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2018 GOLFERS
OF THE YEAR
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or so long, VSGA championships had
eluded Buck Brittain. In 2012, he
advanced to the title match of the VSGA
Amateur at Bayville Golf Club, only to lose when
talented youngster Jake Mondy won the first of
his two Amateur titles.
Brittain, a general district court judge in
Tazewell, turned 50 in 2017, and his golf game
has surged ever since. Now the owner of three
VSGA championships, Brittain is the VSGA
Men’s Golfer of the Year for the second time,
having previously won in 2012. While he may
lament the fact that most of his fellow compet-
itors hit it a mile past him off the tee, Brittain
makes up for it with uncanny accuracy and pure
putting, two huge factors in his 2018 success.
Brittain has represented Virginia in the
now-retired USGA State Team Championship,
but he had never broken through to qualify for
an individual championship. That changed at
The Foundry in August, when he reached the
U.S. Mid-Amateur.
“I’ve been within a shot or two every time I’ve
tried,” he said. “I never had any bad rounds, but
I never had any good rounds either. It’s great.
At 51, I’m probably playing as good of golf as
I’ve ever played.”
Anyone who played against Brittain in 2018
would concur.
VSGA MEN’S GOLFER OF THE YEAR
Buck Brittain
HOME CLUB: The Virginian Golf Club
2018 HIGHLIGHTS
» Won the VSGA Mid-Amateur Championship at Winchester
Country Club by four strokes.
» Qualified for a USGA Championship as an individual for the first
time when he shared medalist honors with Scott Shingler at a
U.S. Mid-Amateur qualifier at The Foundry.
» Finished No. 1 in the VSGA Men’s Player Rankings.
» Paired with Garland Green for a runner-up finish in the VSGA
Four-Ball Stroke Play Championship.
» Advanced to match play at the VSGA Amateur and tied for ninth
at the Delta Dental State Open of Virginia.
“I never had any bad rounds, but I never
had any good rounds either. It’s great.
At 51, I’m probably playing as good of
golf as I’ve ever played.”
—Buck Brittain
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