July 20, 2023
Villages Charter School Golfers Take 1st Place Medals in Claret Junior Tour Event!
By Kyle Coppola
Villages Charter School Golfers Take 1st Place Medals in Claret Junior Tour Event!
The Villages Charter School was well represented at the Claret Junior Tour Event that took place at Eagle Ridge Golf Club. It was a great day of golf for everyone and three Villages Charter School Students took home first place medals in the tournament.
The student athletes had the option of playing 18 or 36 holes of midweek golf. The winner of the 36-hole competition was Junior Griffen Hjortsberg of The Villages Charter High School. He was the winner in the 16+ group. Hjortsberg posted a round of 78 and 81 for a total of 159 over the two day span. That was good enough to grab the top spot.
Griffen Hjortsberg (16+) Winner
The student athletes had the option of playing 18 or 36 holes of midweek golf. The winner of the 36-hole competition was Junior Griffen Hjortsberg who represents The Villages Golf Academy but does not attend The Villages Charter School was the winner in the 16+ group. Hjortsberg posted a round of 78 and 81 for a total of 159 over the two day span. That was good enough to grab the top spot.
Aiden Skrocki (13s) Winner (Tournament Low Scorer)
Meanwhile in the 13s group age bracket it was Villages Middle School Student Aiden Skrocki who was the 36 Hole Winner. Skrocki had a great tournament posting a round of 73 on day one of the tournament and 81 on day two for a 154 total and was the competition Low Scorer!
Reagan Smith (12 & Under)
Also taking home a 1st place medal in the 12 and below group was Villages Middle School student Reagan Smith who was the youngest of the three Villages Charter School winners. He posted a score of 78 on day 1 and 80 on day two. He was only 4 shots off Skyrocki’s 154 for low scorer of the tournament!
About the Claret Junior Tour
The Claret Junior Tour is fast becoming one of the best junior tours in our area. The tour plays 36 and 18 hole tournaments all year round and all over Central Florida. The tour was started by Keith and Fiona McColl who moved from St. Andrews Scotland 5 years ago to be close to their grandchildren. They started the tour 4 years ago and both worked at the home of golf for many years.
The Claret Junior Tour is growing each and every year. Kids and families all love playing on the tour and it gives the youngsters a chance to test out their skills while also having fun out there on the links. The tour welcomes over 1,200 tournament entries per year and that is continuing to grow! Kids range from just 7 years of age to 18.
It is so great to see these players come out and have fun while also competing with one another. The next JGS ranked tournament will be held at the Candler Hills Golf Club in Ocala on July 29th and 30th. You can get full details by visiting www.claretjuniortour.com.
Photos provided by Claret Junior Tour
Kyle Coppola was born in Newton, Massachusetts and received his Bachelor of Fine Arts in Communications from Curry College in 2016. After traveling to Florida on a family vacation, he decided he could not get enough of the warm weather and made the move from snowy Massachusetts to central Florida 8 years ago.
For the last decade Kyle has gained valuable experience in social media content creation, marketing and sales, writing, video production, sports announcing and even broadcasting for local radio stations, such as FM 102.9 in The Villages and FM 91.5 in Massachusetts. Every year he volunteers at The Villages Charter High School as a play-by-play sports announcer for the football games as well as a public address announcer for the basketball games, including the annual Battle at The Villages Tournament.
Outside the office Kyle is a husband and father to two beautiful girls along with their cat. In his spare time he likes to spend time with his family, travel, play golf and swim. He is also a huge sports junkie and even bigger motorsports fan and loves to attend racing events when he can.
