6&Under – Tour Champion – Hamza Marfleet 629 points
Hamza has been a star this season, he never needs any help from his caddie, and ended the year with a run of six victories in his final seven events, including the Tour Championship, that decided the title. He had twelve wins in total, and never finished outside the Top 3 – superb.
We look forward to his return in 2023 when, although he should still be in this category, he will move up to play in the 7-8 Division to really test himself against older players, but we know he can more than handle himself.
Rex Pickavance (606), a little whirlwind on the BJGT this year, took second place on the final table, and thoroughly deservedly so. Rex was the early leader of the Order of Merit table as he claimed a fine win at the Summer Cup, along with eight other victories.
A fantastic first season on the BJGT we look forward to seeing his progression next year.
Oscar Ross (551) took third place with an amazing improvement throughout the season that was wonderful to see. He has been another player who has been very consistent throughout the year but had a number of podium finishes in the second half of the season, including a couple of wins that gave him the third place vase and armful of goodies.
7-8 Division – Tour Champion – Marcus Karim 746 Points
Marcus has been a class apart this season, and the one to beat all year, and he has rarely been beaten.
He had an astonishing seventeen wins in 2022 that included the Summer Cup and Tour Championship with a seasons best round of -4.
He also had a Top 5 finish at the Junior World Championship in San Diego, so to cap it all with the BJGT Order of Merit Title is the cherry on the top of an almost perfect cake.
Brody MacIver (618), who only moved up to the division this season as our 6&Under Tour Champion from 2021, so equated himself superbly well to show he will certainly be one to watch in 2023, as will certainly be aiming for another Tour title.
He had four victories throughout the season but backed these up with multiple podium finishes, rarely finishing outside of the Top 3.
Harry Odell (590) secured third place, having started his BJGT career in 2021, he had a real run at the Order of Merit this season, so we very much look forward to him coming back stronger in 2023 to see what he can do.
Another very impressive little player, he had two very nice back-to-back victories in the middle of the season, and picked up a number of trophies for his expanding cabinet.
9-10 Division – Tour Champion – Jenson Ringer 743 Points
Jenson has had a thoroughly dominant season in the 9-10 Division with all knowing he was the one to be shot at.
Superbly consistent throughout the season, picking up 10 victories on the way, but was never far away even when not on top of the podium himself.
Jenson will now move up to the 9-12 Division for the 2023 season to tackle 18 holes, and a very competitive division, but we have a feeling he may well be there or thereabouts come this time next year.
Vinnie James’ (581) rise up the Order of Merit standings during the second half of the season was wonderful to watch, and he climbed all the way to second place.
At one point his aim was just to be at the Tour Championship, but three back-to-back victories in August gave him real belief that he could do better than just be in the field, and so it turned out.
He added a very nice BJGT Order of Merit vase to his trophy cabinet, along with a lovely armful of prizes that we know will push him continue the improvement next season.
Dominic McKenna (549) held on to third place on the table despite being absent from the final few events, including the Tour Championship.
His good work was done early in the season with some excellent results in April and May, but the nerves must have been jangling as to whether he could hold on to a Top 3 place come the final tally, but the vase and prizes will be on their way to him.
Boys 9-12 Junior Open Gross Division – Tour Champion – Oliver McDonnell 751 Points
The inaugural running of this division and to head this field took a real player, so Oliver deserves a huge amount of credit for a stunning season where he showed just what a class act he is.
He posted some phenomenal scores throughout the season to give himself an unassailable lead and leave the other players fighting for the remaining podium places.
Consistently scoring in the low 70’s means that come 2023, when he looks to defend the title, the rest of the field know just what the have to do.
Kodi Dean (625) was the player to push Oliver most of all, as he deservedly claimed second place after a fantastic season where he had a number of notable victories.
He played some superb golf in 2022 and should be very proud of his achievements and will have undoubtedly improved after his experiences this year.
He will now move up to the Boys Junior Open to take on the older boys, but we know his ability will stand him in good stead.
Rhys Hughes (603) finished just 22 points behind Kodi, almost catching him on the season run-in after some impressive results, including second place at the Tour Championship.
Another player who has seen a steady improvement as the boys in this age group consistently push each other to better and better golf.
Rhys will undoubtedly look to go a couple of places higher next season, as he remains in this division along with Oliver, and will certainly be one to watch in 2023.
Boys 9-12 Junior Open Net Division – Tour Champion – Tanus Van Molendorf 627 Points
Tanus topped the inaugural table in a division that saw some quite unbelievable scoring throughout the year, as we didn’t quite comprehend just how low these players could go.
He had some superb victories during the season, including three brilliant rounds to win the Summer Cup, meaning he led the way for the majority of the season.
Tanus showed he was capable of golf that consistently belied his handicap, so will be looking to continue his improvement next season.
