The Funderburg siblings, Joey and Sarah, continued their torrid pace this summer as the Wilmington Christian Academy products both turned in another strong performance this past week at the Tarheel Youth Golf Association (TYGA) Coastal Plains Junior Amateur at Bradford Creek in Greenville.
Joey Funderburg caught everyone’s attention during the opening round when he made the turn at six-under-par after he birdied all but three holes on the front nine.
“My game was in pretty good shape. I kept throwing it in close and made some putts,” Funderburg said.
It looked like he was going to duplicate his performance on the back nine when he started with a birdie on No. 10, but a bogey on the 12th hole brought Funderburg back to reality. However, he found another birdie on the par-3 16th, to finish with a seven-under-par, 65, on day one.
With a one-shot lead heading into the final round, the recent high school graduate picked up where he left off and relied on experience gained playing in the final group at the CGA’s Creed Junior Boys’ coming down the home stretch.
“I like playing in the last group because I have my competition with me; it is definitely fun,” Funderburg said.
His competition was kept at bay when Funderburg avoided bogeys and made a birdie on the 16th to build a four-stroke lead. A tap-in par on 18 sealed the victory and gave him a total of 10-under-par, 134, for the championship.
Meanwhile, defending TYGA Coastal Plains Girls champion Sarah Funderburg was three strokes off the pace after an opening round two-over, 74, but was unable to muster a comeback down the stretch. She secured a second place finish, four shots behind eventual champion Amy Wooten of Clinton.
