PINEHURST, N.C. – The Men's Golf Championships concluded in Pinehurst after two days and 36 holes of competition. An individual champions and a team champion was crowned in each of the four classifications.
4A: Beechler holds off Sharpstene, Pinecrest rises to claim third straight
A.J. Beechler from Pinecrest entered day two’s final round with a one-shot lead over a group of three players. His steady hand in the final round led him to match his first round score of 4-under, 68, while posting just one bogey on the day. The lone blemish on the round came on the 415-yard, par-4, seventeenth hole, dropping him to just a one-shot lead going into the final hole.
Beechler was pressured all day by T.C. Roberson’s Matt Sharpstene who started out in the group just one shot behind the leader. Sharpstene opened with a bogey on the par-4 first hole, but responded with birdies on four of his next five holes, dropping his score to 6-under for the tournament. He then carded an eagle, 3, on the 500-yard, par-5, tenth to get to 8-under before dropping a shot with a bogey on the final hole of the day.
Pinecrest found themselves down by a single shot to Green Hope heading into the final round, with Myers Park nipping on their heels in third. Beechler’s individual title and a 1-under tournament score by Ben Crow helped lift the Patriots squad to a 2-over team score, 578, for the tournament. Pinecrest claimed the school’s fifth team title in men’s golf and their third consecutive title.
Green Hope finished second just 13 shots back at 15-over. The Falcons were paced by Jack Massei’s 2-under, 142, for the tournament. Myers Park was just two shots behind the Falcons, finishing in third, led by Luke Hackworth’s 2-over, 146.
4A Championship Results (Text)
4A Championship Tournament Scoring Link
3A: Fike’s Boyette grabs title with 2-under final day, Marvin Ridge earns first Men’s team title
Fike’s Bryson Boyette began the day in a three-way tie for second, one shot back of South Rowan’s Parker Chavis for the tournament lead. By the end of the final round, Boyette drained six birdies, four of them on the back-nine, on his way to a 2-under, 70, on the final day. Boyette’s 70 brought him to 1-under for the tournament and put him two shots ahead of Chavis and Dalton Mauldin who tied for second at 1-over, 145.
Marvin Ridge rallied from three shots down after day one to post a 12-over final round total giving the Mavericks a 39-over, 615, on the tournament. The Mavericks saw four individuals card rounds of 5-over or better on the tournament’s final day at Foxfire Resort. Zach Pardoll carded a 1-over par round on day two to finish at 4-over for the tournament in fourth place to lead the Marvin Ridge contingent who claimed their first Men’s Golf Team State Championship.
Connor Targonski put up a 2-over, 74, on day two for Marvin Ridge, finishing at 11-over for the event. Zack Swanson and Tyler Haines also went low for the Mavericks posting day two scores of 4-over and 5-over respectively. Burlington Williams nipped the day one team leaders, Tuscola, by three shots as Williams was led by Garrett Clark who finished the tournament at 5-over par.
3A Championship Results (Text)
3A Championship Tournament Scoring Link
2A: Wilkes Central goes back-to-back, McNeely storms to individual title
Wilkes Central earned the school’s second straight Men’s Golf Championship posting a combined 37-over, 613, for the squad’s two-day total. They were led by Chandler Metz who finished tied for second in the individual event at 6-over, 150. He carded a 1-over par 73 on the final day of the tournament, tied for the second-best round of the day. His round included three birdies and four bogeys on the Beacon Ridge Country Club layout.
Wilkes Central also got solid performances from Quinton Metz and Zach Caudill who each finished the tournament at 10-over, 154, in a six-way tie for fifth. Lake Norman Charter was the nearest team competitor finishing the tournament in second with a score of 645, or 69-over. They were led by Jacob Rowland who carded a 12-over, 156, for the event. South Stokes was a single shot behind Lake Norman Charter in third and were paced by Tanner Bibey who finished 10-over, in a tie for fifth.
Logan McNeely earned the individual title, firing a 2-under, 70, to finish the tournament at 1-over par, 145. McNeely had five bogeys on the day, cancelling those with five birdies. His low number on the day came on the 375-yard par-4 eighth hole where he knocked in for eagle. Last year’s champion and overnight leader, Justin Emmons from Providence Grove, finished tied for second after posting a 5-over, 77, on day two to end at 6-over par.
2A Championship Results (Text)
2A Championship Tournament Scoring Link
1A: Union Academy’s Nick Smith leads wire-to-wire in win, Lincoln Charter takes first team title
The day one leader, Nick Smith from Union Academy, at the Country Club of Whispering Pines posted an even-par round of 72 on the final day to claim the individual honors at the 1A Men’s Golf Championship. Smith followed up a solid 1-over par round on the opening day with a three birdie and three bogey final round to finish two shots in front of Dylon Wooten from Alleghany. Wooten also posted an even-par second round.
Lincoln Charter out ran Community School of Davidson by 12 shots to win the team competition and claim the school’s first Men’s Golf State Championship. Lincoln Charter was led by Justin Morgan who fired a 5-over, 149, on his way to a third place finish in the tournament. They also saw William Crook turn in a 9-over, 153, to finish ninth.
