CHAUTAUQUA, NY - The eyes of the NJCAA (National Junior College Athletic Association) golf world will be on Jamestown next week when the Division III National Championships take over Chautauqua Golf Club from practice rounds on Sunday and Monday to the 72-hole tournament taking place Tuesday through Friday. There will be 99 male and female golfers taking part in the event, and while the golfing will take place in the backyard of Jamestown Community College with the Jayhawks hosting, it will be extra special for a pair of Dirty Birds who traveled over 8,000 miles from Johannesburg, South Africa to call Jamestown there home for two years of college.

"It is a great experience to come out here in the summer, in the beautiful weather. It is my first time really playing competitive golf. It is a new experience for me. It is nerve-wracking, but it has been an enjoyable season with the boys, and I couldn't ask for it to be any better, " said sophomore Maxim Johnson.

Athanasios Bakas will be playing in the national tournament for the second time, but that hasn't taken any of the luster off the opportunity, "It means a lot to represent JCC." He added, "It is good to do it again and represent JCC as we are, so hopefully we can do pretty good. In all honestly, I want to do well, but I just want to represent the family and JCC and fully send it." The Jayhawks finished fourth in 2023's tournament, with Lakewood native Brady Fye missing All-American status by one stroke.

Johnson, Bakas, Fye, Spencer Bell, and Jackson Sandhoff will be JCC's five players in the event. This is the 25th consecutive year Jamestown will play host to the best NJCAA Division III has to offer. The championships are a great event for the Chautauqua community as the teams bring coaches, athletic directors, friends, and family to Jamestown and the surrounding area.

For more information on the tournament you can go to the event homepage on the JCC Jayhawks' website.