sophiamacias
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juniorspin’s 2018
golfer of the year
Sometimes, decisions are difficult, but this year,
the Junior Golfer of the Year was obvious. Sophia
Macias not only has her own nonprofit, but she also
is an accomplished junior golfer, promoting the game of
golf and celebrating its tradition of giving back along
the way. It is our pleasure to celebrate this junior as
Backspin’s Junior Golfer of the Year.
And, because we couldn’t have said it better ourselves,
we are publishing her nomination in full. Chris
Burkstaller, PGA, Director of Golf at Greystone Golf
& Country Club had us at “hello.”
Congratulations to Sophia and to her family. What
a great kid!
“Sophia is a junior golf that puts everyone
ahead of herself. She has started her own
non-profit and a golf tournament, No Worries
Just Birdies Charity Golf Tournament, an
organization that aims to help the less fortunate
in the community through the game of golf.
Through her newly-formed non-profit,
Sophia hopes to spread her love for the game
while also raising money for local schools.
Approximately 20 teams and more than 40
sponsors took part in the Inaugural ‘No Worries
Just Birdies Charity Golf Tournament’ held at
Greystone Country Club in Denham Springs
on Monday, July 23.
The tournament operated as a four-person
scramble, with the top team winning a four-
person package to the 2019 Zurich Classic in
New Orleans. The second-place and last-place
finishers won golf swing evaluations at Golftec
in Baton Rouge.
The estimated tournament earnings are at
least $8,000.
Whatever money is ultimately collected,
South Walker Elementary Assistant Principal
Nathan Foster said it’ll all be greatly appreciated.
Proceeds from that Monday will go
toward the reconstruction of SWE’s wooden
playground equipment on its first-grade and
third-grade playgrounds, some of which was
originally built when the school opened more
than 20 years ago. Any additional money will
spent on a special needs-accessible swing.
Sophia also received an honorable mention
for the Peggy Kirk Bell award at the 2018 US
Kids Golf World Championship.
Sophia practices every day after school,
usually for two hours each afternoon (though
she grudg