Estero’s Gianna Clemente made the first leg of her two-month international tour a success Friday when she won the Girls Junior PGA Championship in Hot Springs, Arkansas.
Gianna, 15, shot a 3-under par 68 Friday for the victory. She started the day two strokes off the lead and didn’t help herself when she double bogeyed the first hole, but she righted the ship with two birdies on the front nine and three more on the back nine to gain the win.
Besides the 72 golfers, Gianna had to survive the 100-degree temperatures.
She shot a four-day total of 275, opening the tournament with a 64, followed by a 70-73-68, three shots better than her second-place challenger.
More about Gianna Clemente
Gianna flies to Los Angeles where she will begin play Monday at the U.S. Women’s Amateur Championship at the Bel-Air Country Club.
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Medal play will be held Monday and Tuesday. Qualifiers then begin match play Wednesday.
She then gets a week off before going to Vancouver, British Columbia CPKC Women’s tournament, a possible invitation to play in the LPGA Kroger Open in early September in Cincinnati, before jetting off to Europe.
She will play for the Junior Solheim Cup team against Europe in Spain, then for the Jr. Ryder Cup team in Rome. Her summer ends in Toronto as a 3-member team representing the U.S. in the World Girls Golf Championship.
TRAVEL WITH GIANNA
- August 7-13 U.S. Women’s Amateur Championship, Los Angeles
- August 22-27 CPKC Women’s Open, Vancouver, British Columbia
- September 1-4 American Junior Golf Association Invitational, Bowling Green, Florida
- OR
- September 7-10 Kroger Queen City Championship, Cincinnati, Ohio
- September 17-19 Junior Solheim Cup, Benahavis, Spain
- September 26-28 Junior Ryder Cup, Rome, Italy
- October 2-7 World Junior Girls Golf Championship, Toronto, Canada
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