GGGA students Arimoto, Dechathipat named to AJGA/GGGA Junior All-Star Team
Aug. 28, 2012
GGGA students Karen Arimoto and Mai Dechathipat were named to the AJGA’s GGGA Junior All-Star Team today.
The team, which includes 20 players from 11 states, was selected based on performance throughout the year playing the Gary Gilchrist Golf Academy Junior All-Star Series — the AJGA series of events specifically designed for boys and girls age 12-15.
Arimoto, a student in the Full-Time Junior Program at the Gary Gilchrist Golf Academy, picked up two wins on the 2012 season including victories at the TaylorMade-adidas Golf Junior All-Star at Château Élan and Junior All-Star at Fieldstone. She also picked up a runner-up finish, all of which helped her move to No. 19 in the Polo Golf Rankings.
Dechathipat moved to No. 55 in the Polo Golf Rankings behind the strength of runner-up finishes at the TaylorMade-adidas Golf Junior All-Star at Château Élan and Junior All-Star at Fieldstone.
Joining Arimoto (left) and Dechathipat (right) on the girl’s side are Jordan Daniel, Kathleen Scavo, Abbey Carlson, Rachel Dai, Michaela Owen, Grace Park, Nikolette Schroeder and Lauren Stephenson.
On the boy’s side, Philip Barbaree is the only player returning from the 2011 team. Also on the boys’ team are Andy Zhang of Reunion, Fla., who became the youngest player to ever participate in the U.S. Open when he qualified as a 14-year-old this year, and Jacob Solomon, who earned his spot on the team after winning three consecutive AJGA tournaments, including a pair of Gary Gilchrist Golf Academy Junior All-Star events.
The seven other boys on the Gary Gilchrist Golf Academy Junior All-Star Team are: Nick Carlson, James Clark III, Sean Crocker, Benjamin Griffin, Cole Madey, Daniel Martinez, and Braden Thornberry.
The team was selected based on the Polo Golf Rankings, and a player had to have competed in at least one Gary Gilchrist Golf Academy Junior All-Star event in 2012 in order to be eligible. The team of 10 boys and 10 girls will be honored Friday, Oct. 5, at the Junior All-Star Invitational at Mission Inn Resort and Club, home of the Gary Gilchrist Golf Academy in Howey-in-the-Hills, Fla.
About GGGA
Based at the Mission Inn Resort & Club, 40 minutes outside of Orlando, Fla., the Gary Gilchrist Golf Academy is the leading full-time junior golf academy in the world. The Academy is committed to excellence in every facet of golf, fitness, personal development and academics, evident through exclusive relationships with Montverde Academy, an acclaimed private college preparatory school, and the American Junior Golf Association.
As part of GGGA’s partnership with the AJGA, the academy is the official title sponsor of the Gary Gilchrist Golf Academy Junior All-Star Series, an AJGA tournament series reserved for the world's top 12-15 year-old golfers.
The Gary Gilchrist Golf Academy features a boarding program for junior golfers and the following programs: Full-Time Junior Program, Post-Graduate Program, golf summer camp, golf winter camp and golf lessons and programs for adults, amateurs and professionals.
For more information about GGGA, the GGGA's full-time residential boarding program and other year-round opportunities to Train, Think and Play like a Champion, visit www.ggga.com or call 1-866-639-9099.
Information from an AJGA press release was used in this article
