KATELYNN BROWN

Facing a 30-foot birdie putt during a playoff at the State Open of Virginia , Reilly found his line , calmly stepped to the ball , and watched as it trickled toward the hole . He knew it was good from the start , his right hand extending into a finger point as it got closer . When it dropped , he turned to the assembled crowd on Independence ’ s patio , yelled , and flexed .

It ’ s not like Reilly was facing just anyone in that playoff . Jay Woodson , the four-time State Open champion who had tied the competitive course record with a 62 to force the playoff , still had to putt . Once his birdie attempt — roughly on the same line — came up a couple of rolls short , Reilly was able to celebrate a rare feat , winning both the State Open and VSGA Amateur Championship in the same year . The only other player to have done it in the era of the merged State Open was Mark Lawrence Jr . in 2020 .

“ If you would have told me ( I ’ d win both ) at the beginning of the year , I would have gladly taken it ,” Reilly said .

Reilly ’ s sensational VSGA season began in May when he teamed with fellow Loudoun member Nick Alexander to

finish tied for second at the VSGA Four-Ball Championship . Then came the Amateur at Belle Haven Country Club , where he survived close calls to advance to the final . Reilly won his semifinal against Rylan Shim 4 and 3 and was so dialed in — he was 9-under through 15 holes — that he continued to see if he could shoot 59 . He ended up shooting 61 .

Reilly defeated Nikita Gubenko 4 and 2 in the championship match , finishing with style by draining a 25-foot birdie putt to win the match on the 34th hole .

The future looks unquestionably bright for Reilly , who still has a year to play at Bishop O ’ Connell High School before heading to play for defending national champion , Auburn University .

GREENLIEF MAKES IT THREE “ This one is for the old people ,” Lauren Greenlief blurted out after winning her third VSGA Women ’ s Amateur Championship in July at River Bend Club . The 33-year-old past U . S . Women ’ s Mid-Amateur Champion was only sort of joking . Of the 16 players who made match play in the championship flight at the 99th VSGA Women ’ s Am , 11 were teenagers .

Greenlief eliminated four of them on the way to her first title in the event since 2018 , starting with Alina Ho in the round of 16 , Kathryn Ha in the quarterfinals , Ayla Browning in the semifinals , and Kanchana Duangsam in the championship match . The quarterfinal was particularly compelling , featuring a seasoned veteran in Greenlief against one of the state ’ s most promising juniors . It didn ’ t end until Greenlief made up and down for par on the fourth extra hole .

“ I really like playing with Kathryn ,” Greenlief said afterward . “ She has a really solid game with a lot of mental toughness . … She looked really composed for a junior , knew what she had to do and executed . I have a lot of respect for her game .”

Winning didn ’ t come easy for Greenlief , who rallied from 3-down in her match against Browning and 2-down against Duangsam . Greenlief was able to dial up birdies when necessary , down