The Wyndham Championship is one of the PGA Tour's most historic events. Now contested annually at Sedgefield Country Club in Greensboro, North Carolina, the Wyndham was founded in 1938 as the Greater Greensboro Open. Eight decades of rich history later, the popular Triad tournament is the sixth-oldest event on the PGA Tour, excluding the major championships.

In its early years, the tournament alternated between two Greensboro-area clubs: Starmount Forest Country Club and the current home course at Sedgefield. In 2008 — after 31 years at Forest Oaks Country Club — it moved back to Sedgefield. The former GGO enjoys a storied history and an impressive list of winners such as Sam Snead, Byron Nelson, Ben Hogan, Gary Player and Seve Ballesteros. A whopping 18 former champions are members of the World Golf Hall of Fame.

In 2010, the Wyndham Championship received a significant boost when McConnell Golf purchased Sedgefield Country Club, helping to spearhead a new decade of excellence during which the Wyndham has truly hit its stride. McConnell Golf acquired Sedgefield with the intention of restoring the club to its original glory. Several major upgrades were made prior to the 2011 Wyndham, while others have been made in subsequent years, including construction of the “Wall of Champions” overlooking the 9th green.

In 2011, for the 16th time in tournament history, the Wyndham produced a popular first-time winner in Raleigh native and Wake Forest University alumnus Webb Simpson, who would then go on to win the 2012 U.S. Open Championship. “There’s no way I would have won the U.S. Open if I hadn’t won at Sedgefield,” Simpson would later say. Following Simpson’s victory in 2011, McConnell Golf President/CEO John McConnell decided to convert Sedgefield’s green complexes to Bermuda grass, a significant investment and improvement. “With Bermuda greens, Sedgefield becomes one of the great golf courses on the PGA Tour,” according to Simpson.

Former champion Davis Love III was equally pleased about the decision.“Changing the Sedgefield greens to Bermuda grass is great news for the members at Sedgefield, but it’s also great for the Wyndham,” said Love. “The new greens allow the course to be played the way Donald Ross intended most of the year.”

Bobby Long, chairman of the Piedmont Triad Charitable Foundation Board of Directors, agreed. “People tend to think the greens should be soft so a player can scream a low 3-iron into a green and have it stick, but that is not what Donald Ross had in mind when he designed this golf course.”

Every aspect of the club has been elevated in the past 10 years, according to Tournament Director Mark Brazil, from the golf course to the clubhouse to the “first-class” activities building.

“And all the little touches around the golf course — the tee boxes, the beautiful landscaping, the benches and the bridges — McConnell Golf’s just done it right,” Brazil said. “Bobby Long always talks about how we need an A++
course. Well, we’ve really got that now.”

On those new greens in 2012, with a fill-in caddie carrying his bag, future Masters champion Sergio Garcia claimed a two-stroke Monday win in a water-logged Wyndham Championship for his first victory on tour since the 2008 Players
Championship. The enigmatic Spanish sensation has always enjoyed Sedgefield and had staged some near-misses in years past — including squandered opportunities to win the Nike Greensboro Open there in 1998 and the Wyndham
Championship in 2009. Finally, it all came together for Garcia, who carved up Sedgefield with rounds of 67-63-66-66 to finish at 18 under.

Afterward, all anyone could talk about were Sedgefield’s new green complexes. “I was surprised how quick [the greens] were,” Garcia said. “Even after all the rain. My first three putts — I couldn’t believe it. They did an awesome job getting the course [ready]. The course looked better than it’s ever looked.”

Two-time major champion John Daly, who made his first trip to Greensboro in 1991, described the greens as perfect. “They’re beautiful, awesome,” he said. “The greens are perfect,” echoed future U.S. Open champion Gary Woodland. “They’re rolling great. You get above the hole, and they’re lightning fast. Keep it below the hole, you can make a putt.”

In 2013, a pair of future Masters champions, Patrick Reed and Jordan Spieth, battled down the stretch, with Reed capturing a sudden-death playoff on the second extra hole. Both players parred the first playoff hole at No. 18 when Spieth rolled in a 30-foot effort for par while Reed missed his birdie putt. On the second playoff hole, No. 10, Reed played a miraculous second shot from the trees on the right side of the fairway to 7 feet with Spieth already safely on the green. Spieth narrowly missed his birdie putt and posted a par. Reed converted his uphill putt for birdie to earn his first PGA Tour victory at 23 years of age.

