A spot in the semifinals of the 71st International Junior Masters Golf Invitational came down to two Western New York players.
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Joey Bueme hits his tee shot on the 11th hole Thursday during the International Junior Masters at East Aurora Country Club.
No. 8 seed Adam Cichowski of Iroquois faced No. 16 seed Joey Bueme of Canisius, and the two competed over 15 holes at East Aurora Country Club on a warm and windy Thursday afternoon.
They were tied after three holes, then Bueme began to pull away on the fourth hole and didn’t look back, winning 4 and 3. Bueme was scheduled to face Canada’s Manny Lalh, the No. 5 seed, in Friday’s semifinal at 9:08 a.m. Bueme is the lone American left in the championship field.
“I’m really excited for tomorrow,” Bueme said Thursday. “I couldn’t really have planned it any better today, ending my matches on 14 and 15 and not playing the whole round. I just really plotted around the place good, and when you hit it good, usually good things come.”
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Being two local guys, Bueme and Cichowski shared a few laughs and remarks on their shots as they trotted around the course with the goal of winning in mind. The two know each other from previous matchups, and have created a friendship through their passion for golf. Their closeness was more evident through their supporters when Bueme’s mother sprinted onto the course before a shot to give Cichowski a water bottle.
The two clapped for each other. When Cichowski lost his ball on the 14th hole, Bueme and others helped him look for it.
“Joey is such a great player,” Cichowski said. “He played well out there today and I didn’t have my best stuff. He deserves it and I’m sure he’s going to go far tomorrow. This was such a great experience, and it was tough out there and I had a lot of fun out there with him.”
Bueme defeated Pittsford Mendon’s Matt Carpentier, the No. 1 seed, 5 and 4 in the round of 16. Entering Friday’s semifinals, Bueme is optimistic that his torrid play will continue.
“I was just hitting in the right spots and I was getting up and down from difficult spots,” he said. “Usually, when I get up and down from one spot, I usually do it again and again because I got the confidence, and I think tomorrow should be fun.”
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Adam Cichowski putts on the fifth hole Thursday during the International Junior Masters at East Aurora Country Club.
Lalh advanced to the semifinals after defeating No. 12 Jacob Harnden (Canada) 2 and 1, then topping No. 13 Maddox Ketelaar (USA) 4 and 3. Bueme was the lowest seed in the championship flight after winning a second-hole playoff in stroke play to sneak into the group. He acknowledged that it wasn’t his best outing and has redeemed himself with back-to-back upsets entering the semifinals.
“I didn’t play the greatest in stroke play,” Bueme said. “I know I could’ve played better, but I just snuck in though as the 16th seed, and I’m just happy to be in the championship flight.”
There were two other Western New York golfers in the championship flight. Cole Jones of St. Mary’s, the No. 7 seed, lost 8 and 7 to Thailand’s Charongrat Jitnavasathien, who was ranked No. 10. Reigning New York State Federation champion Jack Tebeau of St. Francis, the No. 14 seed, lost in 21 holes, to Leo Chu of Scarsdale.
In the boys Platinum Flight, Williamsville East’s Tyler Delisanti was scheduled to play Florida’s Junzhe Wang in the semifinals. Niagara-Wheatfield’s RJ Delisanti was set to face China’s Kevin Huang in the Bronze Flight semifinals.
In the girls tournament, No. 7 seed Kylie Dean of Clarence was the lone Western New York representative. She lost in the round of 16 to No. 7 Lynne Zhang 6 and 5. Zhang is the reigning Indiana Girls State Championship runner-up.