The field is stacked for one of the biggest events on the Ford Junior Master Series Calendar. Over 165 of the most talented juniors from across NSW, ACT and QLD will tee off at The Links Shell Cove for the Illawarra Junior Masters on Tuesday.
NSW State Team Member and Defending Champion Bo Chung (Concord) will be back in hopes of winning this event for a second consecutive year. Chung shot a career-low round of 11-under par in the final round last year to win this prestigious event. He also won the 2024 Bonville Champions Trophy and Macarthur Junior Masters, proving he is one to beat.
Fellow NSW State Team Member Zac Oyston from the Wollongong Golf Club will be another one to watch this weekend at The Links. Oyston finished in the Top 20 at the Australian Junior Amateur just a couple of weeks ago. He also won the 16 Years Division at the Fore Golf Junior Matchplay. Keep an eye on him over the weekend.
Harrison Preece (The Vintage), Bill Eppelstun (Catalina), James Domazetovski (NSW), Shaylan Bennett (Everglades) & Levi Park (Kooindah Waters) all have Junior Masters wins under their belt in the past seven months and will aim to claim another victory this weekend at the Links Shell Cove.
Concord’s Chayse Thorpe and St Michael’s Ian Kim both finished inside the top ten at the recent Australian Junior Amateur at The Indooroopilly Golf Club in Queensland. Kim then went on to finish in a tie for second place at the Northern Rivers Junior Masters last week. This talented pair will be looking to continue their hot streak this weekend.
Defending Girls Champion and NSW State Team Debutant Kiara Connolly-Jackson will be back this year to defend her crown. The win last year kick-started the upward spiral for Connolly-Jackson, where she won the Greg Chalmers Junior Masters, a top 10 finish at The Bonville Champions Trophy and consecutive third-place finishes at the A.C.T Junior Championship and the Harvey Norman Week of Golf.
Also in the mix for the Girls is Monash Country Club member Mingming Lee. The 12-year-old superstar has been on fire to start the year, winning both Wagga Wagga Junior Masters and Blue Mountains Junior Masters back-to-back. A very impressive feat, and no doubt Lee will be looking for her third win in just three months this weekend.
Coming off her biggest win at the Regional Academy Games, Toukleys Ava Prince will be hoping to continue her fine form in the Illawarra. After falling just short at the Harvey Norman Week of Golf, she bounced back with an impressive 12-shot victory in Tamworth. The grit and determination shown by Prince proves that she is one to watch.
Concord Young-Gun Alicia Luo will be shooting for two Ford Junior Masters titles in the space of just two weeks. The 12-year-old won her first Junior Masters event at the Peter O’Malley Junior Masters at Bathurst GC. Luo is always in the mix come the final round, and she finally got her taste of victory. Will she be able to continue her winning form?
Play begins at 6:30 am on Tuesday.
