Jay Jurecic to Defend at Boyne’s Tournament of Champions
BOYNE FALLS – Jay Jurecic of Crystal Falls is 56 and chasing the elusive PGA Tour Champions chance, but the defending champion is making sure to stop at home in Northern Michigan Monday through Wednesday to play in the 34th Tournament of Champions at Boyne Mountain Resort.
“I will be there,” said the former high school teacher after his recent runner-up finish to Andy Walker of Royal Oak at the Yamaha Golf Cars Senior Open Championship. “It’s a fun tournament and it was a thrill to win it last year.”
Thrill, indeed.
First, Jurecic erased a two-shot deficit in regulation play on the par-5 No. 18 hole of the Alpine course with a 260-yard 3-wood shot that bounced off the flagstick to inside one foot, resulting in a tap-in eagle-3.
Then in a sudden-death playoff with mini-tour pro Grant Haefner of Bloomfield Hills, Jurecic’s third shot, a 45-yard pitch shot from the rough right of the green rolled to within five inches, and with the tap-in birdie he won the 33rd edition of the unique tournament that brings together men, women, professionals, amateurs, seniors and juniors – all who have won significant Michigan championships – playing for the same title from different tee positions.
With his miraculous finish Jurecic took home the $10,500 first-place check, the historic Walter Burkemo Trophy, and the traditional green blazer emblematic of his membership for life in the Country Club of Boyne.
“I know I’m blessed to be able to still chase my dream,” he said after the win. “I think I’m playing the best golf of my life at 55 to be honest. I’m going to just keep going and keep trying to get better.”
Jurecic will lead the field of 122 champions, including 11 Michigan Golf Hall of Fame members and 11 former winners of the Tournament of Champions. The professionals will play for a $75,000 purse and everybody plays for the trophy and blazer.
In addition to Jurecic, other past winners of the Tournament of Champions in this year’s field are the six-time winner of the Tournament of Champions and Michigan Golf Hall of Fame member Jeff Roth, who teaches at the BOYNE Golf Academy at The Highlands in Harbor Springs, Joe Juszczyk (2024), Barrett Kelpin (2023 and ‘15) Otto Black (2021), Alex Scott (2018) Mike Nagy (2017) Korey Mahoney (2016), Andy Ruthkoski (2013 and ‘14), Scott Hebert (2009) and Tom Harding (1997).
The Michigan Golf Hall of Famers playing, in addition to Roth, are Ron Beurmann, Steve Brady, Brian Cairns, Greg Davies, Suzy Green-Roebuck, Harding, Hebert, Jack Seltzer, Tom Werkmeister and Bill Zylstra.
The field also includes a host of recent champions from the Michigan Open, the Michigan Amateur, the Michigan PGA Professional Championship and the GAM Championship. A notable returning player this year is James Piot, the 2021 U.S. Amateur Champion who is now playing professionally.
The unique field also includes relatives competing against each other. The brother-sister combination of Evan and Elayna Bowser are joined by father-son Jack and John Seltzer, father-son Jim and Austin Dieters and father-son Frank and Frank McAuliffe IV.
“It’s another amazing field with great champions, professional and amateur, college players, mini-tour professionals and several of our top Michigan PGA Section players and Hall of Fame members,” said Justin Phillips, the tournament director for the Michigan Section PGA, which sanctions and administers the unique championship. “It is the 34th year and it remains the most unique tournament in the country at one of the top resorts in the country.”
The field will play each round of the 54-hole stroke play championship on the Alpine. A 36-hole cut to the low 70 scorers and ties will be made after the second round.
SCORING: Find the Leaderboard at www.michiganpga.com
NOTE: Gallery is welcome. Parking and admission are free.
MEDIA CONTACTS: Connect with media coordinator Greg Johnson at 616-560-8995 or gregeeee24@gmail.com. For Boyne Mountain and BOYNE Golf information, contact TR Hollis at Thomas.hollis@boyneresorts.com.
About BOYNE Golf
BOYNE Golf has been recognized by GOLF Magazine as one of North America's "Premier Resorts" (Gold) and is currently ranked No. 3 in USA Today's 10BEST Golf Resorts category. The resort was also previously ranked No. 1 in the 10BEST Golf Destinations in the U.S. for a golf getaway.
The Inn at Bay Harbor and Bay Harbor Golf Club, Boyne’s flagship properties, feature 45-holes including three golf course combinations designed by Arthur Hills (Links/Quarry, Quarry/Preserve, and Preserve/Links), and the scenic Crooked Tree Golf Club, with one of the most beautiful and iconic hotels in America, all set along a scenic five-mile stretch of Lake Michigan shoreline.
The Highlands at Harbor Springs, rated the No. 1 Golf Resort for Value by Golf.com, features 72 holes of premier golf design. The Heather, the 2019 NGCOA Course of the Year, was designed by Robert Trent Jones Sr., while the Hills Course was crafted by Arthur Hills. In addition, the resort features The Donald Ross Memorial, which is a rendition of the legendary architect’s great holes from around the country, and the always-fun Moor course. The Highlands is the perfect buddy trip destination for golfers who like to play as many holes as they can during the long summer daylight hours Northern Michigan features.
Boyne Mountain not only features two fun 18-hole courses (The Monument and Alpine), along with the charming Mountain Grand Lodge & Spa, it is also the leading family friendly golf destination in the region with the Avalanche Bay Indoor Waterpark, junior golf camps, and various kid golf programs. Golf Digest named Boyne Mountain one of its “Top-10 Destinations for Family Golf Trips.”