A test against the best

If there was a home advantage for Carson Weinand, it eluded him on Wednesday.

Just like his putter.

"Good long game, but no putter. Thirty-seven putts, which is crazy. I hit all the fairways, but my putter was horrible," the 15-year-old Naples resident said after shooting 78 in the second round of the American Junior Golf Association's Nike Golf Junior at Fort Myers.

The tournament — featuring 77 of the nation's top 12-15 year-old male and female golfers — was scheduled to conclude Thursday afternoon at Miromar Lakes Beach & Golf Club.

The AJGA offers top-notch young golfers — like Weinand — opportunities to compete against peers in tournament settings, minus galleries, caddies and stardom. For some, those luxuries will come in the future the way they have for AJGA graduates such as Tiger Woods, Phil Mickelson, Jim Furyk, Davis Love III, Paula Creamer and Grace Park.

"It's the best kids in the country," said Weinand. "It doesn't get much bigger than AJGA. If you play good, you know you're the best of the best."

Headed to The Community School in August after two years at Naples High, Weinand is a fixture at AJGA events and on other tours. He hoped sleeping in his own bed this week and a short commute would have been beneficial, but the left-hander found himself 17 shots out of the lead entering Thursday's final round.

Like most of the field, Weinand struggled on a windy and wet Tuesday, describing his opening round 82 as a "total disaster."

Two weeks ago it was far from a disaster the way Weinand played at the International Junior Golf Tour Championship in Orlando. He shot 67-75-72 and finished tied for second in the 13-15 division.

"It was fun," said Weinand. "The pressure was on coming down the stretch. I handled it fine. The guy who beat me shot a 30 on the back nine, so there's not much you can do about that."

The second place finish can be added to Weinand's blossoming resume, which includes an eight stroke victory in the 14-15 division at the Optimist International Tournament of Champions in 2005 at Doral's Blue Monster.

Photo by KEVIN JOHNSON, Banner

Ryan Wilson of Bradenton blasts out of a sand trap on No. 18 in the second round of the American Junior Golf Association event at Miromar Lakes Beach & Golf Club.

Last week Weinand tied for 20th at an AJGA event in Jackson, Miss. Next week he heads to Camp Lejeune, N.C. for another AJGA tournament. Also on his summer agenda are tournaments in Alabama and California and he'll attempt to qualify for the U.S. Junior Amateur Championship.

Lengthy drives aren't quite as satisfying when they're on highways rather than fairways, but Weinand said he's become accustomed to the circuit's road trips.

"It's fun when you're playing well, but when you're not playing well it's not fun," he said. "But you get to travel and see the country."

Weinand began playing golf at age three and honed his skills on a par-3 course at Westchester Country Club, where his family belonged.

The Weinands moved to Naples from Rye, N.Y. when Carson was seven. His love for golf came with him.

"A lot of these kids (in the AJGA) you'll see on the PGA Tour in ten years. You'll see their names out there," he said. "I have a chance if I keep playing well and get a scholarship to college. After that, we'll see what happens."

For Weinand, and other AJGA golfers like Brad Lucas of Worthington, Ohio and Brant DeLongy of Winter Park, teeing it up against higher caliber talent from around the country is the best way to spend a summer.

"It gives you a ton of experience playing with a lot better players. There's really no comparison. You don't even feel like you're in high school anymore. It makes you strive to be better," said Lucas, who shot 34 on Miromar's front nine on Wednesday before settling for a 73.

"I enjoy it a lot," added DeLongy, a member of the Class of 2009 at Lake Highland Prep. "I like the competitiveness. Tournaments I take more seriously. High school golf is not as competitive."

Photo by KEVIN JOHNSON, Banner

Carson Weinand, 15, of Naples watches his putt role towards the hole on No. 9 during the second round of the AJGA's Nike Golf Junior Tournament at Miromar Lakes Beach & Golf Club on Wednesday.

After opening with an 83 on Tuesday, DeLongy went straight to the Ritz Carlton Golf Resort in Naples to work on his game. He came back the following day and fired a 74, which included an eagle at No. 8.

Competitiveness yields to camaraderie after the young golfers complete their rounds. It's like a group of fraternity brothers without drivers licenses and five o'clock shadows.

While relaxing on a couch in Miromar's clubhouse, 15-year-old Ryan Blair from Kansas City seemed to know everyone in the field.

"The best part is meeting people and the experience," he said.

Not to mention the exposure.

"All the college coaches look at this. If you do reasonably well, you'll get noticed," said Blair, who shot 80-74 in the first two rounds.

Sitting next to Blair, 13-year-old Chris Ingram from Pinecrest didn't shy away from discussing his second round 80, which he was satisfied with considering this was his inaugural AJGA event and that he was one of the shorter hitters, knocking his drives about 220 yards in a field that included 300-yard boomers.

"Today, every hole was into the wind and playing about 50 yards further per hole," said Ingram, who has been the No. 1 player on his high school golf team since grade six. "I was forced to play the par 4s as par 5s. I had to hit really long shots into the par 5s and par 3s. Plus the course is very wet, so I wasn't getting any roll. The course is only 6,600 (yards), but it made it play like 7,000."

Chatter in the clubhouse eventually turned to this week's U.S. Open.

Blair recalled playing a round in a tournament last year with Tadd Fujikawa, the 15-year-old Hawaiian who qualified for the Open.

Meanwhile, Curtis Thompson, 13, of Coral Springs was more concerned about his "shaky" second round 76 than his older brother Nicholas's debut in the Open.

"It could have been a lot better. I didn't do anything too well," said Thompson.

Tied for 13th heading into the final round, Thompson figured he would need to shoot a low score on Thursday in order to get a plane ticket to Winged Foot.

"My dad will only fly me up if I get a top five," he said with a smile.

Thompson, whose sister Alexis tried to qualify for the U.S. Women's Open last year at age 10, hopes to follow in the spike marks of Nicholas, a former AJGA player who went on to star at Georgia Tech and is now on the PGA Tour.

The AJGA's past is loaded with success stories, with more to come.

"The next generation of players will likely come out of this tour," said Ingram. "This is the place to play for 13-15 year-olds."