ON THE GOLF COURSE

40+ Tournaments per Season from March through October

600+ Members of All Ages from Across the Commonwealth

3,000+ Tournament Rounds Completed Throughout a Season

THE MAJORS

The season's top events gather the Tour's biggest and best fields with big stakes on the line

Boys and Girls Kentucky Junior PGA Championships

  • Hosted in Richmond by Gibson Bay Golf Course and The University Club at Arlington
  • Top finishers advance to National Junior PGA Championships

Boys and Girls Kentucky Junior Amateurs

  • The most historic junior championships in Kentucky which date back to 1979
  • Rotating list of venues with Frankfort Country Club (Girls) and Nevel Meade Golf Club (Boys) to host in 2024

The Lou Perry Tour Championship

  • More info on this below...

THE LOU PERRY TOUR CHAMPIONSHIP

The Tour's most enhanced tournament in recent history. Formerly just simply known as The Tour Championship, the event's name and appearance got a makeover in 2020 making it one of the must-see spectacles in Kentucky Junior Golf.

Who is Lou Perry?

Lou Perry passed away in 2011 at the age of 67, but before his passing he donated a generous sum of money to the Kentucky Golf Foundation to ensure Kentucky's disadvantaged youth would have the opportunity to experience the joys of golf.

What is the tournament's significance?

The Lou Perry Tour Championship is the final tournament of the Tour's season. The two-round competition brings the Tour's best together in the season finale to decide the season-long points races with the tournament trophies on the line as well.

TURNING CHILDREN INTO GOLFERS

The key aspect of the Kentucky PGA Junior Tour is promoting enjoyment through the game of golf and helping develop players' golf games. How is that accomplished?

9-hole and 6-hole Competitions. Players aged 12 and younger have the option to play 9-hole rounds while those aged 9 and younger can play in 6-hole events.

Caddies. Those golfers playing in 9-hole and 6-hole competition can have someone be their caddie. Caddies help with pace of play, encouraging interaction between players and making it a memorable tournament experience for both themselves and the players.

Friendly course setup. For the younger players, tees are often placed well into the fairway to keep the golf course short to prevent players from ever getting overwhelmed or discouraged.

Peggy Kirk Bell Girls Golf Tour. This girls-only Tour has been a partner of the Kentucky PGA Junior Tour since 2019. Geared towards young girls just getting introduced to golf, several events take place in Kentucky each summer that provide a welcoming, friendly atmosphere for girls learning how to navigate tournament golf.

OPPORTUNITIES ABOUND

Players of the Kentucky PGA Junior Tour have several unique opportunities they can earn that have proven to help further golf careers in the Commonwealth.

Gay Brewer, Jr. and Justin Thomas Grants. Thanks to the Brewer and Thomas families, multiple junior golfers in Kentucky receive a grant every spring designed to provide financial flexibility to golfers and their families attempting to play the biggest golf tournaments in the region and nation.

AJGA Stars. The keys to unlocking the doors of the AJGA, the Kentucky PGA Junior Tour is Kentucky's only platform for players to accrue AJGA stars and thus participate in AJGA tournaments. The two AJGA events in Kentucky during the 2020 season featured 11 and 14 Kentuckians, respectively.

Barbasol Junior Championship. Originally set to be held for the first time in 2020, this brand new tournament will make its debut in 2021 at Keene Trace - Keene Run. An international field of top junior golfers will compete with the champion receiving an exemption in the PGA Tour's Barbasol Championship. The Kentucky PGA Junior Tour offers four different exemption paths to make it in the Barbasol Junior.

PGA and USGA National Championships Bound for Kentucky. The Junior PGA Championships are coming to Kentucky for the second time in four years in 2021. Kearney Hill Golf Links will host the boys while Valhalla Golf Club will host the girls. In 2018, Valhalla hosted six Kentucky boys while Kearney Hill hosted six girls when the PGA of America's biggest junior events last visited Kentucky. The USGA will make a trip to The Club at Olde Stone in 2022 as the U.S. Girls Junior will take place then.

HEAR IT FROM THE PLAYERS, PARENTS AND CONTRIBUTORS

Testimonials from those involved about what makes the on-course experience with the Kentucky PGA Junior Tour so meaningful.

