JAGA Tournaments
– JAGA does not conduct any tournaments in August and September. It returns to action on Oct. 26th with the newly named 44th JAGA Club Team Presidents Cup at King & Bear at World Golf Village.
The JAGA Fall Four-Ball is the following week (Nov. 2) at Ponte Vedra Inn & Club – Lagoon Course. Entries just opened.
The 23rd JAGA Scholarship Trust Classic is the Monday of Thanksgiving (Nov. 23) at Marsh Landing CC. Every dollar raised transforms young lives through the college scholarships it awards to area students.
Here is the rundown of the final four JAGA events of 2026 with the link to enter the Four-Ball and Trust Classic below it:
For details on JAGA tournaments, click HERE
JAGA News
– JAGA has agreed to assist in running the 7th Jax Beach High School Invitational on Saturday, Sept. 19th. It will register and start the groups, and provide rules officials, electronic scoring and publicity. The JBIHS is unique in that it joins boys and girls teams to determine a team score. Participating high schools are host Bolles, plus Beachside, Creekside, Fletcher, Nease, Ponte Vedra, Providence, St. Johns and Tocoi Creek. Ponte Vedra is the defending champion.
– The 2026 PLAYERS Championship and its past chairpersons’ group, the Red Coats, recently awarded a $6,000 Red Coats’ Community grant to the JAGA Charitable Trust. The funds will be used by JAGA to support its college scholarship program, which currently provides funding to 63 area students. Since 1974, the program has generated approximately $2.5 million in financial aid to approximately 500 students. JAGA wishes to extend its sincerest appreciation to the PLAYERS Championship, the Red Coats and the PGA TOUR for believing in and supporting the JAGA Charitable Trust.
Northern PGA Chapter Tournament & News
– Sandra Changkija of Sugar Mill CC won the Aug. 10th Chapter Pro-Am at Hammock Cove – Ocean course, posting a 7-under-par 65. She was two better than Rod Perry of Crane Lakes G&CC and Dominic Barron Holden of the host facility. Changkija collected $890; the runners-up $595 each.
– The two competing members from the North Florida PGA – Stephanie Connelly-Eiswerth (Fleming Island/San Jose CC) and Sandra Changkija (Daytona Beach/Sugar Mill CC) – led the U.S. team to a record 30-shot victory over Great Britain & Ireland in the Women’s PGA Cup in Cheshire, England, Sept. 3-5. The USA has won all four editions of the biennial competition which was first played in 2019. Changkija recorded the top individual score (213/-6) of the 30 contestants, with Connelly-Eiswerth finishing T2 (218/-1). The Cup features five-player teams from the U.S., Australia, Canada, Great Britain & Ireland, South Africa and Sweden in a 54-hole stroke-play format. Changkija was playing for the second time and Connelly-Eiswerth, who gave birth to her first child in May, for the third time. For complete results, click HERE
– R.J. Politan of GreatLIFE Golf defeated Hayes Farley of San Jose CC on the third playoff hole to win the Chapter Championship at PV Inn & Club on Aug. 24-25. The duo posted 2-under-par 140, with R.J. Milford of Peak Fitness and Performance two shots back in third. Politan collected $2,010 and Farley $1,590.
Aaron Russell (143 / $1,150) of Sawgrass CC won the Senior division over Jeff Hanson (144 / $690) of host PVI&C. Austin Hill (144 / $1,100) of Timuquana CC was a five-shot winner in the Assistants’ event.
– Next up is the Chapter Pro-Am at Omni Amelia Island Resort & Spa – Oak Marsh course in Fernandina Beach on Sept. 14th.
FSGA Tournaments
– Notre Dame and U. of Virginia grad Chloe Schiavone of Jacksonville ran away with the 14th Florida Women’s Mid-Amateur Championship at Sugar Mill CC in New Smyrna Beach in mid-August. Rounds of 75-71-71 led to a five-shot victory over Isabel McMahon of Orlando. It was the Bolles School alum’s third FSGA title and first since the 2019 Women’s Four-Ball with Ariel Yu.
Schiavone has played solid golf all summer long. She was second in the First Coast Women’s Amateur, T3 in the Florida Women’s Open, and a match-play semifinalist in the 10th Florida Women’s Amateur after placing 10th in the stroke play seeding.
