British Junior Golf Tour 2024 Season Tour Championship and Year Review
Fantastic Royal Norwich was the venue for the British Junior Golf Tour 2024 end of season Tour Championship
6/Under Division
– Tour Champion – Rafferty Fry
– Order of Merit Champion – Shane Cooper
Rafferty Fry grabbed the 2024 Tour Champion crown at Royal Norwich by the narrowest of margins over Billy Stott, as a countback decision gave him the title, with Leo Craddock taking third place.
Shane Cooper started the season in superb fashion and held on to take the Order or Merit (OOM) title over the fast-finishing Rafferty who added a second-place finish to his season, while Finlay Westwood secured third.
7-8 Division
– Tour Champion – Hamza Marfleet
– Order of Merit Champion – Hamza Marfleet
A dominant season from Hamza saw him top both tables but he was pushed all the way for both titles!
Hamza ended the Tour Championship on -1 ahead of Matthew Lamble and Rex Pickavance, both on +3, with Matthew edging the countback decision to take the runner-up position.
Louie Goh took Hamza right to the wire for the OOM title, with the result coming down to the final event, as Rex took home his second third place finish in the season’s standings in an incredible season for this division.
9-10 Division
– Tour Champion – Aronas Juodis
– Order of Merit Champion – Zachary Blayney
Aronas and Zachary have been head-to-head for much of the season and rightly took their places at the top of the tables.
Aronas took the Tour Championship win at Royal Norwich, ahead of Zachary in second and Harry O’Dell in third, on a day that swung in every different direction.
Zachary led the way for the whole season in the OOM, as Aronas couldn’t quite make up the ground finishing 150 points adrift, while Harry completed the Top 3 in another standout division.
11-12 Division
– Tour Champion – Billy Parrish
– Order of Merit Champion – Billy Parrish
Billy deservedly became a double BJGT champion after a superbly consistent season. He took the Tour Champion title on the day with a brilliant 74 ahead of Oliver Smith and Harry Wang who needed a countback to separate them. This gave Oliver second place.
Billy ended the season with 4 wins to top the OOM standings, again ahead of Oliver in second place, while Marcus Karim grabbed third place with a win in the final Major at The Springs.
13-14 Division
– Tour Champion – Jake Jeff-Johnston
– Order of Merit Champion – Jake Jeff-Johnston
Jake ended the season in style with a hard-fought victory at Royal Norwich in the testing conditions, ahead of Arjun Sawhney who had his best result of the season to finish as runner-up, with Rhys Hughes completing the Top 3.
Jake led the OOM throughout the season, picking up 5 victories along the way, including the European Open, and deservedly took the overall title ahead of Jake Gunby in second place and Rohan Patel in third.
15-18 Division
– Tour Champion – Will Lyons
– Order of Merit Champion – Will Lyons
Will Lyons also became a double BJGT Champion in the oldest division, as he claimed the Tour Championship title with a superb effort at Royal Norwich, which at one point saw him -6 for his round, ahead of Jules Hardy and Joshua Rowe.
He deservedly topped the OOM too, holding off Jules in his final year on the junior tour, and Adhritt Seth, who finished just 50 points further adrift.
2024 Caddie of the Year
Perry Fry received multiple nominations to take arguably the most coveted trophy of the season: Caddie of the Year – congratulations, Perry!
2025 Playing Tour Ambassador – Amelia McGinty
Following on from Hamza Marfleet in 2024, Amelia will be our new playing Tour Ambassador for 2025.
We are delighted that Amelia accepted our offer, as she has shown real progression and dedication to her golf, she has a wonderful attitude, and we know that she will be an ideal role model. Players and families should feel free to chat to Amelia at events, she’ll no doubt be delighted to speak to you about golf and the BJGT, or life in general.
Raffle
In addition to the fantastic OOM and Tour Championship prize tables at Royal Norwich, with the generous support of our sponsors and hosting venue, we were also able to run an amazing raffle after the presentation, with everyone eagerly awaiting the draw.
Much to her delight (and her Dad’s!), Ellie Wang took the top prize from our headline sponsor, Motocaddy, a 2024 M1 Electric Trolley.
Will Lyons added to his trophy haul with the Titleist College Club Glove Traveler travel bag, while Varsrith Maddi won an Inesis waterproof stand bag.
Leo Craddock made his Dad’s day by winning the 4-ball at Royal Norwich, so they’ll be looking forward to coming back next year; he also won him some Titleist balls for him to use (and maybe lose!).
Jake Jeff-Johnston and Sidney Scerri also walked away with Titleist golf balls, while Luke Gilding, Jules Hardy, and Henry Bucys were the lucky winners of fabulous artisan chocolate creations from Hill St.
Lastly, Alfie Skinner won a Mind Your Golf voucher that includes playing Augusta on the simulator at Trevor Jones’ training facility near Milton Keynes.
2024 Reflection and looking ahead to 2025
The season ended as it started – wet!
It feels like much of the season was spent under umbrellas or walking through mud, so we must show our appreciation for all the green keepers out there who all made their courses wonderfully playable even in the worst of conditions.
We’ve again seen some fantastic golf, as we continue to attract the best players from across the UK; the standard has been phenomenal from all divisions this year, with incredibly close results and nail-biting finishes.
We look forward to seeing plenty of new players next season, as they look to challenge those at the top of the BJGT standings.
2025 will mark our 20th anniversary; our first ever event took place in October half-term 2005 at Brampton Heath Golf Centre in Northampton, so we are looking forward to a standout anniversary year.
We’ll kick off the celebration at Macdonald Hill Valley Resort with the 3-day 20th Anniversary Cup, 9-11 April 2025 (WAGR event for the oldest divisions), and a party on the 10th April! However, for this event to go ahead, we need a minimum number of entries by 28th December 2024, so please show your support by registering before this deadline – it would be very sad indeed if we had to cancel it. Click here to enter!
Twenty years have flown by, with thousands of juniors having taken to the BJGT over the years, some now reaching the top of the game, others playing at high level, and the vast majority still loving the game.
We’re always looking to improve the competitive opportunities for junior golf in this country and believe our impact over the years has not been insignificant, despite only limited financial support from sponsors and sadly no support from governing bodies.
This is why we are particularly grateful to Motocaddy for coming on board in 2023 and 2024 to help us in our mission to grow and improve junior golf in the UK – thank you so much, Motocaddy!
Thank you also to our other sponsors this season (Titleist, Levelwear, Tournament College Golf, and Ron Skinner & Sons), our fantastic hosting venues, and last but not least, all our juniors and their families for their continued support! See you in 2025!