"I like playing the Kentucky PGA Junior Tour because I've met people who I'm going to be friends with for years and years." ~ Jacob Holzer, Kentucky PGA Junior Tour member

"I think our biggest thing is pace of play. We like things to go quickly, but everything is well-run. There's always water out for the kids. If you ever have a question there's always somebody to ask because there are plenty of staff members and volunteers out to assist." ~Bill Caine, Father of Kentucky PGA Junior Tour member Abigail Caine

"There's great competition, great courses and you get to meet a lot of great people. It's just amazing." ~Luc Kelty, Kentucky PGA Junior Tour member

"It was an amazing experience being at the Lou Perry Tour Championship. Between the signage and atmosphere, it was a great tournament that I'm so glad me and my family got to be apart of." ~Mary Shields Perry, wife of the late Lou Perry

OFF THE GOLF COURSE

Tournament season may only bring players together for half the year, but the Tour's online presence keeps participants engaged throughout the year.

Social Media Coverage & Live Scoring - During events, the Tour brings full coverage of the tournament to the world through social media which includes live-streaming the final hole of the Championship Divisions in the majors. Players are also asked to input their scores online so family and friends can monitor their progress. If a tournament is in Paducah but you're in Ashland, we want you to feel like you're right there with whoever you're following.

Photo Galleries - At a majority of tournaments, we have a staff member on-site responsible for tournament photography. The final products are posted to our website and Facebook which families can use to save and frame their favorite memories.

Player of the Week - Each week, a player from the Tour is picked to receive the spotlight in the form of a shout-out with some of the player's accomplishments, fun facts and/or future plans.

National Signing Day Spotlights - During National Signing Day in November, each player from Tour who has committed to play college golf the following season gets their own personal recognition as salute to the hard work they've put in for a milestone accomplishment.

Deep Dive Articles - When there's a story to share, we write about it. From the story of a player who's battled CHD and criticism on the golf course to golf bringing family together after tragedy, we strive to tell the stories of those who have stories you must hear to believe.

OTHER ONLINE COMPONENTS

Consumers of the Kentucky PGA Junior Tour can come to expect consistent and thorough information offered on all things related to the Tour.

Weekly Newsletter - Every Friday, members and participants of the Tour receive the Kentucky Junior Golf Weekly Newsletter. This contains news, results, registration reminders, and other pertinent information related to the Tour and the other components of Kentucky Junior Golf.

Registration Notices - During the tournament season, players and parents will be sent registration notices once a week on email and social media when tournament deadlines are approaching.

Tee Times - Several days before the start of the tournament, all members of the event's field will be sent a notice with their tee time and who their playing partners will be.

Results - On social media, following each event a post will be sent out saluting each player who picked up a first-place prize during that tournament.

WHAT DO THE CONSUMERS SAY ABOUT THE ONLINE PRESENCE?

"You guys have been doing such an incredible job with with emails and social media. It keeps getting better every year." ~Janet Walker, mother of Kentucky PGA Junior Tour member Grace Walker

"It was quite a nice surprise when we heard Emily had been spotlighted for Junior Golfer of the Week. She called me with delight as she told me the news. After a devastating end to her high school season, it brought great joy to her to get that recognition." ~Brad Allen, father of Kentucky PGA Junior Tour member Emily Allen

"What a fabulous concept to do this! Excellent idea and execution!" ~Eric Yussman in regards to live-streaming the final hole of a tournament

WHAT COMES AFTER THE KENTUCKY PGA JUNIOR TOUR?

Of the 2020 high school graduating class, 51 of a possible 111 members are currently playing college golf.

Notable teams currently represented by the Tour's alumni include the Auburn Tigers, Indiana Hoosiers, Kentucky Wildcats, Louisville Cardinals, LSU Tigers, and Vanderbilt Commodores among others.

Each year, former or current Tour members compete in both the Kentucky Open and Kentucky Amateur, the state's most prestigious championships.

Check out the journey as a whole with our Junior Golf Roadmap, outlining the process many players take from just starting out to advancing to college golf and professional golf.

STATS TO KNOW

70% of 2020's Members were males, 30% were females.

Average field size in 2020: 63.67 players (no recorded cases of COVID-19 stemming from a tournament)

710 memberships were purchased in 2019 while 630 were purchased in 2020

Social media followers on @JuniorGolfKY range from 1,378 (Twitter) to 1,765 (Facebook) to 1,914 (Instagram) with approximately 300 new followers gained on each network every year.

Most popular posts from each network throughout the year accrue approximately 3,500 unique viewers.

Website traffic on kyjuniorgolf.org peaks in July, where approximately 17,000 different people view at least one page on the website, resulting in about 57,000 unique visits to the site.

Seven different men from Kentucky (Justin Thomas, J.B. Holmes, Josh Teater, Chip McDaniel, Jared Wolfe, Cooper Musselman, Mark Blakefield) made starts on the PGA Tour or Korn Ferry Tour in 2020, while one woman (Emma Talley) represented Kentucky on the LPGA Tour.