Vail Golf Club Junior Championship Draws 60 Kids From Mexico City to Texas

Aspen —Have you ever wondered how many kids it takes to turn a quiet Vail golf course into a bustling hub of competition, and where those kids actually come from?

It’s a question that matters to anyone who drives past Vail Golf Club on their way to the mountain or the valley floor, watching the flags snap in the wind. The answer, as it turns out, is about 60 young athletes, arriving from as far away as Mexico City and Miami, and as close as Fort Worth, Texas. They converged on the greens on Thursday afternoon for the Vail Golf Club Junior Championship, an event that has grown from a modest gathering of 24 participants in 2021 to a capped field of 60 today, according to reporting by the Vail Daily.

The scale of the event is one of the first things you notice if you look closely at the numbers. Andrew Villescas, who stepped into the role of head golf professional last summer, told the Vail Daily that this is “probably one of our biggest events of the summer.” When he started four years ago, the turnout was roughly half of what it is now. The growth isn’t just in the headcount; it’s in the reach. Athletes traveled from Texas, Florida, and Mexico City, joining the local talent from across Colorado to compete in three distinct age groups: 10 and under, 11 to 13, and 14 to 18.

There’s a warmth to the way the community has embraced this tournament. It’s not just about who hits the ball furthest; it’s about who shows up to support the next generation. Robert Genno, the current club champion and a member of the Vail Police Department, volunteered as the honorary starter. He didn’t just stand there in a blazer. He brought his SWAT car, had his K9 unit with him, wore his full uniform, and announced every kid’s name while shaking hands. Villescas called that presence one of the event’s highlights, a tangible sign of “continuing to build a stronger community.”

The competition itself was fierce, with results that tell a story of tight margins and unexpected winners. In the girls 14-18 division, Dallas golfer Caroline Fent shot a 95, including a 44 on the front nine, to take the title. Vail’s Harper Telles finished just three strokes back for runner-up honors. On the boys’ side, Joseph Dieppa of Miami claimed the title with a 78, while local favorites Cooper Kirkman of Eagle and Tyler Ciluzzi of Edwards rounded out the podium.

The younger brackets saw even tighter battles. In the 11-13 category, Mexico City golfer Jorge Aboumrad won with a score of 38, edging out Thomas Luciano (39) and Vail’s Winn Krsnich (40). The 10-and-under division saw Pamela Aboumrad win with a 44, while Xaviera Briones and Bernarda Martinez took the top two spots in their age group with scores of 48 and 52, respectively.

Weather, of course, played its part. While the morning was pleasant and sunny, a brief storm pounded the greens around 1 p.m., bringing rain and even some hail. Villescas recalled getting radio calls that the greens were “full of ice and snow,” forcing a pause in play while the weather cleared. It’s a reminder that even in July, the mountain weather can shift in an instant.

The junior championship is just one part of a larger summer effort. It is the third youth tournament of the summer at the club, following a July 9 event with just over 40 athletes and a 9-hole tournament two weeks later with 34 competitors. The event has grown from 24 participants in 2021 to a peak of 75 in 2024, now capped at 60. Villescas and Director of Golf Trey Johnson, both huge supporters of junior golf through their work with the First Tee and the PGA junior league, see it as a cornerstone of the club’s mission.

As the last putts dropped and the players packed up their clubs, the course settled back into its usual rhythm. The only evidence of the day’s frenzy was the worn grass on the fairways and the lingering echo of voices calling out scores. You could still feel the energy in the air, a quiet hum of accomplishment that lingers long after the final scorecard is signed.