Jarvis finishes top 30 at Junior Open Championship

By Cayman Sports Buzz
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Updated: 30 July 2018

Holly Mclean and Aaron Jarvis represented the Cayman Islands at the Open Jr Championships.

Two Junior golfers, Aaron Jarvis and Holly Mclean, travelled to St. Andrews, Scotland to represent the Cayman Islands in The 2018 Junior Open Championship from 16-18 July.

The tournament was held on the Eden Course and comprised a stroke play contest, with 135 of the best junior players in the world from 72 countries taking part. After two rounds of play, the top 80 make the cut and play in the third round.

The tournament started with a practice round on Sunday followed by the Opening Ceremony held on the first tee of the Old Course, at which Aaron and Holly had the opportunity to meet the 2017 Open Champion Jordan Spieth.

Holly Mclean (left) and Aaron Jarvis (right) meet champion golfer Jordan Spieth.

For Round 1, Jarvis teed off early in cool, breezy conditions and played well for a 2 over par 70. Mclean went off in the afternoon in similar conditions and shot a solid 83.

In Round 2, the roles were reversed, with Mclean going out early and Jarvis in the afternoon. The conditions were similar, but with intermittent rain. Holly played well on the front nine, but found the course tough coming down the stretch on the back nine and ended with a score of 86, for a total of 29 over par, unfortunately missing the cut for day 3. Aaron continued with his good form and finished with a score of 75, for a two-day total of 7 over par, in 25th place and making the cut.

Aaron Jarvis putts for a birdie on the 18th hole.

On day three, the wind picked up more, drying out the greens and fairways. Aaron again played some nice golf and finished with another score of 75, finishing the Tournament with a 12 over par total, and placing 30th overall. This is the first time that a Cayman junior player has made the cut at the Junior Open Championship.

“I’m really happy with my performance considering it was my first time playing on a links course. It was really tough on this course and in this weather but I am really happy that I was given the chance to experience the competition,” Jarvis said.

“It was a good start and I played really well, especially on the back nine. I tried to stay patient even when things weren’t going well which I think that contributed to my patience in these hard conditions,” he added.

Holly Mclean tees off on the 10th hole in round 2.

Mclean summed up her participation in the tournament. “[It was a] Great experience, definitely made me nervous on the first tee and to be able to think that the 2018 champion golfer played in this tournament 10 years ago made me proud that I have earned my spot in this tournament. Looking forward to the next time I play in this even,” she said.

Both golfers returned to Cayman as part of the 2018 Caribbean Amateur Golf Championship starting on Monday, 31 July – Friday, 3 August at the North Sound Golf Club.