AVON — Prior to the start of the SAP Junior Open at Red Tail Golf Club, the American Junior Golf Association put out a list of six players to watch.
Of the six, three — Beau Titsworth, Kyle Kmiecik and Mike Opsitnick — are from Avon.
After Tuesday’s first day of action, the locals to watch did not disappoint.
Leading the way was Titsworth, a sophomore at St. Ignatius, who was tied with four other golfers for seventh place with an even-par 72 (37-35).
Kmiecik, who teed off with the first group at 7 a.m., shot a 2-over 74 (36-38) to stay within striking distance. Opsitnick, a recent Avon graduate, shot a 7-over 79 (41-38).
Another local golfer, Westlake senior Matthew Kreider, shot an 81 (36-45). Also, Avon’s Maddie Keefe, a senior at St. Joseph Academy, shot an 85 (38-47) in the girls event.
“I hit the ball well,” said Titsworth, who is playing in his second-consecutive SAP Junior Open and has competed in five AJGA events. “I struggled with my putting in the beginning, but I got it worked out in the end. I had a couple of bad holes, but other than that, I was pretty solid.”
Titsworth was aiming for an even-par score on the first day because he figured it would put him right in the hunt. His goal for the three-day event is a top-five finish.
“Last year was kind of hard,” Titsworth said. “I just didn’t hit the ball far enough. This year’s a little bit different story.”
The highlight of Titsworth’s day was an eagle on the par-5, 530-yard 13th hole. He followed a solid tee shot with what he called a “ridiculous” second shot that landed on the green. From there, he knocked it in the hole.
Kmiecik took first place at the 2008 Midwest Junior Players Championship and second place at the 2007 John Deere Classic Junior Open. He was also a 2008 Rolex Junior All-American honorable mention.
The senior at St. Ignatius is tied with eight other players for 14th and is eight strokes away from the overall leaders.
Opsitnick rallied from a rough front nine to post a score in the 70s, but admittedly wasn’t happy about his round.
“I played all right,” he said. “I was a little wild off the tee and had some penalty strokes, and that hurt my score. I hit a ball out of bounds and two balls in the water. I hit a gap wedge in the water from about 120 yards … just dumb mistakes that I’ll make up tomorrow.”
Opsitnick is golfing in the SAP Junior Open for the second consecutive year and he has competed in seven AJGA events.
“I know I’ve got some shots left out on the course,” he said. “I’m going to the driving range tonight and try to work the kinks out. I’ll definitely make it up tomorrow.”
Like Titsworth and Kmiecik, Opsitnick plays regularly at Red Tail. While that may work to his advantage, it also has its downside.
“It helps me because I know what clubs I’m going to hit, the greens,” he said. “I know the course, but I also put some pressure on myself because of that. I feel like I should do really well and play well because I have that advantage. Sometimes, I put too much pressure on myself, and I think that was the case today.”
Kreider was happy with his front nine, but the wheels came off on the back.
“I started off really nice with an even par, but I just kind of went back to some old habits on the back nine,” he said. “I got into some trouble on some of those holes. I have a lot to work on tonight, I’ll tell you that. I just didn’t carry it over to the backside.”
Keefe was aiming for an 80, but said a failure to hit greens on the back nine hurt her.
“I played much better on the front than I did on the back,” she said. “My drives were going right and I wasn’t making putts like I was on the front.”
Patrick Rodgers from Avon, Ind., and Zachary Bates from Cuyahoga Falls are the co-leaders after the first day. Each shot matching 6-under 66s (33-33).
“It feels good,” said Bates, a recent Walsh Jesuit graduate. “I’ve been putting a lot of hard work in and it’s nice to see it finally starting to pay off.”
Columbus’ Will Morris is third with a 69 (34-35), Montreal’s Paolo Addona is fourth with a 70 (35-35) and West Chester’s Korey Ward and Waite Hill’s Alex DiPalma are tied for fifth with 71s (36-35).
Day 2 is today, with the first group teeing off at 7 a.m. The field of 120 will be cut to 48 boys and 18 girls for Thursday’s final round.
Contact Dan Gilles at 329-7135
or ctsports@chroniclet.com.

BOYS TOP 20

T1. Patrick Rodgers, Avon, Ind., 66 (33-33); Zachary Bates, Chagrin Falls, 66 (33-33);
3. Will Morris, Columbus, 69 (34-35);
4. Paolo Addona, Montreal, Quebec, 70 (35-35);
T5. Korey Ward, West Chester, 71 (36-35);  Alex Di Palma, Waite Hill, 71 (36-35);
T7. Zhong Yang Fu, Bradenton, Fla., 72 (35-37); Cyril Suk, Bradenton, Fla., 72 (36-36); Beau Titsworth, Avon, 72 (37-35); Andrew Wong, Deerfield Beach, Fla., 72 (35-37); Reeves Zaytoun, Raleigh, N.C., 72 (37-35);
T12. Dylan Murray, Westport, Conn., 73 (36-37); Jon Christ, Kalamazoo, Mich., 73 (36-37);
T14. David Tepe, Liberty Township, 74 (39-35); Kyle Kmiecik, Avon, 74 (36-38); Boo Timko, Girard, 74 (38-36); Abdul Sihag, Bradenton, Fla., 74 (38-36); Matthew Porter, Cortland, N.Y., 74 (39-35); Connor McNicholas, Ambler, Pa., 74 (36-38); Wes Strang, Bethesda, Md., 74 (35-39); John Torell, Bronxville, N.Y., 74 (39-35).

OTHER AREA PLAYERS

T22. Matthew Gerard, Rocky River, 76 (37-39); T32  Andrew Bailey, Rocky River, 78 (37-41); T32.  Brendan Byrne, Strongsville, 78 (42-36); T40. Michael Opsitnick, Avon, 79 (41-38); T55. Matthew Kreider, Westlake, 81 (36-45); T83. Patrick Helman, Strongsville, 87 (44-43); T86.

GIRLS TOP 20

1. Michelle Lee, Mississauga, Ontario, 71 (35-36);
2. Devon Brown, Rancho Santa Fe, Calif., 72 (36-36);
T3. Emma Talley, Princeton, Ky., 74 (34-40);   Rene Sobolewski, Buffalo, N.Y., 74 (35-39);
T5. Elizabeth Breed, Waynesboro, Pa., 75 (39-36); Irene Jung, Jacksonville, Fla., 75 (38-37)
7. Louise Yi, Cinnaminson, N.J., 76 (36-40);
T8. Ashley Armstrong, Flossmoor, Ill., 78 (41-37); Alexis Nelson, Mason, 78 (37-41);    Michelle Mayer, Flossmoor, Ill., 78 (38-40);
T11. Jordan Lippetz, Bradenton, Fla., 79 (37-42); Morgan Ransom, Columbus, 79 (36-43);
T13. Yang Li, Perrysburg, 81 (41-40);  Camille Armas, San Ramon, Calif., 81 (40-41);
T15. Laura Murray, Tipp City, 82 (40-42);  Ellen Huffman, Lima, 82 (39-43);
17. Emily Ransone, Hilliard, 83 (40-43);
18. Miranda Santucci, Carnegie, Pa., 84 (43-41);
T19. Maddie Keefe, Avon, 85 (38-47); Silvia Garces, Cali, Colombia, 85 (40-45); Michelle Ford, Ashtabula, 85 (41-44).

OTHER AREA PLAYERS

29. Jenna Gentner, Rocky River, 94 (48-46)

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