Congratulations to our PGA Jr. League #GameChanger Award Winners

Vincent Lopez • January 22, 2024

The Northern Texas PGA is proud to share that eight PGA members have been named PGA jr. League #GameChanger Player Engagement Award winners! The award recognizes individuals who have significantly contributed to PGA Jr. League and serve as leaders in golf instruction and player development. Additionally, Charleton Dechert, PGA facilities manager at First Tee of Fort Worth, and Joey Anders, PGA instructor at Brookhaven Country Club were celebrated for having two of the top 10 largest programs in the country. 


Charleton serves as the PGA Jr. League Coordinator at First Tee of Fort Worth, an organization that focuses on introducing the game of golf to young people in the area. In 2023, he led the largest PGA Jr. League program in the nation for the second year in a row! 473 golfers participated in programming in 2023. That’s 109 more golfers than the second-largest program in the country. He continues to inspire and guide the next generation of golfers.

Joey’s work with PGA Jr. League in 2023 culminated with his team winning the 13u National Championship at Fields Ranch at PGA Frisco and having a 17u team compete at their own national championship. His PGA Jr. League program at Brookhaven Country Club ranked ninth-largest in the country, and he has helped develop over 30 Division I collegiate golfers as an instructor. This year Joey and Brookhaven served 291 junior golfers!

The Sections additional six winners of the 2023 PGA Jr. League #GameChanger PLayer Engagement award include:


Cory Ryan, Crown Colony Country Club

Travis Lynch, Travis Lynch Golf at Trails of Frisco

Scott Robbins, Stewart Peninsula Golf Course

Cliff Mishler, Stonebridge Ranch

Chuck Higgins, Keeton Park Golf Course

Dave Baron, Timarron Country Club


Each of these Members is committed to growing the game through their work with junior golfers in North Texas. Their instruction is invaluable to hundreds of children getting started in the sport. These professionals are supporters of not only PGA Jr. League programming but also the Ewing Automotive NTPGA Junior Tour. The continued passion for youth golf displayed by each instructor makes them perfect recipients of the 2023 PGA Jr. League #Gamechanger Award.