The Wyndham Championship celebrated its 75th anniversary in 2014. Former champions Rocco Mediate (1993 and 2002) and Davis Love III (1992 and 2006) played in the tournament, while Bob Goalby (1958), Dow Finsterwald (1959) and Lanny Wadkins (1983) made special appearances. Weldon Fields, a tournament volunteer at the inaugural Greater Greensboro Open in 1938, returned shortly after his 100th birthday to take part in the festivities.
The tournament field included 21 major championship winners and multiple international stars like World Golf Hall of Famer Ernie Els.

Colombian golfer Camilo Villegas captured that historic 2014 tournament, becoming the third international golfer in the previous five years to win the Wyndham.

More tournament history was made a year later, when Love won his third Sam Snead Cup — 28 years after his inaugural PGA Tour win in 1987.

Only the man for whom the trophy is named has more victories — eight — at the event.

“[Winning] means a lot here at Greensboro,” said an emotional Love.

In 2015 — the first time Tiger Woods played the Wyndham — the overall economic impact of the “Tiger Effect” on the Triad was staggering. When Woods committed to the event, organizers immediately printed 49,000 extra tickets. While a typical tournament would have, at best, 90,000 people for the week, in 2015 more than 143,000 spectators came
through the gates.

Woods told John McConnell — one of his partners during the Pro-Am, along with Los Angeles Clippers superstar Chris Paul — that Sedgefield’s greens were the best he played all year.

“The people are just absolutely incredible,” Woods said, after his final round 70 left him four strokes behind Love and tied for 10th. “The support that they showed, to come out in droves like this … it was very special playing in front of them.”

In 2017, Swedish golfer Henrik Stenson captured the Wyndham Championship and became the tournament’s 19th international winner. Stenson entered the tournament ranked ninth in the Official World Golf Rankings and moved to sixth with the win — setting the tournament scoring mark at 22-under par.

Two years later, bolstered by a supportive throng of family, friends and fellow Western Carolina University alumni, Hickory born-and-bred J.T. Poston made some Wyndham history of his own, wrapping up a bogey-free week by firing a scorching, Sunday 62 to hold off Simpson by a stroke. Poston’s performance equaled the lowest mark for a final round in tournament history, set by Love at Forest Oaks Country Club in 1992. He became the fifth North Carolina native
to win the tournament in its 80-year history, joining Raymond Floyd, Scott Hoch, Love and Simpson.

“I haven’t had that many bogey-free rounds this year,” Poston said, following his final-round fireworks at Sedgefield. “To be able to do four in a row is pretty special, and finish it off with a 62 on Sunday is pretty awesome. To be able to do it here in North Carolina with a lot of friends and family, I don’t think I could have drawn it up any better.”

The Wyndham Championship has benefited from recent PGA Tour calendar changes. Three years ago, the tour unveiled a revamped tournament schedule highlighted by significant championships every month, all culminating with the FedExCup Playoffs in August.

The Wyndham Championship now holds an important position on the PGA Tour schedule, as it represents the final opportunity for some players to move into the top 125, thus securing exempt status for the following season and qualifying for the FedExCup, while those already qualified for the playoffs can improve their seeding.

If there’s any tournament on the PGA Tour where prize money takes a backseat, it’s the Wyndham. As the schedule’s final regular-season event, players aren’t as concerned about picking up a few extra grand coming down the Sunday stretch. Instead, they’re thinking about earning a few additional FedExCup points.

There’s also the recently implemented $10 million Wyndham Rewards payout awaiting the FedExCup Top 10 following the Wyndham Championship. Last year, Justin Thomas had already claimed the $2 million top payout, but Simpson and Sungjae Im entered the final week with a shot at the $1.5 million second-place bonus.

In 2020, with no paying spectators, no TV towers or grandstands lining Sedgefield’s greens and fairways, the 81st Wyndham Championship was a visibly different affair. Yet in many ways, the COVID-19 edition of the Triad’s long-running event ranked among its most memorable. Four former World No. 1s, including Brooks Koepka and Spieth, and plenty of impressive international talent arrived for the final week of the Tour’s regular season. As always, there was plenty of local representation. Three North Carolina natives — 2011 Wyndham champion Simpson, up-and-coming
talent Doc Redman and fan favorite Harold Varner III — all were in the mix late Sunday afternoon.

