Tenore wins Divot Derby, again
Tina Harbuck
For the fourth year in a row, Destin’s Madison Tenore won The First Tee of Northwest Florida 63rd annual Divot Derby Junior Golf Championship in Pensacola last week.
“It’s always a good tournament,” said Tenore, who won the Ladies 16-18 age division with a total of 213 across three days of play. Placing second was Taylor Reeves of Gulf Breeze with a 238, and Paola Rosario-Sauri of Crestview finished third with a 242.
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The tournament was played on three courses.
Round one was played at Perdido Bay Golf Club. Round two at Marcus Pointe Golf Club then the third and final round was played at Tiger Point Country Club.
In round one, Tenore shot a 73, one over par, while Reeves bested her with a 71.
On day two, at Macus Pointe in Pensacola, Tenore pulled ahead with a 70, two under par. As for Reeves she shot an 87, and Rosario-Sauri an 82.
“It was a tough course and windy,” Tenore said.
Then on day three, Tenore continued to lead the way with a 70 at Tiger Pointe, for another two under par. Reeves shot an 80 and Rosario-Sauri, 82.
“Conditions were brutal from the wind to the heat. But thank goodness we didn’t get any rain,” she said.
How did Tenore stay in the lead in the tournament?
“Driver. I can always count on that driver ... it sets me up for that second shot,” Tenore said.
As for the greens, she said they were a little fast at Marcus and Tiger Pointe.
“I left a lot of putts,” she said.
This was Tenore’s last year to play the Divot Derby. She is the second female to win the tournament four consecutive times, since the tournaments inception.
The Divot Derby was founded in 1958 by the Pensacola Sports Association and has been organized by the GPJGA since 1995, according their website.
Since 2010, the event has been presented by PGA Tour star Bubba Watson, who was the champion of the 1994 event. The tournament, played every July, is free to all area junior golfers.