Junior open golf from December 19

Anuradha ABEYSEKERA

The Sri Lanka Junior Open Golf Championship 2011 will be held from December 19 to 21 at the Royal Colombo Golf Club (RCGC).

Being the most prominent tournament for the young golfers in the country, more than 60 girls and boys players are expected to take part in this year’s championship. Sri Lanka Golf Union (SLGU) will conduct the tournament with the support of ‘Prima Sunrise Bread’ who sponsors the event for the fourth consecutive year.

Girls and boys under the age of 18 years will battle it out for the supremacy in three age groups, namely 15-17 years (Gold division), 11-14 years (Silver division) and 10 years and under (Bronze division). The overall winner will be declared the Sri Lanka Junior National Golf Champion for the year 2011.

The tournament was inaugurated in 1975 and has brought many young talents into the limelight, whose names were later went into the annals of Sri Lankan golf. Pin Fernando, Mithun Perera, Binupa Wijesinghe, Lalith Kumara and Tissa Chandradasa are few Sri Lanka’s top golfers who have been champions in this junior event’s previous editions as youngsters. Dhanika de Silva of British School, Colombo won the last year’s overall championship.

The tournament will serve as a talent search, where SLGU will identify youngsters with potential to be moulded as national players in future.

RCGC Vice President Dian Jayasuriya pointed out that the tournament has a great importance as golf will mould young characters with its focal qualities, self ruling and self discipline.

Prima Senior Business and Marketing Manager Sajith Gnaratne, RCGC Vice Captain Priath Fernando and SLGU Secretary Ana Punchihewa were also present at the press briefing.