Virginia Golfer Jul / Aug 2020 | Page 16

at c ( ) Next Up Spotlighting the next generation of Virginia golfers RAM TOUGH by CHRIS LANG CHARLIE KENNEDY CHARLIE KENNEDY HAS MADE A STEADY RISE THROUGH THE VIRGINIA JUNIOR RANKS over the last few years, starting with a title in the VSGA Youth Championship as a 13-year-old. As a sophomore in high school, he finished second to Michael Brennan in the VHSL 5A individual championship and was named the Richmond Times-Dispatch’s golfer of the year. His summer of 2019 was his best yet— medalist honors at the VSGA Junior Match Play, his second VSGA Junior Golf Circuit 36-hole championship, a top-15 finish at the Delta Dental State Open of Virginia and a 3-0 mark at the Virginias-Carolinas Junior Boys’ Matches. Kennedy recently chatted with Virginia Golfer about the state of his game heading into his final year of high school. AGE: 17 CLUB: Richmond Country Club HIGH SCHOOL: Mills Godwin (Richmond) COLLEGE: Committed to VCU Everything came together, from instruction from my coach to growing a couple more inches. I just started having more confidence on the course, which was the key to me shooting a lot of low rounds. Virginia Golfer: You've climbed the Virginia junior ranks over the last few years, but you really seemed to find another gear last summer. What was the biggest reason for your strong play? Charlie Kennedy: Last summer was definitely my best year of golf. My biggest improvement during that whole year was raising my confidence level so I never counted myself out during competition. VG: How much motivation did you get from watching your older brother Andrew’s run to the championship match at the 2018 VSGA Amateur? I know you were on Andrew’s bag for a portion of the event. CHRIS LANG 14 V IRGINIA G OLFER | J ULY/A UGUST 2020 vsga.org