Qualifiers from left to right: Tyler Gerbavsits, Brian Isztwan and Luca Jezzeny.

Trio takes #USJuniorAm Qual. medal at Union League National

  SWAINTON, N.J. — Two Golf Association of Philadelphia Junior stalwarts, along with a St. John’s University-bound Long Islander, shared the winner’s circle Wednesday in a U.S. Junior Amateur Championship Qualifier.

   At a revitalized Union League National Golf Club (par 72, 6,858 yards), Huntingdon Valley Country Club’s Brian Isztwan, Luca Jezzeny of The Bucks Club and Doylestown Country Club, and Tyler Gerbavsits of Huntingdon, N.Y., all fired even-par rounds of 72 to earn shares of the medalist honor.

   In a 4-for-2 playoff decided in six holes, securing the first alternate position was Brendan Hansen of Spring Lake, N.J., while the second went to Akhil Giri of Moorestown, N.J.

   The U.S. Junior Amateur will take place July 16-21 at Baltusrol Golf Club in Springfield, N.J.

   Isztwan, headed to Harvard University in the fall, carded four birdies on the day. None other was more important than his last full cut of the day on No. 18 (par 4, 420 yards), which may go down as “one of the best shots” he’s ever hit.

   “I know I needed one or two birdies coming in. I hit the fairway off the tee there, then picked up my 6-iron, and hit it to two feet from 167 yards out, dead into the wind,” said Isztwan, 18, of Huntingdon Valley, Pa. “I was at 1 over at the time, and the only thing I kept telling myself from the fairway was just to make two really good swings. I only ended up needing one, and thankfully that tap-in putt meant I didn’t have a nervous attempt at the end.”

   Fresh off a tied for fourth-place finish in the Pennsylvania State Junior Championship at Hershey Country Club with a 3-over total of 145, Isztwan is now set to make his USGA championship debut.

   “To have that kind of week of experience going into school will be huge for me. It’s so cool when you get to play with the kids who are going to the top schools – the Alabama’s, Oklahoma’s and all of those programs. They might beat me, but it will be really fun,” said Isztwan. “After that, I’m super excited to get up to Harvard. We only have six players, so I should get good playing time.”

   The other GAP Member to qualify was Jezzeny, who sat atop the leaderboard for most of the day. Starting on the back nine, Jezzeny found himself 3 under thru 13 holes, but a double bogey on No. 8 (par 5, 585 yards) and a bogey blemish on 9 (par 3, 197 yards) brought him back to even.

   “I had a good look from 10 feet on the last hole there that would have kept me under par. It didn’t fall, which I was obviously disappointed with at the time,” said Jezzeny, a rising senior at Central Bucks West High School. “Then I played the waiting game.”

   Early red numbers that surfaced early, much like Jezzeny’s, disappeared from above the cut line. The wait paid off and his ticket to the Championship proper was punched.

   “This is a dream come true for me. It really is,” said the 17-year-old resident of Furlong, Pa. “I’ve tried to qualify for this event three or four times and haven’t gotten through. I’ve never tested my game against the country’s best of the best, so just qualifying means the world to me.”

   Gerbavsits, who officially signed for the Red Storm in November, bogeyed his first hole of the day, No. 10 (par 4, 380 yards). He immediately erased the deficit with an up-and-down birdie on No. 11 (par 5, 560 yards) and 25-foot birdie bomb on 12 (par 3, 173 yards).

   “From there on out, it was an absolute grind. I made par on every hole in besides one bogey (on No. 4), but I’m happy with the final number,” he said.

   The 18-year-old is a frequent competitor in Metropolitan Golf Association and Long Island Golf Association events. Soon enough, he’ll be a USGA competitor and Division 1 golfer stationed in the Big Apple.

   “I can’t wait to get up there. I was looking at a few schools, but once I got the call from St. John’s and visited the campus I knew that’s where I wanted to be,” said Gerbavsits.

Golf Association of Philadelphia
  Founded in 1897, the Golf Association of Philadelphia (GAP) is the oldest regional golf association in the United States and serves as the principal ruling body of amateur golf in its region. Its 260 Member Clubs and 75,000 individual members are spread across parts of Pennsylvania, New Jersey, Delaware and Maryland. As Philadelphia’s Most Trusted Source of Golf Information, the Golf Association of Philadelphia’s mission is to promote, preserve and protect the game of golf.