Holyrood, Nfld. – Hannah Thomas and Bode Stephen won their respective divisions to claim the NextGen Atlantic Championship, on Thursday at the Wilds Resort in Holyrood, Nfld.
Trailing by four shots entering the final round, Thomas from Calgary, Alta., produced a remarkable comeback, finishing with a final round 75 to finish atop of the leaderboard to secure the NextGen Atlantic Championship.
“First off, I think just being able to hit the greens. If I didn’t do that today or any other day than it would have been very difficult. My long irons and drives were good because I kept hitting the ball on the fairway and then also being able to putt well really helped my game,” said Thomas.
After opening the tournament with an 11-over 83, Thomas maintained her lead carding a 3-over, 75 on Thursday and finished the tournament at 25-over to secure her win by two shots over Ava Gilbart of Toronto, Ont. and Adrianna Salalila of Peterborough, Ont.
“The beginning wasn’t my best, but I think today I really pushed through, and I was more concentrated than ever. It did take to the last hole, but I am really fortunate and very grateful that I used my focus skills to really push through to get this win,” stated Thomas.
In the Junior Boys Division, Stephen of Kingston Ont., secured his victory on the first hole of a playoff, tapping in for birdie to edge out Brett Shaw of Stratford, P.E.I.
Stephen was co-leader following Tuesday’s round and shot a 1-under 71 on Wednesday to take a four-shot lead into the final round. Shaw worked his way into the playoff by firing a 2-under 70 on Thursday, while Stephen recorded at 76 following a double bogey on 18.
“ It feels really good to get the win. I had a lead coming into today and I am just happy to come and pull it off in the end,” said Stephen.
Stephen added “I had actually struggled on eighteen all week, that’s the hole I had to go back and play a playoff hole on, and Brett also played really well today. All I was trying to do was focus on one shot at a time and play my game and I ended up hitting four good shots to make a birdie to tap in to make the playoff.”
In the Junior Girls division, the top six players earned exemptions into the 2024 Canadian Junior Girls Championship, July 22-25, at Marine Drive Golf Club in Vancouver, B.C.
NextGen Atlantic Championship – Advancing to Canadian Junior Girls Championship
| Pos. | Player | Residence | To Par |
| 1 | Hannah Thomas | Calgary, Alta. | +25 |
| T2 | Ava Gilbart | Toronto, Ont. | +27 |
| T2 | Adriana Salalila | Peterborough, Ont. | +27 |
| 4 | Annika Parkash | Halifax, N.S. | +32 |
| 5 | Jade Guo | Toronto, Ont. | +38 |
| 6 | Ceilidh Spare | North Gower, Ont. | +43 |
In the Junior Boys division, the top six players earn exemptions into the 2024 Canadian Junior Boys championship, August 13-16, at Innisfail Golf Club in Innisfail, Alta.
NextGen Atlantic Championship – Advancing to Canadian Junior Boys Championship
| Pos. | Player | Residence | To Par |
| 1 | Bode Stephen | Kingston, Ont. | +7 |
| 2 | Brett Shaw | Stratford, P.E.I. | +7 |
| 3 | Simon Mullen | Shorrts Lake, N.S. | +8 |
| 4 | Hunter Crozier | New Dominion, P.E.I | +15 |
| 5 | Braden Ahern | Moncton N.B. | +17 |
| T6 | Kooper MacKay | Wolfville, N.S. | +18 |
| T6 | Andy Dai | Markham, Ont. | +18 |
The 54-hole stroke play competition marked the last tournament in the NextGen Championship series and featured a starting field of 62 male and female competitors. There was a total of 47 Junior Boys and 15 Junior girls competing.
About the NextGen Championships
The NextGen Championships are a high-performance junior golf series which totals six competitions. From May-July, six championships will take place across Canada where the regions best junior golfers will compete to earn exemptions into their respective 2024 national championships. NextGen championships provide junior golfers an opportunity to develop and showcase their skills at the highest level of tournament golf.