STILLWATER, Okla. – Hailey Jones of Dallas, Texas, leads the Girls Division after carding a first-round score of 2-under-par 70. Joe Highsmith of Lakewood, Washington, and Canon Claycomb of Bowling Green, Kentucky, paced the Boys Division with a 3-under-par 69.

Since 2006, the event has been conducted at Karsten Creek and produced champions such as Jordan Spieth, Emiliano Grillo and Alison Lee. With 14 of the top-20 boys and 15 of the top-20 girls in the Rolex AJGA Rankings in the field, The PING Invitational has one of the strongest fields on the 2017 AJGA schedule.

Highsmith, a Pepperdine University verbal commit, finished birdie - eagle on Nos. 17 and 18 to move from three strokes back to T1. Claycomb took the lead early, carding a bogey-free front nine and tallying four birdies. Both juniors were members of the victorious U.S. Junior Presidents Cup Team and playing in The PING Invitational for the first time.

Lucy Li of Redwood Shores, California, and Amari Avery of Riverside, California, are tied for second after carding a 1-under-par first-round score.

Li finished runner-up at the 2016 PING Invitational and won her first invitational in March at the ANA Junior Inspiration. Li is currently No. 2 in the Rolex AJGA Rankings.

Thirteen-year-old and two-time AJGA Champion Avery is playing in her first PING Invitational. She is currently ranked No. 15 in Rolex AJGA Rankings and finished T3 at her first AJGA Invitational in August, the Swinging Skirts AJGA Invitational.

Jones a two-time Rolex Junior All-American is looking for her first invitational win and fifth AJGA victory.

Second-round tee times will run from 8:30 a.m. – 10:20 a.m. off the Nos. 1 and 10 tees at Karsten Creek on Sunday, October 8.

About PING

The tournament title partner, PING, designs, manufactures and markets a complete line of golf equipment including metal woods, irons, putters and golf bags. The family-owned company was founded in 1959 by the late Karsten Solheim. Solheim is the only person to be inducted into the World Golf Hall of Fame as a golf club manufacturer. Today, the Phoenix-based company is under the direction of Solheim's youngest son, John A. Solheim. PING game-improvement products can be found in more than 70 countries. For more information, visit ping.com.  

About the AJGA
The American Junior Golf Association is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization dedicated to the overall growth and development of young men and women who aspire to earn college golf scholarships through competitive junior golf. The AJGA provides valuable exposure for college golf scholarships, and has an annual junior membership (boys and girls, ages 12-19) of more than 6,600 members from 50 states and 55 foreign countries. Through initiatives like the Achieving Competitive Excellence (ACE) Grant, a financial assistance program, and Leadership Links, a service-oriented platform that teaches juniors charitable-giving skills, the AJGA fosters the growth of golf’s next generation.

AJGA alumni have risen to the top of amateur, collegiate and professional golf. Former AJGA juniors have compiled more than 830 victories on the PGA and LPGA Tours. AJGA alumni include Tiger Woods, Phil Mickelson, Jordan Spieth, Rickie Fowler, Bubba Watson, Webb Simpson, Sergio Garcia, Hunter Mahan, Dustin Johnson, Patrick Reed, Zach Johnson, Justin Thomas, Stacy Lewis, Ariya Jutanugarn, Alison Lee, Lexi Thompson, Inbee Park, Paula Creamer, Brittany Lincicome, Cristie Kerr and Morgan Pressel.