Four Pleasanton residents, ages 9-12, just returned from the U.S. Kids Gold Championship Tournament in Pinehurst, N.C., which was held July 26-30.
Natalie Bodnar, 12, Travis Rowney, 12, Alex Sborov, 11 and Sabrina Bodnar, 9, made their way to the tournament where more than 900 kids participated, representing 33 countries.
“They were blown away with just the experience of being there,” said Patty Bodnar in reference to the feedback she received from her daughters Natalie and Sabrina.
All four kids were able to participate in the U.S. Kids Gold Champion Tournament after winning the U.S. Kids Regional Qualifier on June 29 at Shoreline. The tournament only allows kids ages 12 and under to play, which made this year’s tournament especially meaningful for Natalie and Travis, who got the chance to play at such a high-scale resort as Pinehurst.
Natalie finished 56th out of 64 in her bracket, while her sister, Sabrina, finished 45th out of 57. Sborov came in 29th out of 50 and Rowney, playing in the boys’ 12-year-old bracket, placed in spot number 55 out of 115.
With so many kids coming from across the world, the competition was at its highest level and proved to be a great accomplishment for the Pleasanton resident to make it to the tournament. For those kids who were 11 or 12 years old, they played a full 18-hole course, while ages 10 and under played 9 holes. Throughout the tournament the kids were mixed with different players from other countries. Sabrina, for example, played with a boy from Hong Kong, and girls from the United Kingdom and Georgia.
Yet, the tournament faced its fair share of problems with thunder storms occurring throughout the week. The kids would be at the course from 7 a.m. to 9 p.m. Then, they would have to come back in the morning to finish up the holes they couldn’t get to the night before, and play another 18- or 9-hole game, as well.
However, Pinehurst remained organized. Having seen the weather report for the week, the tournament was equipped with numerous volunteers. When the horn blew, which would stop the play due to lighting, the volunteers would take the players in mini vans and shuttles to the club house or shelters they had set up along the way. While the storms caused up to five hour delays, the players just saw it as real-life experience, something that the “pros” often deal with.
The four Pleasanton residents will keep busy for the rest of summer with many other tournaments lined up. With a tournament in Diablo Creek on Wednesday, the San Leandro City Tournament Friday, and the Livermore Open the following week, the kids will have played in about 15 Northern California tournaments during the summer.