Perennial FSGA contenders Tama Caldabaugh and Therese Quinn finished T11 and 16th, respectively.
Credit: FSGA
– Ty Capps of Palm Coast sank an 18-foot birdie putt on the first playoff hole to win the Forty & Over Championship on Aug. 23rd. at Pensacola CC. The 2025 Mid-Amateur Player of the Year defeated 2007 Florida Amateur champion Matthew Galloway. They posted scores of 207 (-9). The reigning Florida Senior Open champion Paul Tesori of Ponte Vedra was T8 at 213.
Credit: FSGA
– The North Florida Junior Golf Foundation captured the Girls’ (13-15) division at the Junior Team Championship at Sandridge GC in Vero Beach on Aug. 2nd. They won by 28 shots. Team members were Simryn Chokshi, Sophia Moody and Akery Paing.
In boys’ play, the NFJGF was runner-up in both the 16-18 and 13-15 divisions by two shots and one shot, respectively.
Seven junior golf foundations from the state of Florida were represented.
– The FSGA’s Florida Junior Golf Tour has partnered with 2021 JAGA Jacksonville Amateur presented by Pinnacle Financial Partners champion Mike Smith and his Fore College Golf to provide assistance to junior golfers looking to play college golf. They will host webinars throughout the year, post reference articles and serve as an outlet to answer questions. For more details, click HERE
USGA Championships
– In the 126th U.S. Amateur Championship at Merion GC outside Philadelphia, ascending local star Miles Russell had another strong effort in stroke play when he finished T5 among the 312 participants to secure one of the 64 match-play spots. Ranked fourth in the Official World Golf Ranking, he drew the field’s next highest-ranked WAGR player in the first round, Ryder Cowan (No. 8), who eked into match play via a 16-way playoff for the final 11 spots. Cowan, an Edmond, Okla. resident and U. of Oklahoma senior, dispatched his 17-year-old Jax Beach opponent 2&1 with an improbable par chip-in on the 17th hole. Cowan bowed in his quarterfinal match. In July, Cowan shared low amateur honors with Jackson Koivun in the U.S. Open at Shinnecock Hills GC.
Fleming Island’s Tyler Mawhinney missed the stroke-play playoff by one.
England’s Jack Whaley, a rising FSU senior, defeated Jay Leng, Jr. of Stanford U., 4&3 in the 36-hole championship finale to become the first Seminole to win golf’s most prestigious amateur title.
Russell, Cowan and Leng were U.S. teammates at the Sept. 5-6 Walker Cup in Ireland. Whaley was named to the European Team following his Merion victory.
Note: Russell was 2-1-1 for the USA at the Walker Cup, which GB&I won by one point with a gallant comeback in the final Singles’ matches at Lahinch GC in Ireland.
FSU’s Jack Whaley became the first Seminole to win the U.S. Amateur.
Credit: USGA
– Nancy Cox of Ponte Vedra Beach shot 75-71-146 (+2) to become one of 64 who advanced to match play in the 126th U.S. Women’s Amateur Championship at The Honors Course near Chattanooga, Tenn. Three down with five holes to play in her first-round match, the PVHS grad and U. of Oklahoma transfer battled back to square things through 17 holes, only to lose 1 up to Gianna Singh‘s par on No. 18.
Canadian Aphrodite Deng who works with the team at the TOUR Performance Center at TPC Sawgrass also advanced shooting 142. She lost her first match to Rachel Lee of Australia on the 19th hole.
UNF’s Kaitlyn Schroeder missed the playoff for one of the final match play spots by three shots.
Californian and 2027 Stanford U. commit Asterisk Talley won the championship convincingly, downing Japan’s Anna Iwanaga 8&6 in the scheduled 36-hole finale. Tally is ranked No. 1 in the leading junior golf rankings and No. 7 in the World Amateur Golf Ranking as of Sept. 2nd.
– 2002 JAGA Jacksonville Amateur presented by Pinnacle Financial Partners champion Steve Carter of Deerwood CC and 2025 Underwood Cup amateur team captain Michael Del Rocco of San Jose CC were among the 156 who secured spots in the recent 71st U.S. Senior Amateur Championship played at Baltimore CC via local qualifiers. Carter went on to finish T21 in stroke play and advance to the 64-man match play competition. The UNF grad, financial advisor and former president of the FSGA (2018-19) lost his first-round match 2&1 to Brendan Hester of Singer Island, Fla. Del Rocco did not make it to match play.
