STILLWATER, OK. – Donnie Trosper of Canton, Michigan, and Kaitlyn Papp of Austin, Texas, secured wins in a rain-shortened PING Invitational on October 13th, 2014. Because of weather, course conditions became unplayable in the final round and 36-hole scores were used to determine champions at Karsten Creek. Trosper’s 4-under-par 140 36-hole total and Papp’s 5-under-par 139 two-day showing solidified the pair’s first Invitational victories.
Trosper’s win comes at the end of a 2014 campaign that included three Open victories. In his first two starts of the year, the 2015 graduate notched wins at the Coca-Cola Junior Championship at Boyne Highlands and the Memorial Junior. In August, Tropser took the title at the Randy Wise Junior Open and earned his first spot in an AJGA Invitational at The Junior PLAYERS Championship presented by Taylor Made-Adidas Golf.
“It means the world to me,” Trosper said. “I have a lot of supporters back at home and on Twitter. My phone has been blowing up. It’s just honestly a blessing. Something just clicked in my swing and in my putting; everything came together. I knew for the last three years I was missing one thing in my game, and this season it just all came together.”
At No. 22 in the Polo Golf Rankings, Trosper joins established company in the AJGA boys record book. His fourth win ties Phil Mickelson and Tiger Woods for second-most individual wins in a single year. Seung-Su Han of Bradenton, Florida, holds the most wins in a single season at five.
Brad Dalke of Hobart, Oklahoma, took second at 1-under-par 143 and Austin Connelly of Irving, Texas, finished in third with 1-over-par 145. In fourth was Gabriel Lench of Lake Mary, Florida, at 2-over-par 146. Sam Burns of Shreveport, Louisiana, Triston Fisher of Southlake, Texas, and Brent Ito of Ardsley, New York, tied for fifth at 3-over-par 147. Andreas Halvorsen of Norway took eighth at 4-over-par 148, while Hidetoshi Yoshihara of Irvine, California, earned ninth at 5-over-par 149. Doc Redman of Raleigh, North Carolina, Timothy Colanta of Reunion, Florida, and Zachary Bauchou of Forest, Virginia, finished T10 at 6-over-par 150.
Papp showed her strength on one of the most difficult courses in the nation, finishing at 5-under-par through 36 holes. In 2013, the University of Texas verbal commit was added to the tournament field the day before the event officially began and despite the short notice, Papp rose to the top of the field and remained there for the duration of the event, finishing fourth. Since the strong showing in 2013, Papp has gone on to compete in three AJGA Invitationals and was a member of the Wyndham Cup’s victorious West Team.
“It’s really special to have my first win here because I love this event so much,” Papp said. “Last year I proved to myself that I could hang with all these great players and it gave me great confidence. Coming out here I had my notes from last year I really felt confident.
“There are so many great players who have won here. Especially to follow Jordan Spieth, Alison Lee and Vicky Hurst who have gone on to play on Tour and have successful college careers. Jordan Spieth was in the Ryder Cup this year and only a few years ago he won The PING Invitational; it’s really, really neat.”
The 2017 graduate is No. 31 in the Polo Golf Rankings and was a second-team Rolex Junior All-American in 2013.
Angel Yin of Arcadia, California, finished in second at 1-over-par 145 followed by Lilia Vu of Fountain Valley, California, and Jillian Hollis of Rocky River, Ohio, in third at 2-over-par 146. Megan Khang of Rockland, Massachusetts, and Robynn Ree of Redondo Beach, California, placed fifth with two-day totals of 3-over-par 147.