Scholarship Stories By TRIPP SHEPPARD
Where Are They Now ?
THE VSGA-VIP SCHOLARSHIP FOUN- DATION ’ S CLASS OF 1991 included 15 talented students who all shared an interest in golf . A pair of those award recipients are both currently highly regarded PGA administrators in the Commonwealth .
Martin Winters , PGA is Director of Birdwood Golf at Boar ' s Head Resort in Charlottesville , while Troy Reynolds is the PGA / GM at Old Hickory Golf Club in Woodbridge . Winters recently helped spearhead an extensive project at Birdwood ( 2018 – 2020 ) in which the entire facility was rebuilt under the watchful eye of Davis Love III ’ s design team . Reynolds has served as the general manager at Old Hickory for more than a decade .
Virginia Golfer recently had a chance to catch up with Reynolds for a quick nine .
Virginia Golfer : What do you recall about
your scholarship selection in 1991 ?
Troy Reynolds : I remember feeling really
excited when I was notified . The scholarship meant a lot to me and it was the biggest one I got . I received 4-5 others from some other local organizations but the VSGA one was the biggest . I was the guy known as “ the golfer ” in high school . To have the VSGA there for my senior awards assembly meant a lot .
VG : Where did you go to high school ? TR : I went to Courtland High School which is Fredericksburg , actually it ’ s really in
“ I was the guy known as ‘ the golfer ’ in high school . To have the VSGA there for my senior awards assembly meant a lot .”
Spotsylvania County . They were known for football and I actually moved there when I was a sophomore . I played football in West Virginia before coming to Virginia . Courtland won four state championships in the ‘ 80s . It was Friday Night Lights before the movie . They weren ’ t really known for golf by any stretch of the imagination .
VG : Did you put the school on the golfing
map ?
TR : I think I finished eighth in the state
( high school ) tournament my senior year . When I was a sophomore , we had I think four kids on the team and by the time I graduated it was up to 16 . You probably know Matt Ball ( former VCU golf coach .) He graduated the year before I moved there . He was better than me and he started putting golf on the map . It kind of grew after that .
VG : Did you know that Martin Winters at
Birdwood was also an award recipient in ’ 91 ?
TR : Oh , was he ? That ’ s interesting ! It ’ s
tremendous to see the way the scholarship program has grown and how many students have been helped .
MARTIN WINTERS
Director of Golf Birdwood Golf at Boar ' s Head Resort in Charlottesville
YEAR HONORED BY VSGA-VIP SCHOLARSHIP FOUNDATION : 1991 HOME TOWN : Marion , Virginia ; played golf at Holston Hills Country Club
A Career in Golf ( timeline )
• 1989 - Began working in the HHCC bag room and cart barn
• 1991-1992 - HHCC summer employee , golf shop and course maintenance
• 1993 - Started working as an Outside Service Representative at Birdwood as a UVA student
• 1994 - Moved inside as a Pro Shop Assistant for final two years at UVA
• 1995 - Hired as Assistant Golf Professional at Birdwood after finishing UVA with a degree in Environmental Sciences
• 1999 - Promoted to Non-Member Head Professional
• 2002 - Finished Golf Professional Training Program & earned Class A status with PGA of America
• 2010 - Promoted to Director of Golf for the Resort
• 2018-2020 - Helped lead Birdwood renovation – “ A dream of mine for the past 15-20 years ”
BEN SMITH / MAPGA
12 V IRGINIA G OLFER | M AY / J UNE 2022
vsga . org