– Tama Caldabaugh of The Plantation at Ponte Vedra Beach secured the final qualifying spot in Tampa for the U.S. Women’s Amateur to be played at Portland (Ore.) GC beginning on Sept. 26th. It will be her 10th appearance in the event and 15th in a USGA national championship.
Junior Players Championship
JP Lynch of Austin, Texas fired a final-round 66 on the Stadium Course at TPC Sawgrass to win the 20th edition of the Junior Players Championship by one shot over 2027 U. of Georgia commit Brady Barnum of Dublin, Ohio. The 2028 U. of Oklahoma commit posted 208 (-8). The competitors played from the tips (7,298 yards).
Lynch joins recent champions and now PGA TOUR members David Ford (2020) and Ben James(2021), as well as 2023 and ’25 champion Miles Russell of Jax Beach, in the Jr. Players’ winner’s circle. Russell was in Ireland playing for the U.S. Walker Cup team.
Lynch came to Ponte Vedra Beach 51st on the American Junior Golf Association’s Rolex Rankings. The win was his third AJGA title in the past nine months.
2027 U. of Florida commit Guiseppe Puebla of Royal Palm Beach, Fla. was one of three tied for the 36-hole lead. He finished with a 77, thanks largely to a 7 on his 53rd hole (No. 17), and T11.
Young Charlie Woods, who is headed to Florida State next fall with Russell, had his first AJGA top 10 of the season, a T8.
The First Coast was represented by Tocoi Creek HS teammates Ambrose Kinnare and Kaden James, who finished T54 and T62, respectively.
Click HERE to view the leaderboard.
On Sept. 2nd, Times-Union golf writer Garry Smits previewed the Junior Players with a recap of the first 19 editions. Among other stats, he revealed that 42 of the participants have gone on to win a collective 137 PGA TOUR titles, with eight combining to win 19 majors and three Players Championships.
2026 AJGA Junior Players champion, JP Lynch of Austin, Texas.
Credit: AJGA
Constellation Furyk and Friends presented by Circle K
Tabitha and Jim Furyk at Hammock Beach Resort & Spa in Palm Coast
Credit: Constellation Furyk & Friends
Reminders for fans going to the Constellation Furyk and Friends presented by Circle K event on October 5-11 at the Ocean Course at Hammock Beach Resort in Palm Coast:
– Parking will be at the Daytona Beach State College campus at 3000 Palm Coast Parkway SE. It’s a 10-minute shuttle ride to the course. Golf cart and bicycle parking are at the course, and rideshare is nearby at 105 16th Street. All parking is free.
– The competition days are Oct. 9-11. Most of the top PGA TOUR Champions players will be there, including defending champion Tommy “Two Gloves” Gainey.
– There are two extra events. The Champions Breakfast will be Friday morning with Lee Trevino as the speaker, and a concert featuring Billy Currington will be that evening. Details are at constellationfurykandfriends.com.
– There are five pro-ams but none are open to the general public. The events are on Monday, Wednesday morning and afternoon, and Friday morning and afternoon.
– The course is a Jack Nicklaus design with six holes having ocean views. The entire 9th and 18thholes are along the ocean.
– Numerous charities are involved and the tournament payout has been almost $5.5 million in its first five years. Constellation Energy returns as the title sponsor with Circle K also in a major role.
– Ticket information is at ticketmaster.com. 17-and-unders are free, as are college students.
Other Tournaments
– On August 9th, Team Florida won the 7th Women’s Southeastern Challenge Match at The Landings G&AC – Oakridge Course in Savannah by 3 ½ points over Alabama, with Georgia another two points behind them. The biennial competition features eight female amateurs representing the Florida, Georgia and Alabama state golf associations. Four team members are aged 50 and above and four are 19-49 (one can be 18 or younger). They compete in four-ball, foursome three-ball and three-ball matches over two days. Northeast Florida was represented by Tama Caldabaugh of Ponte Vedra Beach and Brianna Castaldi of UNF. Florida won the Match for the third time. Georgia leads with a total of four wins. For complete results, click HERE
Florida wins Women’s Southeastern Challenge Match for the third time.
