Ti Fox (Concord) and Kortni Houston (Gungahlin Lakes) have claimed the 2025 Harvey Norman ACT Junior Championship on a thrilling final day at Murrumbidgee Country Club.

More than 100 of the country’s best junior golfers competed across four rounds in weather that ranged from scorching heat to chilly winds, culminating in sunny, picture-perfect conditions for the final round.

In the boys’ division, Fox emerged victorious after a sensational final round, carding a 67 to finish the tournament at 6-under-par.

Fox’s consistent play throughout the week culminated in a back-and-forth shootout with Cooper Giddings (Dubbo GC), who also played brilliantly with a final-round 68 to finish just one shot behind at 5-under-par.

“I didn’t really strike the ball great this week, but I really found something today. I hit it really well, hit it quite close a few times and made a few good putts, and I needed to because Cooper played great and it was really close to the end.”

The win has come at just the right time for Fox, giving him confidence ahead of a busy few weeks

“It’s a big summer of golf coming up. I’ve got the Australian Amateur in Melbourne next week, followed by the NSW Amateur at two of my local courses in Western Sydney. After that, we have the Avondale Medal and Concord Cup at my home course, so I hope I can take confidence from this victory into those events over the next month.”

The rest of the field was left in the dust by Fox and Giddings, with Darcy Mackay (The Australian GC) finishing third at 2-over-par, followed by Bill Eppelstun (Catalina CC) in fourth at 4-over-par.

A trio of young-guns filled the next few places on the leaderboard, with 14-year-olds William Eldridge (Avondale), Blake Cranston (Toukley) and Harrison Preece (The Vintage) battling it out all week. Eldridge held his nerve down the stretch to win the 14 & 15 Years Division by just the one stroke.

The boys’ 12-13 age category delivered its own drama, with Jaydon Costello (Crookwell) coming from eight shots back with a final-round 73 to force a playoff with overnight leader Charlie Kerr. Costello clinched the victory on the third playoff hole.

Related LINKS: Boys Leaderboard Presented by Stripes

In the girls’ division, Kortni Houston (Gungahlin Lakes GC) secured the title with a steady final round of 75, finishing at 2-over-par for the tournament.

Houston held off a late charge from runner-up Sophia Chau (Gungahlin Lakes GC), who carded a strong 74 to finish one shot behind. Kiara Connolly-Jackson (Kooindah Waters GC) delivered the round of the day with a remarkable 70, securing third place at 5-over-par.

Houston was thrilled with the win, admitting she didn’t have her best stuff during the tournament.

”I didn’t hit it the best this week, didn’t give myself many birdie opportunities, but knew that I just needed to hang in there, make a lot of pars, and anything can happen.”

In a crazy final round, her two rivals made the 14 year-old work for it, throwing down the gauntlet with some great golf.

“Kiara and Sophia played amazing today, made a lot of birdies today and put a lot of pressure on. Kiara turned five under, and then Sophia made three birdies in a row on the back nine, but I knew that if I kept hitting the middle of the green and minimised mistakes, I could make the putts when I needed to.”

That played out exactly as planned, when a bomb on the 17th green changed the complexion of the tournament completely.

“Seventeen was the turning point. I was one shot behind at that point and hit it on the green, but was 40 or 50 feet away. It had a lot of break, so I aimed about one-metre left of the hole and just wanted to lag it close. About six feet out, it started to snap, and I thought, this might go in.”

Houston parred the last which was all that was required for the one shot win which will give the youngster a big boost ahead of a big week next week.

“I’m heading to Melbourne this weekend for the Australian Am so it’s nice to go there with a bit of confidence on the back of a win”.

The top three girls were standouts, finishing 18 shots clear of fourth.

Related LINKS: Girls Leaderboard Presented by Stripes