GA – SC Team Matches – Round One Results
Event: 44th Annual Georgia-South Carolina Junior Team Matches
Playing dates: July 19-20, 2019
Tournament site: Country Club of Spartanburg – Spartanburg, SC
South Carolina Team Takes Lead Over Georgia After Day One
The first round of the 44th annual Georgia-South Carolina Junior Team Matches went in favor of the home team as the S.C. squad won five of eight matches at the Country Club of Spartanburg. The players experienced humid and hot conditions as a high pressure system has stalled over the eastern half of the U.S. However, some lopsided matches and some close calls treated guests and participants alike for the 2019 version of the longest running interstate junior matches in the country.
The lead-off match featured one of the closely contested pairings of the day as Jackson Buchanan of Dacula, GA, who led most of the morning, held off South Carolina’s Gene Zeigler (Florence) taking a one-up advantage finishing on the dramatic 18th finishing hole. Daniel Brasington (Woodruff, SC) continued his solid performances in match play formats earning a point over Luke Koenig (Statham, GA) 5&4. Shaun Cook (Peachtree Corners, GA) struck back for the Georgia team defeating Brandon Masters (Piedmont, SC) 4&2. In another close match, Blythewood, S.C.’s Matthew Hutto overcame some struggles against the heat and earned a one-up win on the 18th green over Suwanee, GA’s Myles Jones. Through the first half of the Matches things were all tied up.
From that point on, team South Carolina earned three of the possible four remaining points as Zachary Reuland (Rock Hill), Trey Crenshaw (Lancaster) and Austin Scott (Daniel Island) all won their Matches. Scott, recent SCGA Junior Champion drained a five-foot birdie to match that of Jack Boltja (Thomasville, GA) and won his match one-up. Beck Burnette, who played on the Georgia team in 2017 defeated Rock Hill’s Manning Sloop 5&4 to earn the sole point for his team in the second half of the Match line-up.
Forty-four years ago, Pete Cox of the Georgia State Golf Association and Charles Rountree, Jr. of the South Carolina Golf Association formalized the idea of the GA - SC team matches. The winning team has their victory inscribed on the beautiful Rountree - Cox trophy that was donated by the Rountree family. Every junior golfer that has participated in the 44-year-old competition will find his name on the trophy with his teammates. The Georgia teams have produced 24 victories as compared to the 15 for the SC teams and four ties. Last year’s event held at The Landings Club – Deer Creek Course in Savannah, GA saw the South Carolina squad earn their second victory in a row and the first non-tie in the state of Georgia since 2008.
Teams from both states were selected by accepting the top eight finishers at each state's Junior Championship. Friday's matches started at 8:00 a.m. and will also begin at 8:00 a.m. on Saturday morning. It should also be noted that the Carolina’s Golf Course Superintendents Association, the Georgia Chapter of the Golf Course Superintendents Association, and Titleist are proud supporters of the Georgia- South Carolina Junior Challenge Matches.
First Round - Friday, July 19
Team SC – 5, Team GA – 3
8:00 a.m. – Jackson Buchanan (Dacula, GA) 1Up Gene Zeigler (Florence, SC)
8:09 a.m. – Daniel Brasington (Woodruff, SC) 5&4 Luke Koenig (Statham, GA)
8:18 a.m. – Shaun Cook (Peachtree Corners, GA) 4&2 Brandon Masters (Piedmont, SC)
8:27 a.m. – Matthew Hutto (Blythewood, SC) 1Up Myles Jones (Suwanee, GA)
8:36 a.m. – Zach Reuland (Rock Hill, SC) 4&3 Jay Spivey (Macon, GA)
8:45 a.m. – Beck Burnette (Blairsville, GA) 5&4 Manning Sloop (Rock Hill, SC)
8:54 a.m. – Trey Crenshaw (Lancaster, SC) 4&3 Brock Hoover (Woodstock, GA)
9:03 a.m. – Austin Scott (Daniel Island, SC) 1Up Jack Boltja (Thomasville, GA)
