Each year the MAPGA Recognizes Outstanding Student-Athletes Who Participate in the Section’s Junior Golf Tour; Seven Participating Junior Players Awarded Scholarships in 2024 Totaling $91,000 To Support Academic Pursuits
For photos of the Recipients, courtesy of the MAPGA, click HERE.
Stafford, Va. – The Middle Atlantic Section of the PGA of America (MAPGA) has announced the recipients of their 2024 Junior Golf Scholarship program. Seven golfers participating in the MAPGA’s 2024 Junior Golf Tour were honored across four scholarships totaling $91,000 to support their academic pursuits.
“We are extremely proud to announce seven deserving student-athletes as our 2024 MAPGA Scholarship recipients,” said Jon Guhl, Executive Director, Middle Atlantic PGA. “The MAPGA Junior Tour is one of our most successful growth of the game programs and we are thrilled to award $91,000 in scholarships to players who can further pursue their educational goals.”
Today, the MAPGA reaches more than 2,500 junior golfers annually with competitive programming that teaches values and skills that can positively impact a child for the rest of their life. MAPGA offers six different tournament programs that not only help grow the game of golf but teach kids the value of integrity and sportsmanship.
Adds Guhl, “The MAPGA Junior Tour is a great place for kids to learn to compete and interact with others, and enjoy all this game has to offer.”
The 2024 MAPGA Junior Golf Scholarships and their recipients include:
Tony Marlowe Scholarship
A donation by Tina and Wally Uihlein enabled the MAPGA Scholarship Foundation to create the Tony Marlowe Junior Scholarship in honor of Tina’s late father, MAPGA Hall of Fame Class of 2002 Tony Marlowe. This scholarship awards $10,000 per year for four years to junior golfers based on academic performance, extracurricular activities and on-course etiquette. 2024 Recipients:
- Xavier Francois, Bowie, MD
Xavier, who will be attending the University of Maryland this upcoming year, has demonstrated exceptional dedication and excellence across various disciplines. He is a member of the Cyber X team at Eleanor Roosevelt High School, participated in the hackathon at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), and is a member of the MAPGA Junior Tour. Xavier is also committed to community service through golf as he has logged over 120 hours of volunteering with First Tee of Greater Washington D.C.
- Felicity Chen, Reston, VA – Felicity, who will be attending William & Mary this upcoming year, has shown tremendous dedication to community service by co-founding a non-profit organization, Next Level Golf Foundation, that utilizes golf to serve underprivileged communities. She teaches English online to indigenous kids in rural Taiwan and has recruited other Junior golfers to join her.
Denny McCarthy Scholarship
Denny McCarthy, a Takoma Park native, former UVA Golf Team member, member of the 2015 walker cup team, and now PGA TOUR member, has consistently shown success throughout his junior, amateur, and now professional career. Denny has partnered with the MAPGA Foundation to award two awards of $2,500 to junior golfers.
- Reed Theiss is from Leesburg, VA – Reed, who is attending Lafayette college where he will continue his golf career, is an accomplished golfer including winning the 2023 MAPGA Junior Player of the Year in his division. He is a captain on his High School golf team where he has helped his team attend 4 straight State Championships. Reed’s passion for golf has also translated to community service where he assisted in organizing a golf tournament to raise money for the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation.
- Josephine Nguyen, Springfield, VA – Josephine, who will continue her golf career at Drew University, has an impressive golf resume as the captain of her high school golf team who won an individual and team district championship in 2021. She is very involved with multiple school organizations as the president of the G.I.R.Ls (Girls in Roles of Leadership) club, athletic council representative, and National Art Honor Society.
Billy Hurley III Scholarship
Billy Hurley III is a PGA Tour winner who grew up in Northern Virginia and attended the U.S. Naval Academy. He is the only military veteran currently playing on the PGA Tour and has partnered with the MAPGA Foundation to award TWO one-time scholarships worth $2500 each. Hurley believes in the importance of furthering one’s education and hopes that this scholarship helps a student achieve their educational goals.
- Minh Le, Fredrick, MD– Minh, who is attending the University of Maryland, is a multi-time all-county golfer that won a team state championship in 2021. He spends time serving local youth through volunteer work with The First Tee at Howard County Golf Association, Urbana Seahawks Junior Coaching, and YMCA Community Service.
- Helen Yeung, Beltsville, MD – Helen, who will continue her golf career at the University of North Carolina, is an exceptionally accomplished golfer. Her accolades include, three-time individual State Champion, 2023 Rolex Junior All American, and State Championship scoring record holder (65-67). She also balances her golf career with Stem Club and Spanish Honor Society.
Hank Majewski Scholarship
The purpose of the Hank Majewski Scholarship Fund is to honor Hank’s memory and his legacy of promoting junior achievement. A scholarship will be awarded from the Fund to a graduating high school student who is accepted to an accredited university, college or technical school and who satisfies all scholarship requirements.
- Andrew Chistiansen, Bowie, MD – Andrew is a three-sport athlete in hockey, lacrosse, and golf, and captain for his hockey and golf teams. He has maintained multiple jobs through his high school career and participates in Junior ROTC where he has earned the role of First Sergeant.
For more information on the Middle Atlantic PGA Junior Golf Tour, visit https://mapga.com/junior-golf.
About Middle Atlantic PGA
The Middle Atlantic PGA Section (MAPGA), located in Stafford, Virginia, is one of 41 Sections of The Professional Golfers’ Association of America (PGA), headquartered in Frisco, Texas. The MAPGA has been a part of The PGA since 1925 and consists of over 1,100 members and apprentices in Maryland, Virginia, the District of Columbia and small portions of Pennsylvania and West Virginia. There are over 900,000 golfers playing more than 16.5 million rounds of golf a season in the Middle Atlantic region. As player development remains a driving force in the golf industry, the MAPGA provides a wide variety of programs and assistance to support its members who teach the game, promote goodwill and share the game’s values to their golfing customers and their communities in general. Locally, MAPGA Professionals assist in raising over $6 million annually for charities.
