SCGA touts golf’s past, future: ‘The state of the game in South Carolina is very good’
Unseasonably warm temperatures with rain forecast to hold off until late afternoon made Saturday a perfect day for golf, and aficionados of the game gathered at Columbia Country Club to celebrate their passion.
And they had plenty of moments to remember and possibilities to look forward to on South Carolina Golf Day.
They could look back on 2019 and recall the successful U.S. Women’s Open at the Country Club of Charleston, the down-to-the-last-putt battles for the South Carolina Golf Association’s players of the year honors or Tyler Gray’s emotional triumph in the State Amateur.
That’s without mentioning Kevin King’s completing the Triple Crown by adding the Senior Amateur title to his championships in the State Amateur and State Mid-Amateur; or Sydney Legacy’s victory in the Women’s South Carolina Open; or the SCGA team completing 100 holes in one day — walking, no less — to raise funds for the Youth on Course program.
“Lots of good things,” said Biff Lathrop, the SCGA’s executive director. “The state of the game in South Carolina is very good. All the organizations, professionals and amateurs are working with the same goal of bolstering the game, and I’m confident we’re doing that. I’m looking forward to a bright future.”
Looking ahead:
▪ Dustin Johnson (Columbia/Coastal Carolina), ranked fifth in the world, will again headline the Palmetto State contingent on the PGA Tour. Coming off September knee surgery, he played in the President’s Cup, then tied for seventh in the Tournament of Champions. He owns 20 career PGA Tour wins.
▪ Kevin Kisner (Aiken) is 33rd in the world, and his victory in the World Golf Championship’s 2019 Match Play assures him of spots in the majors and WGC events. Former USC star Matt NeSmith earned his Tour card, giving the Palmetto State 16 players with status in golf’s major league.
▪ On the LPGA Tour, Mi Hyang Lee (Blythewood resident) heads the South Carolina connections after climbing to No. 49 in the Rolex world rankings. Austin Ernst (Seneca), Nanna Madsen (USC), Sarah Schmelzel (USC) and Lauren Stephenson (Lexington) are inside the top 120 on the priority list.
Elsewhere in the state golf world . . .
▪ The Columbia Golf Ball, a fund-raiser for the South Carolina Junior Golf Foundation, will be held at the USC Alumni Center for the second straight year on Thursday of Masters’ week. ... The SCJGA is finalizing plans for an Upstate Golf Ball in the Greenville area. ... Major SCGA championships will be played at Columbia CC (Amateur), Florence CC (Mid-Amateur), Tradition at Pawleys Island (Junior) and Carolina CC in Spartanburg (Senior). ... The WSCGA will stage majors at Columbia CC (Amateur), Cobblestone Park (Open), Fort Jackson GC (Junior) and Mt. Vintage in North Augusta (Senior). ... Competition in both the World Long Drive and Drive, Chip and Putt programs will again be held at Par Tee Golf Center and Fort Jackson GC.
“Like we did with the rules upgrades last year, we are educating golfers on the changes in the handicap system now,” Lathrop said. “We are also modernizing our One-Day Series with everything from registration to tee times being done digitally.
“We’re going to be busy, and that’s a good thing. This is going to be an exciting year.”
Chip shots. At Golf Day, Jordan Sease (Lexington) received the SCGA player of the year award, Eddie Hargett picked up the top senior prize, and Kevin King (Bluffton) and Mike Lawrence (Anderson) were inducted into the State Golf Hall of Fame. ... Gene Zeigler (Florence), a high school junior who has committed to play at South Carolina, earned the Carolina Golf Association’s junior boys’ player of the year award. Jayne Pardus (Mount Pleasant) captured the senior women’s POY prize. ... Slew Ai Lim, an All-American and the SEC’s woman golfer of the year in 1995, will represent USC in the 2020 Women’s Legends Class. ... The Heritage Classic Foundation has discontinued the prestigious Players Amateur tourney after 20 years in order to focus on operation of the PGA Tour’s RBC Heritage.