The mission of the PGA Junior Series and Junior PGA Championship is to promote the enjoyment of golf by junior golfers through affordable and competitive playing opportunities in professionally supervised events organized by The PGA of America and supported by PGA Professionals.

The PGA Junior Series
The 14th annual PGA Junior Series continues to provide global and national exposure for each of the 156+ player fields. Each event is Nationally Ranked in the Golfweek/Titleist Performance Index and the Junior Golf Scoreboard. Approximately one-half of the participants in each field are from the host-state and one-half are from outside the host-state. The older boy and overall girl winners from the first three events and the 5th event will earn exemptions into the Callaway Golf Junior World Championships in San Diego, Calif., and the older boy and overall girl winner for the first 9 events will earn exemptions into the Junior PGA Championship in Cincinnati, Ohio on July 28-31, 2009.

Since its establishment in 1996, the PGA Junior Series has conducted 145 events in 41 states. Boys and girls ages 13-18 have participated from six continents, 24 countries and all 50 states with an average participation rate of 20 states per event. The Series is conducted from coast to coast across the U.S. from June to August.

Junior PGA Championship
One of golf's major championships for juniors, the Junior PGA Championship is where the best in the world get their start. The Championship celebrates its 34th anniversary in July 2009. Begun in 1976, at Walt Disney World Resort in Orlando, Fla., the Championship has been a popular stop on the national junior circuit for many of today's PGA and LPGA touring professionals.

Past Junior PGA Championship competitors who have gone on to successful professional careers include: Billy Andrade, Kathy Baker, Brandie Burton, Stewart Cink, Chris Couch, Rick Fehr, Jim Gallagher Jr., Trevor Immelman, Cristie Kerr, Justin Leonard, Billy Mayfair, Michelle McGann, Phil Mickelson, Sean O'Hair, Grace Park, Dottie Pepper, Stacy Prammanasudh, Scott Verplank, Willie Wood and Tiger Woods.

In 2006, former Junior PGA Champion Trevor Immelman (1996, from South Africa) became the second to achieve PGA Tour Rookie of the Year honors and in 2008 Masters Champion. In 2005, former Junior PGA Champion Sean O'Hair (1998) and former PGA Junior Series winner (1996) became the first ever to achieve PGA Tour Rookie of the Year honors.

Junior Ryder Cup
The Junior Ryder Cup began in 1995 as an exhibition match with the vision of encouraging friendship, exchanging cultures and enhancing the enjoyment of golf. Since its actual official inception in 1997, Europe leads the series over the United States 3-2-1. For the first time in Junior Ryder Cup history, the biannual matches were halved in 2006 with a 6-6 final total at Celtic Manor Resort in Newport, Wales. In September 2008 at The Club at Olde Stone in Bowling Green, Ky. the United States team dominated the European team 22-2.

Six boys and six girls, who are American Citizens and 2011 high school graduates and younger will represent the 2010 United States Junior Ryder Cup Team at Gleneagles in Scotland. The 2009 boy and girl champion from the Junior PGA Championship will earn the first berths. The 2010 U.S. Junior Amateur champion and U.S. Girls Amateur champion will each earn automatic berths. The rest of the U.S. Team is comprised of: The top two boys and girls in the 2010 Junior PGA Championship; the top boy and girl atop the Junior Ryder Cup Team points standings following the 2010 Junior PGA Championship; and an additional boy and girl team member, as selected by U.S. Junior Ryder Cup Captain M.G. Orender.