Around The Commonwealth
LEFT: Michael Brennan's second-round 64 in 2017 created quite a buzz. RIGHT: Jack Montague and
Mark Lawrence Jr. shake hands after Montague's playoff win in 2019.
HOOS VS. HOKIES, PLAYOFF STYLE
There have been two playoffs at Ballyhack,
and Lawrence has been involved
in both. In 2019, both Lawrence and Jack
Montague scuffled out of the gates, with
Lawrence posting a 75 and Montague a
74, leaving them well off the lead after
the first day. Lawrence, the 2017 VSGA
Amateur champion, responded with a
second-round 63—tying the course competitive
record—and a third-round 68.
Montague quietly posted a pair of 66s,
forcing a playoff. Montague, who plays
at the University of Virginia, made a par
on the playoff hole while Lawrence, who
played at Virginia Tech, got in early trouble
and couldn’t get up and down for a
matching par, sealing Montague’s victory.
Montague is the only amateur to win at
Ballyhack and broke a seven-year run of
wins by professionals in the event.
GRIFFIN’S VICTORY
Lanto Griffin is now a PGA Tour champion,
having won last year’s Houston Open.
He’ll play in the Masters in November.
But one of the most important victories
in his career came at Ballyhack in 2015,
when he shot 66-68-70 to dust the field by
six strokes. He’d make one more appearance
at Ballyhack before earning status
on the Web.com Tour and eventually the
PGA Tour.
BRENNAN’S BREAKTHROUGH
Michael Brennan, the 2019 VSGA Amateur
champion, hasn’t won this event,
but as a 15-year-old in 2017, he had Ballyhack
abuzz after posting a second-round
64, the course record until it was broken
by both Justin Young and Lawrence.
That round came on the heels of a summer
that included a win in the VSGA
Junior Match Play Championship and
medalist honors at the VSGA Amateur.
Though he shot 74 in the final round, he
still tied for low amateur honors with Ji
Soo Park.
FAMILY BATTLE
Woodson won the first State Open at
Ballyhack, finishing two strokes clear
of Mikey Moyers, who had recently
turned professional. The two know each
other well—they’re cousins. Though
disappointed afterward, Moyers couldn’t
begrudge his cousin’s third straight victory
in the event. “No, I’m happy for
him,” Moyers said. “I was hoping we’d
finish 1-2, I was just hoping it might be
the other way around.”
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CHRIS LANG (2)
vsga.org J ULY/A UGUST 2020 | V IRGINIA G OLFER 9