In the end, the 2020 Wyndham Championship teed up one of the most exciting duels in recent tournament memory. The dark-horse journeyman, a 42-year-old former club pro named Jim Herman, held off familiar Wyndham contender Billy Horschel and a host of others down the stretch in a thrill-a-minute finish. Herman and Horschel traded punches
throughout a gripping afternoon. Herman backed up a career-best 61 on Saturday with a final round 7-under 63. His weekend total of 124 matched the lowest final 36-hole score by a winner in PGA Tour history. 

Horschel closed with a 65 — the 23rd consecutive round of par or better at Sedgefield for the 2014 FedExCup champion. The tournament wasn’t decided until Horschel’s final chance to tie on the 72nd hole, an 8-foot birdie putt, slid left of the cup. Third-round leader and 2016 Wyndham champion Si Woo Kim shot 70 to tie for third at 18 under with Simpson (65), Redman (68) and Kevin Kisner (64).

More than anyone, Herman took advantage of Sedgefield’s flawless Bermuda green complexes, which have become among the most popular on Tour. He drained 444 feet of putts for the week, which equates to making a 6-footer on every hole. He gained a Herculean 6-plus strokes on the field by deftly employing his Bettinardi Inovai 5.0 Tour mallet
nicknamed “The Hermanator.”

So many golfers praise Sedgefield Country Club, the Wyndham Championship and the Triad in general.

“Greensboro will always be a special place to me,” said two-time Wyndham champ Brandt Snedeker, who shot 59 in winning the 2018 event. “I think most of the guys love coming here because it rewards good tee balls and gives you the opportunity to make birdies. And there’s only two par 5s. Everybody in the field can reach them, so distance here is not an overriding factor. It’s kind of nice to come to a place and know you can make some birdies and get some
good stuff going.”

Simpson, who hasn’t missed a weekend at Sedgefield since 2009, adores the Wyndham so much he named one of his daughters after the event. “I love the holes,” Simpson said of Ross’s old-school, rolling parkland layout. “I love the shot shapes … I’ve had some good finishes here. My first win here. I’m close to home where I grew up, close to where I live now and obviously a short drive to where I went to college, so I love being here.”

A sentiment that’s shared by many.

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To be sure, earning a spot in golf’s national championship is no easy proposition. There is a plethora of qualifying criteria players need to meet to play in a U.S. Open, such as winning tournaments or moving up the Official World Golf Ranking. Those still finding themselves on the outside looking in must rely on the gauntlet that is U.S. Open Final Qualifying … a.k.a. “Golf’s Longest Day.”

On that day in 2021, several household names punched their tickets to Torrey Pines and this week’s 121st U.S. Open, while others weren’t so lucky. Among the big names who tried, but came up short at the U.S. Open Final Qualifying — Rickie Fowler, Keegan Bradley, Jason Day, Brandt Snedeker and Lucas Glover, among others.

However, at Torrey Pines this week, there will be 11 U.S. Open competitors who have battled during the past month on McConnell Golf venues, either during the Korn Ferry Tour’s Visit Knoxville Open (May 13-16) at Holston Hills Country Club or the REX Hospital Open (June 3-6) at The Country Club of Wakefield Plantation.

Greyson Sigg, a 26-year-old University of Georgia product, who opened with a 61 and fired a final-round 66 to claim his first professional win at Holston Hills, will be teeing it up at Torrey Pines on Thursday and Friday (and hopefully during the weekend) after qualifying in Atlanta, Georgia. Sigg competed at both McConnell Golf venues this summer, as did fellow Atlanta qualifiers Hayden Buckley and Rick Lamb.

In addition to the other eight qualifiers from various courses around the country, former McConnell Golf Junior Scholarship recipient Akshay Bhatia, 19, continued to prove he’s a real deal “touring professional” by securing his spot at this week’s U.S. Open after a 3-for-1 playoff at the Hilton Head Island, South Carolina sectional qualifier.

(Phil) Mickelson recently played a practice round with Bhatia, who was born a few months before the veteran recorded his second runner-up finish in the U.S. Open in 2002, although it’s unclear whose brain was being picked. “He has as many questions for me as I have for him,” said Mickelson. “I’m curious how he does things too because he’s got a lot of clubhead speed, a lot of strength, a lot of shot making. He might ask me a few things on chipping. I might ask him a few things on clubs."