Credit: Georgia State GA
– Registration for the 21st St. Augustine Amateur at St. Johns GC in Elkton opened on Aug. 26th. The tournament, which features 84 players (max) from around the U.S. and abroad, will be played Dec. 4-6 at the southern St. Johns County course. It will award World Amateur Golf Ranking points for the 21st time. All proceeds will benefit First Tee – North Florida.
Last December, recent UNF grad Adam Vermut birdied the final hole to defeat Jake Moffitt of Southern Mississippi U. by one stroke. The 6’6″ Vermut posted 7-under-par 206. The 2026 field had players ranging in age from 14 to 38, with 20 states, nine countries and 47 American colleges represented.
For tournament information and to register, go to www.staugustineamateur.com.
– The U.S. Amateur Tour is kicking off its 2026-27 season in Jacksonville with a team event on Oct. 3rd at King and Bear. Whether you’re a scratch golfer or looking to compete at your level, the U.S. Am Tour offers flighted tournaments that match players of similar skill—providing everyone a chance to experience tour-style competition on championship courses. You don’t have to be an Am Tour member to participate. If you know one, ask to play with him or her! If you don’t, ask a friend and team up as two nonmembers! JAGA director Mike Charrie is the local Jacksonville/Savannah director for the U.S. Am Tour. Register at USAMTOUR.COM
– Jack Nelson of the First Tee-North Florida will be one of the 80 junior golfers in the PGA TOUR Champions Tour Pure Insurance Open played at Pebble Beach GL Sept. 18-20. First Tee members play two rounds with Champions Tour players. The low 23 pro-junior teams advance to the final round. The event will air on Golf Channel.
– Beachside HS won the team title by three shots (280) over Providence HS (283) in the Back 2 School Invitational played Aug. 17th at the Ponte Vedra Inn & Club / Lagoon Course. Host Ponte Vedra HSwas third at 284.
Beachside senior Jaspreet Kondal grabbed medalist honors firing a career tournament low round of 8-under-par 62 on the par-70, 6,000-yard layout. The U. of Chattanooga commit had an eagle, seven birdies and one bogey. Providence senior Alex Stewart shared runner-up honors with Beachside sophomore Greta Christopher at 64. James Nagle of PVHS was fourth with a 65.
Bolles, Episcopal, Fletcher and Suwannee high schools also competed.
Back 2 School tournament medalist Jaspreet Kondal of Beachside HS
– The following players reside in Northeast Florida and/or utilize the facilities at TPC Sawgrass via their TOUR membership. They are among the many Korn Ferry Tour players seeking to secure 2027 PGA TOUR playing privileges that come with a top-20 finish on the KFT points list. With four events remaining in September and October, these five reside inside the current top 100: 2-Doc Redmon (Clemson-see additional note below), 14-Ben Kohles (UVA), 40-Nick Gabrelcik (UNF), 44-Travis Trace (UNF), 70-Julian Suri (Duke). 90-Carl Yuan (U. of Washington) and 94-Joe Weiler (Purdue).
Other News
– On Aug. 24th, former PGA TOUR commissioner Tim Finchem and his wife Holly mad a significant announcement – they would donate $13 million to PGA TOUR Charities, the TOUR’s charitable arm that will be reorganized around national campaigns designed to produce greater impact at the local level beginning in 2028.
It was also revealed by Holly Finchem that husband Tim, 79, is battling Alzheimer’s.
This LINK from Global Golf Post features four stories related to the announcement and the Finchems:
Tim and Holly Finchem
Credit: PGA TOUR/Getty Images
– USAA executive Kevin Copeland was named the 2027 Volunteer Chairman for The PLAYERS Championship, succeeding Marc Hassan in the oversight of its 48 committees and 2,000+ volunteers. The 2027 Championship is March 11-14.
