AVONDALE, La. (December 28, 2022) — Eighty-four top-ranked junior golfers from across the nation competed in the 2022 Allstate Sugar Bowl Tommy Moore Memorial on December 27-28. TPC Louisiana, home of the PGA TOUR's Zurich Classic of New Orleans, was the host facility for the event. Participants from seventeen states were put to the test with windy conditions and a challenging course.
 
Kenna Lee of Bellaire, Texas, won the Girls 13-18 Division Championship. She led by three strokes after Round 1 with an even par 72. The second round brought windy conditions, but Lee remained consistent, shooting another even par 72 to clinch the victory over Sirina Ganne of Holmdel, N.J., and Francis Brown of Mobile, Ala.
 
"I didn't want to take too many risks knowing that I had the lead going into the final round," Lee said. "My irons were working really well for me. This was my first time playing in this tournament and I had a lot of fun. Winning this event feels amazing – I lost a couple leads in previous tournaments and it was good to come away with a win."
 
Trip Duke of Fairhope, Ala., won this year's Boys 13-18 Division. Shooting a tournament low three-under 69 vaulted him to the lead after Round 1 with Benton Manly of Tulsa, Okla., one shot back. Duke and Manly went back and forth in the second round, with the two eventually going to a sudden death playoff. Duke sealed the victory with a birdie on the 18th.
 
"I knew I had the lead going into the final round, so I wanted to take each shot one at a time," Duke said. "The playoff depended if I won the tee flip, which I did, and selected driver. I was 250 yards out and hit 4-iron short of the front bunker and played well from there. It feels great to win – this is my first time playing in this tournament. I had it on my calendar for a while and my preparation paid off."
 
Second in the Girls 13-18 Division was Sirina Ganne of Holmdel, N.J., and third went to Francis Brown of Mobile, Ala. Second place in the Boys 13-18 Division went to Manly and third went to Sam Udovich of Inver Grove Heights, Minnn.
 
The Allstate Sugar Bowl is the presenting sponsor of the 36-hole event. The 89th Allstate Sugar Bowl Football Classic is scheduled to be played on Saturday, December 31, as No. 9 Kansas State and No. 5 Alabama face off in Caesars Superdome. While the Sugar Bowl is well-known as one of the premier college football bowl games, it has also been a key part of the local sports scene by hosting and sponsoring events in a wide-range of sports since its inception in 1934. Through these efforts, the organization supports and honors thousands of student-athletes each year, while injecting over $2.7 billion into the local economy in the last decade.
 
The golf tournament is named in honor of Tommy Moore, who was the most accomplished junior golfer to ever emerge from the New Orleans area. In 1980, Tommy was ranked No. 1 in the Golf Digest Junior World Rankings and went on to have a decorated collegiate career at Oklahoma State University where he was an All-American, National Champion, and Academic All-American. After playing on the PGA TOUR for three seasons, Tommy Moore's life was cut short at the young age of 35 due to a rare blood disease. In his memory, the Kelly Gibson Foundation is proud to partner with the Allstate Sugar Bowl to host a national event that recognizes the impact Tommy made on junior golf and the New Orleans community. This is the 12th year that the Kelly Gibson Foundation has produced the Allstate Sugar Bowl Tommy Moore Memorial.
 
The Kelly Gibson Foundation was founded as Feed the Relief, Inc. by Kelly and Elizabeth Gibson in September of 2005 with the idea of providing necessary support for the frontline first responders to Hurricane Katrina. In 2010, Feed the Relief, a 501(c)3 corporation, changed its name to the Kelly Gibson Foundation, and expanded its scope to enrich the lives of children through athletics. Their mission is to provide support to military personnel and first responders, with a focus on youth athletics. For more information, please visit www.kellygibsonfoundation.org.