S.C. pros-Best for Youth Golfers To Learn

S.C. pros-Best for Youth Golfers To Learn

The South Carolina Golf Association renewed its emphasis on junior golf in the mid-1990s, and Warren started the parade of graduates who have made their mark in the college and professional ranks. The difference between then and now is amazing, he said.

“When I transferred (from Hammond) to A.C. Flora in the ninth grade, Flora didn’t even have a golf team and we struggled to have enough to How To Solve Putting Problems play (team matches),” Warren said after posing for pictures with current members of the Falcons’ teams. “Now, they have won at least three state championships.”Meanwhile, Jonathan Byrd posed for pictures with members of the teams at his alma mater, Spring Valley.Alumni of the state junior program have won 14 PGA Tour tournaments in recent years, and SCGA executive director Happ Lathrop never tires of ticking off accomplishments that include pro titles and berths on national teams.“Take those three, and any one of them could be the poster boy for junior golf in the state,” he said. “What all the players have done shows what can happen in our program.”

The state’s high school and college teams grow stronger each year, and more and more South Carolina players are making their mark in the pro ranks. That will continue, Warren predicted.

The kids who gathered at the Fairway Outreach facility at Northwoods Golf Club for a clinic Monday afternoon received a special treat: a ton of great game-improvement advice from three PGA Tour pros.The event, the kickoff of the second annual Jim Byrd Memorial Tournament, was special for the instructors, too. Lucas Glover (2009 U.S. Open champion), Charles Warren (1997 NCAA champion) and Jonathan Byrd (five-time winner on the Tour) were giving back to junior golf in South Carolina — the place where their treks to the game’s major leagues started.