105 th
VSGA Amateur Championship
TOP CONTENDERS
Mark Lawrence Jr.( Independence GC): It’ s hard to look past the defending champion and 2017 VSGA Men’ s Golfer of the Year. Lawrence used his VSGA Amateur title as a springboard to a semifinal appearance at the U. S. Amateur Championship later in the summer. The Virginia Tech junior leads the Hokies in scoring average and rounds under par( through early April) and is 14-3 in match play at the VSGA Amateur since 2014.
Michael Brennan( River Creek Club): The 16-yearold stormed onto the scene in 2017, winning the VSGA Junior Match Play Championship, taking medalist honors at the VSGA Amateur and sharing low-amateur honors at the Delta Dental State Open of Virginia. He also won the Middle Atlantic Amateur last year, beating past VSGA Amateur champion
Scott Shingler in a playoff. Brennan’ s 2018 is off to a great start, as he won the Dustin Johnson World Junior outside Myrtle Beach in February. One thing is certain: Brennan won’ t sneak up on anyone this year.
Jordan Utley( Independence GC): The former University of Richmond standout is 8-3 in match play at the Amateur since 2014 with two championship match appearances. A gritty competitor, Utley is one of three to have beaten Lawrence in match play at the Amateur. Champions Maclain Huge and Joey Lane are the others.
Mark Lawrence Jr.
Wren, Virginia’ s Connor Messick, Virginia Tech’ s Ian Hildebrand and Arizona State’ s Ryan Douglass. Also, outside of the usual suspects( Shingler, Justin Young, Utley, Keith Decker, etc.), there are some strong mid-ams to watch should they play, including Brandon Cigna, John Rosenstock and reinstated amateurs Garland Green and Sam Beach.
TOUGHEST HOLES: Most competitors who played the Four-Ball Match Play last year at The Federal Club agreed that surviving the first six holes was key if one wanted to compete for the championship. That stretch includes the long, par-4 sixth hole that can stretch to 478 yards from the back tees.
DID YOU KNOW? Since Shingler’ s win in’ 11, collegians have won every championship. Schools represented: Duke( Brinson Paolini), Auburn( Jake Mondy, twice), and Virginia Tech( Lawrence, Lane, Huge).
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Scott Shingler( Dominion Valley CC): Shingler is the last mid-amateur to win the championship, defeating Ji Soo Park at The Virginian in 2011. Shingler is 13-7 in match play at the Amateur since 2010 and will be seeking his first trip past the quarterfinals since his championship run in 2011. |
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PHOTO CREDIT HERE |
Hole No. 11 at the Federal Club, which will host the the 105th VSGA Amateur Championship in June. |
CHRIS LANG |
KEEP AN EYE ON: The college players. Every year, a bevy of talented players return home from school to compete for the Amateur title. Players exempt from qualifying this year include Yale’ s Teddy Zinsner( 2017 VSGA Junior Stroke Play champion), Virginia’ s Brandon Yoon, Temple’ s Trey |
Jordan Utley |
vsga. org M AY / J UNE 2018 | V IRGINIA G OLFER 21