Nick Carey was not the only former Singleton Golf Club junior champion with a smile on Sunday night.
Teenager Taj Vesper, who turns 15 in December, claimed a second title thanks to a score of 88, 75, 81 – 240 to defeat prominent junior and nett winner Will Geddes 81, 81, 86 – 248.
“I went to practice and tried to get the A-Grade title but I’ve finished better for next year,” Vesper told The Hunter River Times.
Last year he claimed his first title shortly after the covid lockdown with a score of 77,77 – 154.
He now joins a long list of junior champions to go back-to-back which includes Andrew Sutton (1996-97), Daniel Storey (1999-00) and Shane Cuthbertson (2005-06).
What made this back-to-back title so remarkable was the fact that the teenager had suffered a spinal injury playing rugby union in July, preventing him from competition until this month.
“I used to think score more than anything but now I’m more worried about the next shot,” he concluded.
He will now follow the footsteps of his sister Jasmine by competing at the Brett Ogle Junior Masters held at Goulbourn on Saturday, November 19.