows, BC)
MJT Juvenile Boys Player of the Year: Mateo Kern (Calgary, AB)
MJT Junior Boys Players of the Year: Josiah Tong (Heritage Pointe, AB) and Nathan Szpakowicz (Vancouver, BC) – joint winners
The 2023 MJT Junior Tour Order of Merit winners in each age division of Girls U15, Girls 15-19, Boys 12U (Peewee), Boys 13-14 (Bantam), Boys 15-16 (Juvenile), and Boys 17-19 (Junior) respectively, based on cumulative point totals in each region, are in order as follows:
British Columbia: Charlotte Tam (Burnaby), Kaylee Chung (Vancouver), Tiger Zhao (Vancouver), Ryan LePrieur (Langley), Austin Krahn (Christina Lake), Samuel Kurytnik (Nanaimo).
Alberta: Olivia Johnson (Calgary), Emma Liu (Edmonton), Erik Petersen (Okotoks), Harrison Kiziak (Fort Saskatchewan), Mateo Kern (Calgary), Ryan Garbutt (Edmonton).
Saskatchewan: Tayla Perry (Regina), Niya Friesen (Swift Current), Austin Nesbitt (Pilot Butte), Aricin Franklin (Saskatoon), Jack Maharaj (Saskatoon), Drayjon Sparvier (Regina Ochapowace First Nation).
Manitoba: Payton Bailey (Brandon), Payton Oakden (Brandon), Ryder St. Laurent (Île Des Chênes), Hunter Oakden (Brandon), Brayden Boge (Winnipeg), Zostrianos Giordani-Gross (Brandon).
Ontario: Danica Suckert (Cambridge), Nobelle Park (Oakville), Dustin Zhao (Maple), Ben Julie (Fenwick), Andrew Burciul (Thorold), Ben De Castro (Toronto).
Atlantic Canada: Lila Bishop (Port Williams, NS), Neve Miller (Dieppe, NB), Liam Wheaton (Memramcook, NB), Nathan MacDonald (Fall River, NS), Zachary Gaudet (Truro, NS), Nicholas Colton (Bathurst, NB).
The 2023 MJT Mini Tour (12U) Order of Merit winners in each age division of Girls 8U, Girls 9-10, Girls 11-12, Boys 8U, Boys 9-10 and Boys 11-12 respectively, based on cumulative point totals in each region, are in order as follows:
British Columbia: Stella Sun (White Rock), Lucy Li (Vancouver), Satnam Gill (Surrey), Zhongjun Danile Qi (Surrey), James (Chenrui) Qiu (Surrey), Jason Zhang (Richmond).
Alberta: Brooke Sundquist (Calgary), Ain Lee (Sylvan Lake), Camilla Ruesga (Calgary), Rylan Hryhirchuk (Irma), Niko Tran (Calgary), Mason Kuryvial (Taber).
Saskatchewan: Makinlee McCrystal (Regina), Alyxa Melsted (Wynyard), Natalie Maunula (North Battleford), Hudson Deibert (Regina), Caleb O'Brien (Melville), Keaton Kreklewich (Melville).
Manitoba: Leah Klippenstein (Portage La Prairie), Sadie Blazeiko (Winnipeg), Angelina Sitarz (Winnipeg), Connor Hanska (Birdtail Sioux Dakota Nation), Ethan Sitarz (Winnipeg), Bryce Hanska (Sioux Valley Dakota Nation).
Ontario: Grace Black (Paris), Sophia Noh (Richmond Hill), Grace (HyunYi) Kim (Burlington), Miles Cousineau (Boys 9-10, Toronto), Bentley McNamara (Boys 11-12, Woodstock).
Atlantic Canada: Ariyah Sock (Elsipogtog FN, NB), Mikelle MacDonald (Girls 11-12, Halifax, NS), Tristan Breault (Boys 8U, Dieppe, NB), Borden Nicholson (Boys 9-10, Pictou, NS), Riley Masters (Boys 11-12, Sackville, NS).
The MJT Players of the Year each receive an adidas Golf rainsuit and complimentary 2024 MJT Membership. The 36 winners of the MJT Junior Tour Order of Merit each receive a plaque and custom MJT gift, while the 36 MJT Mini Tour Order of Merit winners each receive a special plaque.
An additional $25,000 in scholarship monies and funding is also to be awarded to MJT members courtesy of the Herrendorf Family Foundation (HFF) in 2023. From this, five scholarships of $1,000 each will be awarded to the MJT HFF Scholarship winners, and $20,000 to selected MJT National Championship participants who qualified for funding assistance. The recipients will be announced shortly.
"The exceptional talent and dedication displayed by these young athletes in 2023 was wonderful to see,” said Elaine Denton, Director of Marketing and Administration. “Thank you to the generous MJT sponsors and donors who support the development of these champions, in golf and in life.”
About the MJT: The non-profit Maple Leaf Junior Golf Tour is Canada’s number one Junior Golf Tour as well as the only national junior tour run exclusively by PGA of Canada Professionals and the ‘Road to College Golf’ in Canada. The organization is supported by valued Premier, Tournament and Product Partners. The MJT hosts 100 events across Canada, including free Ford Go Golf Junior Clinics, the MJT Mini Tour for 12U and multi-day events for competitive players aged 11-19 which also offer qualifiers for international tournaments. The program has annual awards, scholarships and incentives to help reward performance and participation throughout each season. MJT alumni include many Professional Tour players and PGA of Canada Professionals, as well as Canadian Amateur, National and Provincial Junior Champions. The MJT aims to develop champions, in golf and in life, promoting the game from grassroots through to the provincial, national, university and professional levels.
Media Contact: Marketing – marketing@maplejt.com