A 54-hole, college-style event, 90 players, 54 boys and 36 girls, secured invitations to the DJ World Junior, including Tyler Watts of Huntsville, Ala., the world’s top-ranked junior boy. Watts enters the event after 2023 wins at the Jones Cup Junior Invitational, the Keith Mitchell Junior Championship, the Southern Junior Championship, and the Alabama State Amateur.

You can view the teams and players in the field HERE.

TEE TIMES

Dustin Johnson, a member of the 4Aces GC with LIV Golf, started the team draft in 2023, and the response was positive, so they continued the format.

A Zoom call was hosted Monday with organizers and 18 playing team captains to select their team of fellow competitors. The team aspect is a new wrinkle of the tournament, which began in 2023, allowing for camaraderie among players and preparing for their future college scoring format. Each team consists of 3 boys and 2 girls in a 5 count 4 format.

Team captain Billy Davis made his selections with his future in mind. Davis selected future Auburn University teammates Jack Roberts (verbal) and Tyler Spielman (signed). Rounding out team Davis is Eileen Park and Maggie Carlson. Auburn University leads the way at the DJ, with six verbal or signed commits in the field.

Team captain Vanessa Borovilos, a Texas A&M commit, also went the future teammate route, selecting Alex Long (signed). Rounding out team Borovilos is defending tournament champion Ryleigh Knaub, Alejandro Rivas, and Darren Zhou.

Blades Brown of Nashville, Tenn., is also in the field. Brown, like Watts, is a sophomore in high school coming off a spectacular 2023 that included wins at the AJGA Junior at Canebrake, the Huntsville.org Junior Championship, the Wyndham Invitational, the Tennessee Junior Amateur, and the Elite Invitational.

Related:
The Elite Invitational: Blades Brown and Bridget Wilkie win the titles
Blades Brown wins AJGA Junior Invitational

The girl's field is highlighted by the return of the top three finishers from 2023, led by reigning champion Ryleigh Knaub of DeBary, Fla. Knaub earned a two-stroke victory last year. Alice Ziyi Zhao of Irvine, Calif., a freshman who was the runner-up, and Chloe Kovelesky of Boca Raton, Fla., a junior who finished tied for third, are back in search of the crown. 

This year’s tournament will again feature a co-ed team event designed to mirror the competition players will enjoy at the collegiate level. 

While just eight years old, three past champions at the DJ World Junior have already won at the game’s highest levels. In the last 12 months, Akshay Bhatia and Nick Dunlap have won on the PGA Tour, while Alexa Pano triumphed on the LPGA Tour. 

“The Dustin Johnson World Junior Golf Championship is one of the best junior events in America, and this is our strongest field to date,” tournament director Scott Tomasello said. “TPC Myrtle Beach is an ideal host course, and the tournament allows spectators to see golf’s next generation of stars up close.”

Chris King contributed to this report