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Youthful team off to represent Jamaica at CAGC

Published:Tuesday | July 25, 2023 | 12:07 AMLennox Aldred/Gleaner Writer
From left: Jamaica Golf Association President and team member Jodi Munn-Barrow, Emily Mayne, Mattea Issa, Ryan Lue, Anoushka Khatri, team manager Dr Mark Newnham, Rocco Lopez, Zandre Roye (partially hidden), Aman Dhiman and Justin Burrowes pose for a phot
Contributed
From left: Jamaica Golf Association President and team member Jodi Munn-Barrow, Emily Mayne, Mattea Issa, Ryan Lue, Anoushka Khatri, team manager Dr Mark Newnham, Rocco Lopez, Zandre Roye (partially hidden), Aman Dhiman and Justin Burrowes pose for a photograph ahead of the team’s departure for the 66th Caribbean Amateur Golf Championship in Tobago on Sunday.

A confident youthful Jamaica team left the island on Sunday ahead of the start of the Caribbean Amateur Golf Championship (CAGC) which will be held at the Magdalena Golf Resort in Tobago with competition days set for July 26 to 28.

Jamaica will be represented in the Hoermon Cup by Ryan Lue, William Knibbs, Zandre Roye, Rocco Lopez, Aman Dhiman and Justin Burrowes on the men’s side while Mattea Issa, Jodi Munn-Barrow, Anoushka Khatri and Emily Mayne will feature for the ladies who are looking to defend the George Teale Trophy.

More than half of the 10-member team are juniors, which is pleasing to Jamaica Golf Association President and team member, Jodi Munn-Barrow.

“It is very good to see that six of the 10 players are juniors which is good for our programme as they will get more exposure and world amateur ranking points which will help Jamaica to qualify for future events.”

Among the young enthusiastic players are Rocco Lopez and Emily Mayne who recently returned from the Caribbean Junior championship where Lopez finished third in the under-18 men’s category and Mayne finished as runner-up in the under-18 ladies division.

“I was told by my coaches to not expect anything but to just go out and try my best. I expect to play well because I have been practising very hard and I am excited to play,” said Lopez.

“I took a break after juniors but I have been doing some light practice focusing on what I struggled with at the juniors but I am hoping to play well and bring home a trophy like last year when the women’s team won,” Mayne said.

Team manager Dr Mark Newnham said the other members of the team have been practising with regular sessions at the Tryall Golf course and the Sandals course at Upton.

Overseas-based Justin Burrowes, who is expected to turn professional next year, is also keen to go out with a bang.

“I have pretty much changed my base to the United States to focus more on my golf game and I have been playing pretty much every day at better facilities to work on my short game which is the area of my game that needed the most work, but I am ready for this week and honoured to represent my country.”

The Jamaicans will be going up against teams from Puerto Rico, Dominican Republic, US Virgin Islands, Bahamas, Turks and Caicos, Cayman Islands, Barbados and hosts Trinidad and Tobago.