For McConnell Golf members, here are some lesser-known names to cheer for this week:

Dallas, Texas

• Eric Cole (Visit Knoxville Open + REX Hospital Open)
• Paul Barjon (REX Hospital Open)

Jupiter, Florida

• Fabian Gomez (REX Hospital Open)

Atlanta, Georgia

• Hayden Buckley (Visit Knoxville Open + REX Hospital Open)
• Greyson Sigg (Visit Knoxville Open + REX Hospital Open) – *won at Holston Hills CC
• Rick Lamb (Visit Knoxville Open + REX Hospital Open)

Rockville, Maryland

• Taylor Pendrith (Visit Knoxville Open + REX Hospital Open)
• Dylan Wu (REX Hospital Open)

Purchase, New York

• Cameron Young (REX Hospital Open)
• Andy Pope (Visit Knoxville Open + REX Hospital Open)
• Zach Zaback (Visit Knoxville Open)

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Royalty siblings earn McConnell Golf Scholarships for Golf & Tennis

In 2020, Keenan and Sierra Royalty became the first pair of siblings to earn McConnell Golf Scholarships.

Keenan, a 16-year-old high school sophomore, is one of the state’s most accomplished junior golfers, having captured numerous local, state and regional titles since he began competing when he was just five years old. In May, Keenan was awarded a McConnell Golf Scholarship.

Four months later, his 14-year-old sister, Sierra – an eighth-grade honors student at Wakefield Middle School – received a McConnell Golf Tennis Scholarship. Sierra, who is currently ranked 68th in the Southeast, recently won a USTA Level 4 tournament in Kinston, North Carolina; then beat the No. 1 seed in a Level 4 tournament in Snow Hill, North Carolina, catapulting her 14 spots higher in the rankings.  

The McConnell Golf Scholarship program is designed to offer instruction, practice and playing opportunities to young golfers and tennis players who may not have the financial means to practice at first-class facilities. To qualify, certain criteria must be met, including level of talent, need and commitment — as well as proven dedication and value to the future of the sport.

Keenan and Sierra hail from an athletic lineage. Their father, Doug, was drafted by the Houston Astros and pitched in the minor leagues for a couple years. One of their brothers, Alex, is a pitcher within the Cleveland Indians organization, while their oldest brother, Paul, played baseball at Wakefield High School.

Keenan says coming from an athletic family had an important influence on his approach to golf.

“I'm very competitive when it comes to my family, so that has helped me aim to become the best I can be at golf,” he says. “I’m very motivated to become the most accomplished of all of us.”

Keenan has navigated quite a journey. By the time he was just a year old, he was walking and swinging a plastic, 18-inch golf club. His parents gave him golf balls, but Keenan quickly began hitting them so well that he was breaking things in the house.

He then progressed to a golf mat outside the front door, and was quickly able to hit a ball across the cul-de-sac and close to the neighbors’ house. So, his parents bought a net.

“We had a park at the end of our street, so we would take Keenan there to hit golf balls,” recalls his mother, Karen. “All the neighbors knew him, and loved to see him tote a golf bag bigger than he was.”  

Keenan’s first tournaments were with U.S. Kids Golf and his parents both caddied for him. When he turned 11, he began to play on a wide variety of state and regional tours.

His parents decided to pull Keenan out of public school in seventh grade, so he could incorporate more golf time into his schedule.

 “Homeschool has been the best way to budget his time. He currently attends homeschool classes at New Life Camp in Raleigh one day per week, then studies at home or on the road. He maintains straight As and is finding a great balance,” Karen says.

When Keenan was in sixth grade, his feet began to swell when walking long golf courses. He learned that each of his feet had an extra bone that needed to be removed — meaning 2016 became a long year, including foot surgeries and no golf.

Now, Keenan’s true talent has begun to shine through.  

In 2020, when golf tournaments were on hold, Keenan spent all day, every day on the practice range. He also spent time on the putting and chipping greens, while playing as many holes as possible from sunup to sundown.

Keenan is coached by The Country Club at Wakefield Plantation’s Director of Golf Adam McLaughlin, whose expertise has been instrumental to his development. Keenan has also met several PGA professionals who practice at Wakefield — and often ask Keenan to join them in a putting contest — along with numerous other high school golfers, with whom he practices and plays tournaments.  

