2016 PJT Award Winners

r a e Y e h t f Players o Presented

J.T. Spina

“My dad introduced me to the game of golf when I was young and I have loved it ever since. I like the instant gratification of positive results after spending time practicing”

“Everyone should know that I am a very faithful person and value my Christian beliefs” “Earning Player of the Year has been a goal of mine ever since I started playing on the PJT. I have always looked up to the players that have won in the past and I am thankful that my parents and the PJT provided me with the opportunity to reach this goal”

Nikita Romanov “The reason I started playing golf was because since my parents work at an ice rink. To get to the rink you have to drive through the golf course, and I used to skate so I would pass by and see the course so much until I asked my mom if I could buy some golf clubs. I went to the range with them and that's how I fell in love with the game.”

“I think everyone should know that I am outgoing and positive. I may play the worst round of golf in my life but I will not let it affect me.”

Casey Oppenheimer “I am dyslexic and I no longer see it as a negative, but as something that has helped to make me who I am.

“The strength of my game is my consistency with my irons.”

“My favorite part about the PJT is all the really nice people I have met, both the players and officials that work the tournaments.”

“I started playing golf because my whole family loved the game. It was nice to be able to play a sport together.”

“Winning the award once was great, but twice is special.”

Elizabeth Beek “This award is significant to me because I worked very hard at improving my game this year and it is nice to see it pay off. I learned that you get out of it what you put into it.”

“The strength of my golf game is my driver because I can drive very long and I’m accurate.”

“I was 11 years old during the 2016 season and I am currently a sixth grader at Wissahickon Middle School. I placed 6th out of 106 [players] in the US Kids World Championship in Pinehurst, North Carolina.”

Joshua Ryan “The Player of the Year Award is significant to me because it means I had a lot of good results this year. The players are good, so when you get a win it means you played your best.”

“I started playing golf because I watched my brother Caleb play. It looked fun to play in tournaments and I wanted to be out there playing too. It’s great to have a brother who plays too because I can learn from him and practice with him. We like to compete a lot but we have a lot of fun together.”

s r e d a e L e g a r e v A g n i r o c S In Memory of:

Sam Penecale

Sam Penecale was born in Abington, Pennsylvania in 1923. He learned to play golf as a caddy at the North Hills Country Club. Penecale served in the U.S. Army as a medic during World War II and then spent ten years in the business world. He was one of the leading amateurs in the Philadelphia area before turning pro at the age of 31. After one year of playing tournament golf as an unattached pro he took a job in golf as the assistant at the Bala Golf Club in 1955. Three years later he left Bala to become the head professional at the Whitemarsh Valley Country Club where he served for 27 years before retiring in 1984. After turning pro he was one of the leading playing professionals in the Philadelphia Section for thirty years.

Beginning with his first year as a pro in 1954 he qualified for the U.S. Open eight straight times and he finished tied for 26th in 1957. He wasn’t eligible for the PGA Championship until 1960 but once he became a PGA member he qualified for the PGA Championship five of the next six years. He never won the Philadelphia Open, Pennsylvania Open or the Philadelphia Section Championship but he had a total of eight second-place showings in those tournaments. As the professional at Whitemarsh Valley he hosted the PGA Tour’s tournament, which was played under several different names, eighteen times. His passion was junior golf and he ran an outstanding junior program at Whitemarsh Valley each year, free of charge to all. He had the enviable distinction of never having charged a junior for a golf lesson. As an assistant at Bala he gave Jay Sigel his first golf lessons and he continued to counsel him on his game for many years. Penecale was inducted into the Philadelphia Section’s Hall of Fame in 1998.

The Boy 16-18, Boy 13-15, Girl 16-18, Girls 13-15 and 12 & Under Divisions with the season’s lowest scoring average are recognized by the Philadelphia Junior Tour in memory of Sam Penecale. To be eligible to be the Sam Penecale scoring average leader, a junior must compete in a minimum of 5 rounds played where each of those events has a par 70 or higher for 18 holes.

Sam Penecale

Jack Halleron 73.71 Scoring Average

“I feel very lucky to have the opportunity to play golf.”

“I started playing golf because my father played. We would go to the range together when I was six years old and started playing rounds together when I was eight.”

“The low scoring average is significant to me because I have been working hard on reducing mental errors and taking big numbers out of my score.”

Carson Bacha 75.64 Scoring Average

“My strength is my length, however, over the past couple of years, I have worked hard on my wedges and it has shown. I'm making more birdies and playing better than ever before. But all in all, I think the mental side is the best strength to have, and I have been working a lot on that too.”

“I love that the Philly Tour plays some nice courses and a lot of my friends play on it so I have a lot of fun. The competition is great, and they're just fun events to play in.”

“I found a love for the game.”

Esther Park 78.60 Scoring Average

“It was my first 18 hole tournament series, that's why PJT is special to me. I met a lot of my friends I have today.”

“It's pretty cool knowing that I won two times (2013,2016) for lowest scoring average.”

“I stated playing golf because I just wanted to try it.”

“Putting is the strength of my golf game”

Haley Quickel 82.20 Scoring Average

“I started playing golf because both of my parents play and I live on a golf course ” “This award is significant because it shows me that hard work pays off.”

“The strength of my game is my irons, and that I don’t give up.”

“Everyone should know that my favorite singer, who I met, is Thomas Rhett.”

“My favorite part of the PJT is the people who work there and my competitors.”

Joshua Ryan 38.63 Scoring Average

“My mom challenged me this year to not only win a lot this year but also have a low scoring average. It’s not easy to play so many tournaments and keep your average low because one bad round can cost you.

This award means I had to be on my game every week and keep trying hard to keep the scores low.”

“I just got a new driver and I can’t wait to see how long I can go with this one.”

“My favorite thing about the Philadelphia Junior Tour is being able to compete against good players on different courses.”