Fourteen-year-old Schleyer previously attended Overlook Middle School in Ashburnham and will be entering his freshman year at St. John’s this fall
Lukas Schleyer of Westminster, only 14 years old, has achieved what thousands of other golfers dream about – a spot in one of the United States Golf Association’s prestigious national tournaments.
Last month with an outstanding round of 3-under-par 69, followed by a sudden-death playoff victory in a qualifying round at The Ledges Golf Club in South Hadley, Schleyer advanced to one of golf’s big stages.
Schleyer will play in the 78th U.S. Junior Amateur at Trinity Forest Golf Club in Dallas, Texas scheduled for July 21-26.
At The Ledges, among 85 entrants, Schleyer, with his friend Pat Breen as his caddy, was one of only three golfers to qualify for the national tournament. His score of 69 placed him in a three-for-one playoff with Harry Garland from Pelham, New Hampshire and Luke Edgar from Hanover.
“I can’t believe it,” said Schleyer to a Mass Golf official shortly after winning in sudden death over the other two golfers with a short par putt on the first playoff hole, the 10th. “Didn’t think this would happen, to be honest.”
Now the 5-foot-8, long-hitting Schleyer, after making seven birdies in his superb round in South Hadley, is preparing for a trip to Dallas, his first-ever visit to Texas.
In preparation for Dallas this month, Schleyer expects to play 18 to 36 holes daily and add many hours on the practice putting green.
Ledges GC was one of 42 local qualifying sites across the U.S. as well as in Canada and Mexico to determine the 264 competitors in the final U.S. Junior field from 3,564 entries. To even apply to compete, a golfer must be under 19 and cannot have a Handicap Index exceeding 2.4.
After two rounds of stroke play on July 21-22, 64 golfers will make the match play cut beginning on June 23. The elimination matches will continue at Trinity Forest until the quarterfinals and semifinals on July 25 and the 36-hole championship final match on July 26.
During a recent interview at Oak Hill Country Club in Fitchburg, where Schleyer is a member and holds a plus 1.4 handicap, he speculated on what it would take to reach the match play portion of the U.S. Junior. “I’m thinking 5-over-par for the two rounds,” he said. “There will be a lot of great players there, the best juniors in the world playing on a course that’s over 7,000 yards long.”
At only 14, Lukas, the son of Adam and Cari Schleyer, will be one of the youngest in the field at Trinity Forest for the U.S. Junior which was established in 1948.
Past U.S. Junior Amateur champions include major PGA tournament winners Tiger Woods, Jordan Spieth and Scottie Scheffler.
Other PGA stars from the current Tour who have won the championship include Will Zalatoris, Brian Harman, Min Woo Lee, Michael Thorbjornsen and Nick Dunlap along with past PGA stars Gay Brewer, Johnny Miller and David Duval.
Joining Schleyer in the field for the U.S. Junior in Texas will be Charlie Woods, the well-known and much written about 16-year-old son of Tiger Woods. The younger Woods, like Schleyer at The Ledges, secured a qualifying spot by winning a three-for-one playoff at Eagle Trace GC in Coral Springs, Florida.
A natural athlete, Schleyer played baseball and soccer in his younger days before the golf bug bit him big time when he was given his first set of clubs at age 8 and began entering tournaments at 10.
Schleyer’s father recalled his son, after playing in his first American Junior Golf Association event two years ago, saying about golf, “This is where I need to be.”
Last summer Schleyer proved he belonged among the best, winning two events on the U.S. Challenge Cup Regional Tour. “Last year, I really started playing better golf,” said Schleyer who says his driver, which he uses to belt his shots close to 300 yards, is the best club in his bag.
This fall he will enter his freshman year at St. John’s High in Shrewsbury and play on the varsity golf team, the defending state champs. Before enrolling at St. John’s Schleyer attended Overlook Middle School in Ashburnham for grades 6 and 7.
At the challenging Oak Hill course a few weeks ago, Schleyer carded his personal best, a terrific 3-under 67 from the tips, measuring 6,650 yards. His 34-33 scorecard included five birdies.
The winner of the U.S. Junior Amateur is awarded a gold medal plus exemption into the 2026 U.S. Open at Shinnecock Hills CC and also the 2025 and 2026 U.S. Amateur Championships.
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