ARGILLITE — It's hard to blame Drew Rothenstine for thinking he was going to have a rough go of it in Friday's Eastern Kentucky Junior Golf Association event.
Rothenstine, a multiple-time winner on the tour last year, bogied three of his first five holes at River Bend Golf Course.
"I really thought it might be a mediocre day after that," the Ashland sophomore said.
Rothenstine shook off the rust, though, and played his final 13 holes 1-under par. On the day, he fired a 2-over 72 to claim the title in the
10-12 grade division. He finished a shot clear of Greenup County's Eli Carr.
"I hit the ball pretty good all day," Rothenstine said. "I hit a lot of greens -- almost all of them-- and I made a lot of putts."
Rothenstine¹s round got off on the wrong foot right away. Starting on the back side, he took a bogie five on the 10th. Rothenstine then bogied 12 and 14, putting him behind the eight ball early in his round.
However, a birdie on the par four 16th and a solid up and down from the rough behind the green on the 17th started to turn things around. Rothenstine said those couple holes gave him a confidence boost -- and the payoff immediately started to show.
Rothenstine played a stretch of eight holes in the middle of his round at 2-under. He came in with a 36 (even par) on his final nine, posting birdies on the second and seventh holes.
The victory was Rothenstine¹s first of 2009 on the EKJGA, a tour he says he has grown fond of the past two years.
"I love to play the EKJGA; this has been a great thing," Rothenstine said. 'It¹s great preparation for the (high school season) but it's not as stressful. Getting to play with a lot of friends and compete, it's been fun."
The EKJGA, sponsored by Walmart, is in its second season under the direction of longtime area golf advocate Tom Cooksey. The tour will be right back at it with an event scheduled for Monday at Eagle Trace Golf Course in Morehead.
On Thursday, Bricen Thompson made it a bit of a family affair. A cousin of Rothenstine, Thompson won the 3-grade-and-under age group with a 41 (9 holes).
Hannah Sublett of South Shore had another impressive showing on the girls' side. She finished 12 shots clear of the field in claiming the 10-12 title.
The multiple-time winner on tour shot a 77.
A couple Russell players had strong showings as well. Alyssa Thompson finished third with a 94 in the 0-12 group and Jessica Elliott won the 7-9 title with a 99.
Ashland's Kelly Porter shot a 79 in the 7-9 division and finished second.
Argillite's Tyler Smith also had a 79 in the same age group. Kyle Brown of Olive Hill won the division with a 76.
Hunter Holbrook of Sandy Hook won the 4-6 division.
ADAM VANKIRK can be reached at avankirk@dailyindependent.com or (606)
326-2664.
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Slide Show: Rothenstine's rebound
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