The Junior President’s Cup, organized by the American Junior Golf Association (AJGA) in association with the PGA Tour, was held from September 22-24, 2024, at Le Club Laval, Sur La Lac in Montreal, Canada. This biennial event pits the 12 best junior players from the United States against 12 of the top juniors from around the world, excluding Europe (as European juniors compete in the Junior Ryder Cup in alternating years).
Players are selected based on their World Amateur Golf Ranking (WAGR), AJGA ROLEX rankings, and performances in top-level junior tournaments globally. The 12th player on each team is a captain’s pick. This year, the USA team was captained by Charley Hoffman, while the International Team was led by Canada’s Graham DeLaet, both former PGA Tour winners.
PGA Tour Commissioner Jay Monahan was in attendance for the event, adding to its prestige. As an added bonus, all participants will have the rare opportunity to walk inside the ropes with PGA Tour professionals during this week’s President’s Cup at Royal Montreal Golf Club. This exclusive experience will allow the juniors to engage with players like Scottie Scheffler, Collin Morikawa, Tom Kim, and other top PGA Tour stars.
For junior golfers, competing in the Junior President’s Cup is a dream come true, and for 14-year-old Kartik Singh, that dream became reality as he was selected to represent the International Team. Kartik was the youngest player in the tournament at just 14 years old.
Kartik’s selection was the result of numerous strong performances, including his impressive 3rd place finish at the Junior Players Championship at TPC Sawgrass earlier in September. His solid play continued at the Junior President’s Cup.
In the opening Fourball match on Day 1, Kartik was paired with Colombia’s Samuel Gonzalez against the American duo of Asher Vargas and Ronin Banerjee. Despite Kartik firing off four birdies in a row, the USA team claimed the win, 4-3. However, in the afternoon Foursome match, Kartik and Samuel showed great chemistry and bounced back to win their match 1 up, earning a crucial point for the International Team.
On Day 2, Kartik faced Ronin Banerjee (AJGA Rolex Rank 7) in a thrilling singles match. After a back-and-forth contest, Kartik entered the 18th hole 1 Up but lost the final hole, resulting in a tie and adding 0.5 points to the team’s tally.
Despite a dominant performance by the USA Team, which won the Junior President’s Cup 15-9, Kartik’s contribution of 1.5 points and his impressive composure were widely praised by all in attendance.
Kartik’s performance has also earned him the highest exemption from the AJGA for entry into any of their future tournaments.
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