BRASELTON, GA. – The American Junior Golf Association has announced its Rolex Junior All-America Teams, headlined by Rolex Junior Players of the Year Noah Goodwin of Corinth, Texas, and Paphangkorn Tavatanakit of Bangkok, Thailand.
Introduced by the AJGA in 1978, the Rolex Junior All-America Teams annually recognize players who have proven to be the world’s premier junior golfers. This year’s Rolex Junior All-America Teams are comprised of 96 junior golfers ages 13-19, from 19 states, the District of Columbia, Chile, China, Mexico, Thailand and the United Kingdom. These young men and women distinguished themselves through their outstanding play in 132 national junior golf events, 117 of which were conducted by the AJGA. The teams were determined exclusively through the Polo Golf Rankings as of Oct. 12.
The Rolex Junior Player of the Year award recognizes one boy and one girl who had the most outstanding year in junior golf events at the national level. Past recipients have gone on to become some of the most esteemed players on the PGA and LPGA Tours, including Tiger Woods, Phil Mickelson, Jordan Spieth, Charles Howell III, Hunter Mahan, Brian Harman, Inbee Park, Paula Creamer and Morgan Pressel.
Goodwin, Tavatanakit and their fellow Rolex Junior All-Americans will be honored Nov. 20 during the Rolex Junior All-America Awards Banquet at PGA National Resort & Spa in Palm Beach Gardens, Florida. The awards ceremony, dubbed “The Greatest Night in Junior Golf,” will also celebrate the achievements of the Transamerica Scholastic Junior All-Americans and Jerry Cole Sportsmanship Award recipient.
Rolex Junior All-America Teams
The 12 boys on the 2016 Rolex Junior All-America First Team hail from six states and Chile. All but two of the boys, Joaquin Niemann and Bryan Teoh Wiang, competed at the 2016 Wyndham Cup. Returning to the First Team are Davis Shore, Eugene Hong and Won Jun Lee. Niemann, Wiang, Ricky Castillo and Ryan Gerard are all first-time Rolex Junior All-Americans. Cooper Dossey is the lone 2016 grad on the team, earning honors for the second time and now competing for Baylor.
Representing Georgia on the Boys Second team is S.M. Lee, Buford, Ga. and on the Boys Honorable Mention is Nicolas Cassidy, Johns Creek, Ga. and Austin Fulton, Villa Rica, Ga.
The 12 girls on the 2016 Rolex Junior All-America First Team are from seven states and Thailand. Among the girls, Kaitlyn Papp and Alyaa Abdulghany are the only returners to the First Team, while Rolex Junior Player of the Year Tavatanakit and RuQing Guan are making their debuts as Rolex Junior All-Americans. Kristen Gillman is the lone 2016 grad on the team, earning honors for the fourth time and now competing for the University of Texas.
Representing Georgia on the Girls Honorable Mention team is Jenny Bae, Lawrenceville, Ga.