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I want to thank all of our partners who make this year-over-year record possible, and I also want to congratulate and wish the best of luck to the young men and women who have worked diligently throughout high school to receive one of our scholarships this year. I know they will go on to do great things.” The 2026 scholarship amounts vary from $2,500 to $20,000. In addition, two students were awarded a “last-dollar” full scholarship to two of the Foundation’s partner schools, the University of North Texas at Dallas (UNTD) and the University of Texas at Arlington (UTA), and one student was awarded a full-ride scholarship to the University of North Texas, which is a new partner school for this year. Congratulations to our 2026 scholarship recipients: A.B. Crockroft Memorial Scholarship Saydi Durbin – Mart High School Ethan Hocking – Mart High School Allison and Jerry Freeman Scholarship Niko Klassen – Homeschool ANNIKA Foundation Scholarship Alicia Bellendir – Coppell High School April and Mark Anthony Scholarship Huey Black – Canyon High School Baylor Scott & White Scholarship Garrick Ly – Lone Star High School Aliya Rasheed – Panther Creek High School Ben Hogan Foundation / Fred & Michele Reynolds Scholarship Jeffery Rubenstein – Highland Park High School Ben Hogan Foundation / Lillie Biggins Scholarship Mikayla Martin – Homeschool Ben Hogan Foundation / Mike McMahan Scholarship Adam Strauss – Greenhill School Ben Hogan Foundation / Mike Wright Scholarship Gracie Ellis – Clarendon High School Birdies For Kids Scholarship Sydnee Fain – Midland High Jade Mara – Argyle High School Cameron Doan NTPGA Golf Professional of the Year Scholarship Landon Reece – Mildred High School CJ Corporation Scholarship Katherine Bustetter – Centennial High School Harper Mallonee – Highland Park High School Luke Martin – Rockwall-Heath High School Delaney Newberry – Highland Park High School Yunjae Park – Prosper High School Deloitte / NTPGA Fairway to Success Scholarship Yvette Altamirano – W. W. Samuell High School Matisse Edwards – David W. Carter High School Abril Guerrero – Thomas Jefferson High School Ariel Meza Meza – Thomas Jefferson High School Sa'Mareion Tucker – Lincoln High School Camyre' Williams – Lincoln High School Destination Grapevine Texas Women's Open Scholarship Audrey McCallum – Colleyville Heritage High School Dr. Bill Blair Scholarship Cameron Warner – Wakeland High School Ewing Automotive Scholarship Hannah Antunes – China Spring High School Avery Jones – Homeschool Fore Frisco Scholarship Amara Okafor – Lone Star High School Rajdeep Singh – Panther Creek High School Lauryn Spraggs – Panther Creek High School Nikki Zahedi – Lone Star High School Frank & Evelyn Borgsmiller Scholarship Alan Ocampo – Thomas Jefferson High School Fritz and Mary Lee Duda Family Foundation Scholarship Taylor Carr – McKinney Boyd High School Giveback Foundation Scholarship Jelani Johnson Simon – Panther Creek High School Evan Tupper – Lone Star High School Holly & Doug Brooks Family Foundation Scholarship Keegan Batla – Garden City High School Darby Ehrbar – Flower Mound High School Tyson Embry – Marcus High School Caroline Fent – Ursuline Academy of Dallas Riley Gudgeon – Hebron High School Xiyu Mei – Walnut Grove High School Jude Robbins – Wakeland High School I Am a Golfer Foundation Scholarship De'Asia Williams – David W. Carter High School Jackie Cupit Scholarship Brody Callens – White Oak High School Jerry Andrews Scholarship Dylan Wisener – Sachse High School Jerry J. Ransom Scholarship Max Cearley – Rockwall High School Brooks Head – Coppell High School Reed Heilig – Flower Mound High School Brooklynn Landrumm – Melissa High School Van Leugers – Rockwall High School Haylie Moore – Burleson Centennial High School Bryan Sargent – Walnut Grove High School Joe Black / Texas Golf Hall of Fame Scholarship Jacob Mekelburg – Maypearl High School Joe Bob Joyce Family Foundation Scholarship William Wampler – Canton High School Jon and Kim Morgan Scholarship Aashi Vakta – Justin Wakeland High School Jordan Spieth Family Foundation Scholarship Damir Ali – Thomas Jefferson High School Marely Angeles – Lincoln High School Dayanara Aquino – W.W. Samuell High School Montrell Horner – Lincoln High School Links on PGA Parkway Scholarship Anisaa Abdullah – Emmett J. Conrad High School Reagan Lorenson – McKinney North High School Daphny Moore – Keene High School M&P Group Texas State Open Scholarship Samuel Fate – Tyler Legacy High School Mac Spikes PGA Member Scholarship Anabelle Floriani – Lone Star High School Miss Katie Scholarship Gloria Solis – Thomas Jefferson High School Never Stop Believing Scholarship Annabeth Boyd – Trinity Preparatory Academy Perry Arthur Scholarship Faith Hughes – Community Christian School Philip Bleakney Scholarship Samuel Williams – Vilonia High School Randy Smith Scholarship Carson Niemann – Byron Nelson High School Ronny Glanton Scholarship Addison Akers – Bryan Adams High School Ronny Golf Park Scholarship Madison Bixler – Lone Star High School Riaan Nazrul – Panther Creek High School Carlo Rogers – Panther Creek High School Royal Oaks Country Club / Nicholas Stafford Scholarship Kian Sköld – Frisco High School Scottie and Meredith Scheffler Scholarship Austin Morrissette – Northwest High School Addelyn Schwarzlose – Tascosa High School Sherrill Park / Two Dads and a Coach Scholarship Kristin Coffman – Berkner High School Tehan Scholarship Cooper Knapp – Wylie High School The CJ Cup Byron Nelson Scholarship Aiden Tiet – Garland Christian Academy UNT / Fore Frisco Scholarship Kayla Rochez – Panther Creek High School UNTD / NTPGA Fairway to Success Scholarship Daisy Navarro – W.W. Samuell High School UTA / NTPGA Fairway to Success Scholarship Leibi Chavira Reyes – W.W. Samuell High School West Texas Legends Scholarship honoring Jenny Cox Claire Smiley – Amarillo High School West Texas Legends Scholarship honoring S.A. Smith, Hart Warren, Jay McClure, and Sherwin Cox Gunnar Barrera – Levelland High School Three additional scholarship winners will be announced later this June, with recipients selected via random drawings at two upcoming events. First, the Jerry J. Ransom Pro-Junior-Am fundraising tournament will award a $5,000 scholarship to a participating recent graduate. Later in the month, the S.A. Smith West Texas Junior Invitational will host a drawing for two $2,500 memorial scholarships in honor of Jerry D. Smith, one awarded to a male participant and one to a female participant.