2027 PLAYERS Volunteer Chairman Kevin Copeland
Credit: PLAYERS Championship
– Nease HS graduate Auston Kim got a wonderful birthday present on Aug. 16th when she received a phone call from U.S. Solheim Cup captain Angela Stanford letting her know she had qualified on points for the U.S. team that will face off against European on Sept. 11-13 in The Netherlands. Kim was at her home at St. Johns G&CC when the call came in. A longtime St. Augustine resident, Kim was the Florida Times-Union’s girls’ high school player of the year in 2016. This will be the first Solheim Cup appearance for the third-year LPGA player. Click HERE for Kim’s LPGA bio:
– Entries are now being accepted for the 2nd Crown Jewel / San Jose Men’s Invitational, a 36-hole mid-amateur championship hosted by San Jose CC, Oct. 31 – Nov. 1. Interested golfers must be at least 25 (as of 11-8-26) and have a valid USGA index of 3.4 or lower. The field is limited to 60 players based on submission of a completed entry form that includes a playing summary for committee review and a refundable entry fee of $375 (plus tax) per player.
To receive an entry form, email Todd Bork at todd.bork@sjccjax.com. Questions may be directed to Todd at 904-476-2675. There is no digital option.
Co-chairing the event again are San Jose CC members Matt Saxton and Michael Del Rocco.
– Miles Russell was named to captain Matt Kuchar‘s 2026 U.S. Junior Presidents Cup team. The matches are Sept. 19-20 at Medinah CC near Chicago. It will be the young lefthander’s second Cup appearance.
– The Golf Club at South Hampton is scheduled to reopen in late September or early October as the St. Augustine facility nears completion of a four-month, $2 million renovation, reports Florida Times-Union golf writer Garry Smits. Changes center around lowering the green surfaces and softening bunker lips and faces. “We think it will be one of best courses in the area for the average golfer, and one of the most fun,” said DWA Golf co-owner David DiStefano. Changes have also been made to the clubhouse and a new logo introduced. Enhanced membership packages are available (904-287-PLAY or jhouston@dwagolf.com).
The GC at South Hampton has a new logo in addition to enhanced greens and bunkers.
Credit: GC at South Hampton
– Jim Furyk has been named the lead analyst for USA Sports’ and Golf Channel’s PGA TOUR and men’s major championship coverage in a multi-year agreement. The 17-time TOUR winner debuted with them this past March at select events. A longtime Jacksonville resident, Furyk will be a busy man in 2027 as he will also captain the U.S. Ryder Cup team in Ireland in September.
– The rounds-played bounce that was initiated by Covid in 2020 continues, according to the National Golf Foundation. The NGF reports overall rounds played are up 16 percent over the past six years (2020-2026) compared to the prior six years (2013-2019).
Below is the NGF’s index of rounds played over the last ten years.
College Golf
Students are back in school which means the fall college golf season is about to get underway. Area schools (UNF, JU, Flagler) and others of local interest (UF, FSU, UGA) all get underway with at least one tournament in September. NEWS will continue to cover each school’s results (men and women) on a monthly basis during the 2026-27 season.
Golfweek announced its 2026-27 men’s college golf preseason rankings. The Florida Gators were atop the list at No. 1. Georgia was 12 and Florida State 17.
Jax Beach Resident is “TOURBound”
– Following his T4 finish in Omaha, Neb. on Aug. 9th, 2017 U.S. Amateur champion and Jacksonville Beach resident Doc Redman became the first player to achieve “TOURBound” status via the 2026 Korn Ferry Tour, meaning he has secured one of the 20 PGA TOUR cards for 2027 that are available via the KFT. Having won twice earlier this year, the Raleigh native would secure an immediate TOUR promotion and access to the upcoming FedExCup Fall events with one more KFT win. There are four events remaining in September and October.
Redman turned professional in 2018 after spending two years at Clemson U. He played four seasons on the PGA TOUR (2020-23; $5.3 million in earnings and two runners-up) before being relegated to the KFT. When in town, you’ll see Redmon at either TPC Sawgrass or Atlantic Beach CC.
For more detail on Doc, click HERE
Doc Redman
Credit: PGA TOUR
Northeast Florida Golf News is written and edited by
JAGA directors Fred Seely (Timuquana CC) and Jeff Adams (TPC Sawgrass).
Photos: Credit “JAGA” unless otherwise noted.
Reporting from Garry Smits’ Florida Times-Union “Golf Notebook” is used in NEWS.
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.