Nov. 15, 2013
THE FLATS – Jacob Joiner of Leesburg, Ga., and James Clark III of Columbus, Ga., the top two junior golfers in the state of Georgia for 2014, have signed letters-of-intent to play at Georgia Tech, head coach Bruce Heppler announced Friday.
Joiner and Clark III are ranked 1-2 in the state for the class of 2014, according to the Golfweek magazine junior rankings. Joiner is rated No. 32 nationally in this class, while Clark III is No. 37. Joiner is actually rated higher by the Junior Golf Scoreboard, No. 39 nationally and No. 21 in his class.
“We’re excited that the best players in Georgia the last few years have wanted to come play at Georgia Tech,” said Heppler. “With three graduating seniors on our team this year, this recruiting class has an opportunity to have an impact from the time we start playing next fall.”
Joiner, a second-team Rolex Junior All-American in 2012, earned three top-10 finishes in junior events in 2013, including a victory at the Press Thornton Junior Masters, an event current Yellow Jackets Ollie Schniederjans and Michael Hines also won. He posted five top-10 finishes in 2012 events, including a fourth-place finish at the PING Invitational and a tie for fifth at the Harvey Penick Junior.
Clark III led his Brookstone School team to the Georgia class A state championship each of the past three years. He won medalist honors himself in 2013 after finishing second in 2012. On the junior circuit in 2013, he was the runner-up at the Trusted Choice “Big I” National Championship and finished seventh at the North & South Junior at Pinehurst. He won the 2012 Taylor Made-adidas Golf Junior All-Star at Chateau Elan and has two other top-10 finishes in 2012.
