JACKSONVILLE, FL – Led by Lily Wachter’s 63 and Jaspreet Kondal’s 66, the Beachside High School girls’ and boys’ golf teams captured the 7th Jacksonville Beach High School Invitational on Sept. 19th in a battle of the area’s top high school golf programs.
With a combined score of 584, the Barracudas were nine stroke victors over runner-up Ponte Vedra High School. Bolles School finished third, seven shots behind defending champion Ponte Vedra.
The St. Johns County school saw their boys shoot 283 (-5) at Jax Beach Golf Course and the girls 301 (+21).
The event is unique for high school golf in that it combines the scores of both girls and boys to determine an overall champion. Each team fielded five competitors with the four lowest scores counting. Due to construction underway on host Jax Beach GC’s fifth and sixth holes, the boys played the back nine twice and the girls a modified front nine layout.
The Beachside boys were represented by Kondal, Jaden Nacional (68), Palmer Scott (74), Christopher Grota (75) and Levi Naidu (85) and the girls by Wachter, Olivia Connell (75), Alexia Iordonov(78), Avni Reddy (85) and Addy Smotherman (86).
Just a freshman, Wachter’s 63 was the low score of the day and set a tournament record. Some will remember watching the St. Augustine native win the girls’ age 10-11 division of the Augusta National Golf Club’s “Drive, Chip and Putt National Finals” on Golf Channel in 2024. About one week ago, she qualified for her third trip to Augusta this coming April.
Wachter was nearly chased down by Bolles’ senior Chloe McGrath, who is headed to William and Mary College next fall. McGrath’s career-low 64 included birdies on her last four holes. Three other ladies broke 70 – McGrath’s teammates Chloe Pierce (67) and Riley Powell (69) and Honor Donaldson (68) of Providence.
Kondal’s 66 earned him the boys’ individual medal. He was two better than teammate Nacional. Alexander Stewart (69) of Providence was the other participant to break 70.
Below are the overall standings for the combined team competition, followed by individual team scores/results for both the boys and girls:
JAGA played a supporting role in the event for the first time this year providing JAGA volunteers for registration, starters, rules, scoring and publicity. Chairing the event were Bolles coaches Trey Leonard and Michael McGrath.
The high school golf season in Florida starts in late August and concludes in November and is about at the halfway mark now. District play is scheduled for late October, followed by Regionals in early November and the FHSAA State Championships at Mission Inn Resort at Howey-in-the-Hills in mid-November.
UPCOMING JAGA EVENTS
| DATE | EVENT | VENUE |
| Oct. 26 | 44th JAGA Club Team Presidents Cup | World Golf Village – King & Bear |
| Nov. 2 | JAGA Fall Four-Ball | Ponte Vedra Inn & Club – Lagoon Course |
| Nov. 23 | 23rd JAGA Scholarship Trust Classic presented by Circle K |
Marsh Landing CC |
| Dec. 19 | JAGA Family Championship | Jax Beach GC |
Entries are currently open for the Club Team, Fall Four-Ball and Scholarship Trust Classic tournaments. Registration for the Family Championship opens Oct. 15th.
Details and registration for all JAGA tournaments may be found at: https://jaxareagolf.org/2026-tournaments/
ABOUT JAGA
Established in 1954, JAGA enters its 73rd year in 2026. It is a not-for-profit corporation consisting of 42-member golf facilities located in Northeast Florida. JAGA’s mission is to promote golf, community and goodwill through tournaments and related events and activities. It conducts or supports 11 tournaments, including six championship events and five others that feature team formats. JAGA has a charitable arm that manages a scholarship program which currently provides college funding for 63 area students. Since its inception in 1974, the Scholarship Trust has awarded over $2.5 million in scholarships to more than 475 students.
Anyone interested in receiving JAGA’s monthly “Northeast Florida Golf News” and announcements about JAGA and its tournaments for free via email may do so by clicking here or going to the JAGA homepage (www.jaxareagolf.org) link that reads “Subscribe to JAGA Email” at the bottom of every page.
Contacts:
Duke Butler III
JAGA
Cell: 904-910-7318
Email: db3@dukebutler.com
Michael McGrath
Bolles School
Cell: 904-813-4225
Email: mcgrathm@bolles.org