SC Junior Team Takes Early Lead After First Day

The historic setting at Atlanta Country Club in Marietta, GA was the venue for the 35th Annual GA-SC Junior Team Matches. The junior squad from South Carolina took an early on day one with an overall one point lead of 4 ½ - 3 ½ over the juniors from Georgia.

Matches started at 8:00 a.m. with Joe Lewis of Georgia taking a 5 & 4 victory over Will Murphy after Murphy nearly had to withdraw due to a back injury. The next match went to South Carolina as Wick Andrews of Columbia won 2 & 1 over Macon’s Matthew Beringer. Caleb Morris of Metter, Georgia struck back with a 4 & 3 victory over Ford Blanchard of Orangeburg. The next three matches were all SC as CJ Liner of N. Augusta (2 & 1), Austin Langdale of Townville (2UP) and Leesville’s Cody Proveaux (5 & 4) all earned one point victories. Grant Waggoner holed a birdie putt on the 18th to pull his match All Square with two-time Gerogia State Junior Champion Scott Wolfes. The final match had Davin White of Locust Grove, GA winning 4 & 2 over Easley’s Hayden Garrett.

The format is singles match play with one point available per match. If matches are tied at the end of 18 holes, each player receives half of a point.

This year, Atlanta Country Club stepped up to host the longest running interstate junior matches in the country, held for the 35th consecutive year. Teams from both states are selected by accepting the top eight finishers at each state’s Junior Championship. The South Carolina team was solidified in June after the Championship was held at Fort Jackson Golf Club.

Thirty-five years ago, Pete Cox of the Georgia State Golf Association and Charles Rountree, Jr. of the South Carolina Golf Association formalized the idea of the GA - SC team matches. The winning team has their victory inscribed on the beautiful Rountree - Cox trophy that was donated by the Rountree family. Every junior that has participated in the 34 year old competition will find his name on the trophy with his teammates. The Georgia teams have produced 21 victories as compared to the 13 for the SC teams

The Junior Championship is one of 19 SCGA statewide championships, 80 one-day contests, nine USGA qualifiers, eight 40-plus tournaments and five special events conducted by the SCGA. Results, schedules and applications may be accessed via the Internet at www.scgolf.org.