FSGA Boys Junior: Ramsey Touchberry and Philip Knowles notch top 10 finishes

Ramsey Touchberry practices for Lakewood Ranch High in last fall's Class 2A state tournament, which the Mustangs won to complete a 103-0 season. Jason Dill/jdill@bradenton.com

Lakewood Ranch rising junior Ramsey Touchberry had the highest finish among area golfers in the boys 16-18 year old division of the 58th Florida State Boys' Junior Championship at Sawgrass Country Club in Ponte Vedra Beach on Thursday.

Touchberry rebounded from an opening 76 to post a 70 and 74 on Wednesday and Thursday, respectively, to snag ninth place. His 220 total was 10 shots behind Winter Springs' Hank Lebioda, who won by four shots over Orlando's Ryan Stovash.

In the boys 13-15 division, Bradenton Christian golfer Philip Knowles tied for fifth with a 220 total. After a first-round 80, Knowles closed with two strong 70s to finish 10 shots Reunion's Andy Zhang.
Zhang, who has played IMG Junior Golf Tour events in the past, made headlines this summer as the youngest player to ever play in the United States Open.

Here's how other locals that made the cut finished:

16-18 year old division

Danny Walker, tied for 13th, 222 total.
Ryan Wolfe, tied for 41st, 231 total.
Connor Baldwin, no card in final round.

13-15 year old division

Cole Johnson, 20th, 232 total.

FSGA Boys Junior: Danny Walker in second after first round

Lakewood Ranch High rising junior Danny Walker is in the hunt of the 16-18 year old division of the 58th Florida State Boys' Junior Championship after a first-round 68 on Tuesday at TPC Sawgrass' Valley Course in Ponte Vedra Beach.

Walker, who claimed a state high school individual title as a freshman, is one shot behind Orlando's Ryan Stovash and is alone in second place.

Meanwhile, Parrish's Cole Johnson and Bradenton's Charles Sun are tied for ninth in the boys 13-15 division held at Sawgrass Country Club. Both players opened with 75s and are five strokes behind the pace.

The trio are the lone county players in the top 10 in either division.

Here's how other local players fared in the 16-18 division:

Jordan Miller, of Bradenton, shot 74 on the TPC Valley Course and is tied for 21st.

Ryan Wolfe, of Ellenton, shot 75 at Sawgrass Country Club and is tied for 29th.

Ramsey Touchberry, of Bradenton, shot 76 at TPC's Valley Course and is tied for 35th.

Hunter Sagar, of Bradenton, shot 77 at TPC's Valley Course and is tied for 49th.

Connor Baldwin, of Lakewood Ranch, shot 78 on TPC's Valley Course and is tied for 56th.

Kyle Benson, of Bradenton, shot 80 at Sawgrass Country Club and is tied for 73rd.

Connor Lynch, of Bradenton, shot 81 at TPC's Valley Course and is tied for 82nd.

Benjamin Boulch, of Bradenton, shot 88 at TPC's Valley Course and is tied for 110th.

And here's how the locals ended up in the 13-15 division, which all played Sawgrass Country Club on Tuesday:

Spencer Schultz, of Bradenton, shot 78 and is tied for 19th.

Philip Knowles, of Bradenton, shot 80 and is tied for 30th.

Andrew Hammett, of Bradenton, shot 83 and is tied for 39th.