Yash Bid (548) finished the season in the runner-up position as things got very tight towards the end of the year.
With the players recording some incredible scores, Yash more than held his own, starting the year with a number of Top 3 finishes through April and May, including a couple of victories.
Good finishes in a couple of Majors secured his second place Order of Merit to add a very nice glass vase to his trophy cabinet as he finished seventeen points clear of third place.
Rhys Hughes (531) added the Net third place to his third place gross as he took home two very nice vases as a matching pair following a very impressive season.
It shows just how consistently good you’ve been when you take a podium place in both divisions, especially one as hotly contested as this.
Girls Junior Open Gross Division – Tour Champion – Maisie Whittall 608 Points
Maisie produced a stunning run of results during the closing stages of the season, ending with four Major victories, the Par 3 Championship, and the Tour Championship, to climb to the top of the Girls Order of Merit table and become the inaugural champion.
Her rivalry with Ellie pushed both of them to some superb golf, as they both showed big improvements through the season, so we look forward to seeing this continue and develop in 2023.
Ellie Lichtenhein (562) led the Order of Merit for a considerable time this season, picking up a number of impressive titles, including a Major, to belie her age.
She is a worthy recipient of the runner-up vase, always a pleasure to have at events, we know her experience this season will stand her in great stead going forward, so we look forward to watching her continued development on the BJGT.
Sapphire Boyce (483) took third place to end a very impressive year for her, she has improved dramatically this year, as we again show what effect experiencing playing different courses has.
She has been very consistent this year, picking up a number of podium finishes, but we know she will be striving to better her results in 2023 and we look forward to being part of it.
Girls Junior Open Net Division – Tour Champion – Amelia McGinty 524 Points
Amelia has been wonderful on the BJGT this year, and thoroughly deserves her name to be the first on the brand new Girls Order of Merit trophy.
She headed the field in the closest run of all the Order of Merit tables as just eleven points separated the Top 3 players, showing just how hard fought this victory was.
Amelia picked up a number of victories during 2022, and is a delight to have at our events, we very much look forward to her aiming to retain her title next season.
Sapphire Boyce (516) almost caught her great friend Amelia at the top, falling just a couple of points short in the end, but with a fine victory in the Tour Championship, managed to climb into second place by the closest of margins.
Adding the runner-up trophy to her third place Gross Division place showed just what a superbly consistent season it’s been for her, she should be immensely proud of her achievements this year and be very positive about 2023.
Maisie Whittall (513) took third place on the Net Order of Merit to add a second, albeit slightly smaller, vase to her seasons collection.
This is hugely impressive for a player with such a low handicap, it simply reinforces what a wonderful player Maisie is and how consistently she’s been able to go low on courses all over the country – we predict very bright things for this young lady.
Boys Junior Open Gross Division – Tour Champion – Ben Benetar 581 Points
Ben was determined from the start of the season that he was going to have a real run at the title this year and did he deliver!
Improving on his sixth place from 2021, Ben led almost from start to finish and while he had some ups and downs, as is likely in golf, he played some wonderful golf capping it off with a brilliant back 9 in the Tour Championship.
He also picked up a couple of Major titles to deservedly take the Order of Merit crown for the first time.
Jules Hardy (501) took second place as he wasn’t quite able to overhaul Ben at the top but still a great full first season for him on the BJGT.
Having come so close this year we’re pretty sure he’ll be gunning for the top spot next season, having picked up a number of podium finishes we’re sure he’ll be adding to these in 2023.
James Pett (464) has also had a wonderfully consistent season this year, as he’s produced some excellent golf, claiming a number of trophies en-route to third place.
Rising from 18th in 2021 to the podium in 2022, we think he’ll be aiming even higher in 2023 as he looks to continue the improvement that comes with the experience of great levels of competition on superb courses.
Boys Junior Open Net Division – Tour Champion – Ben Benetar 538 Points
To claim both Gross and Net Divisions in the same season is an incredible achievement and has only happened once before!
Ben also happened to be the defending Net Champion so impressively retains his title, having been able to continue to take his handicap to almost any course we’ve put in front of him.
The big question now is – Can he three-peat in 2023, watch this space…
James Pett (465) added the Net Division runner-up trophy to his third place Gross Division finish showing he too has been able to adapt and apply his game to every test we’ve given the players this year.
This will undoubtedly have given him a drive to improve in 2023 so we look forward to an exciting season for him on the BJGT.
Luca Randall (407) secured third place on the final day of the season, as he impressively finished on the podium in his first year in the main Junior Open Division.
Having moved up from the 11-12 Division, competing against much older players was always going to be tough, but Luca showed he is most certainly one to watch as he grows and matures.
He’ll also be aiming higher in 2023 so we look forward to seeing just how close he can go.