“Since becoming a McConnell Golf Scholar, Keenan has made some drastic improvement in his game as shown in the results over the past few months,” says McLaughlin. “I’ve been impressed with his work ethic and attitude during the time that I’ve spent coaching him. Keenan is a humble young man with excellent manners. He exemplifies the characteristics that we all look for in junior golfers. I expect big things from him over the next few years.”

Since August 2020, Keenan has consistently finished in the Top four from among nearly 150 high school boys, other than two tournaments where he placed 11th and 18th. He plans to not only play collegiate golf, but also work toward competing on the PGA Tour.

“The McConnell Golf Scholarship has seriously taken my entire game to a new level,” Keenan says. “Since starting, I’ve dropped my state ranking about 125 placements, and my national ranking by more than 700 placements. I’ve competed in countless tournaments since then, and I’ve consistently been finishing around the top. The scholarship is the greatest thing that has ever happened to my golf game.” 

The youngest Royalty sibling, Sierra, “has always been an overachiever,” says her mother. “(Vice president) of student council and now president of the Beta Club, which is an all-A club in middle school. She is also involved in our church and volunteering in the community, prior to COVID.”  

Sierra started competing in sports at age five, and tennis became her passion fairly quickly.  

“At first, I experimented with different sports and activities such as dance, gymnastics and tennis, and I did all of them for quite some time,” she says. “But tennis was the sport and activity that I loved doing the most… At around eight years old, I stopped doing gymnastics and ever since then, tennis is the only sport I’ve really done and enjoyed.”

Before she was awarded a tennis scholarship in September 2020, Sierra was practicing with the tennis coach at NC State. When NC State closed due to COVID-19, Sierra would hit with her father in the street or any tennis courts they could find, until she was able to play at The Country Club at Wakefield.  

Now she attends every clinic three days a week with high school players at The Country Club at Wakefield Plantation. She also takes private lessons with McConnell Golf’s Corporate Director of Tennis, Kyle Thortsen, who is based at Wakefield.

“Kyle has helped Sierra’s game tremendously, and she absolutely loves playing with his group. Andrew Hodges is the other pro tennis coach who works with Kyle, and he has helped boost Sierra’s playing level,” her mother says.  

“Our first opportunity to get to know Sierra was from a Summer High Performance tennis camp that was being held at Wakefield Plantation,” says Thortsen. “From the start of camp, it was easy to see that this young lady was all business once she stepped inside of the gates. From conditioning to drills, Sierra gives us 100 percent effort and focus every time. There’s no doubt that her determination and want-to-learn attitude will take her to great heights, on and off the tennis court.”

Sierra aspires to play collegiate and professional tennis one day — and believes her McConnell Golf Tennis Scholarship will provide just the boost she needs.

“My goal would be to have a good education, of course, and I would love to take tennis into my future,” Sierra said. “The McConnell Scholarship has definitely made me want to work and train harder. Knowing how much it has already helped me, and how much more it will help me, makes me excited and eager to see what my future in tennis will be like.”

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Founded in 2007, Folds of Honor's mission is to provide educational scholarships to the spouses and children of America’s fallen and disabled service members. Their motto says it best: Honor their Sacrifice. Educate their Legacy.

To display McConnell Golf’s commitment to these families who have sacrificed so much for our freedoms, members of the golf professional staff at each of our properties will play a golf marathon from sun-up until sun-down beginning on Tuesday, June 1, and on select dates in June and July. Each golf professional has committed to playing at least 100 holes!

To learn more about what your club is doing to get involved and raise money for Folds of Honor, click on your club's link from the list below.

Brook Valley Country Club (June 1)

The Cardinal by Pete Dye (June 1)

Country Club of Asheville (June 1)

Grande Dunes Members Club (June 21)

Holston Hills Country Club (June 1)

Musgrove Mill Golf Club (June 15)

Old North State Club (June 1)

Porters Neck Country Club (June 1)

Providence Country Club (June 1)

Raleigh Country Club (June 1)

Raleigh Golf Association (June 14)

The Reserve Golf Club (June 1)

Sedgefield Country Club (June 1)

Treyburn Country Club (June 7)

The Water's Edge Golf Club (June 1)

The Country Club at Wakefield Plantation (July 5)

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We know that rankings — particularly golf course rankings — can be extremely subjective. But it’s always nice to be considered among the “Best of” and in the 2021-22 Golf Digest state-by-state rankings, several McConnell Golf courses were recognized as among the best in state.

In Tennessee, the magnificent Donald Ross layout at Holston Hills Country Club in Knoxville, which recently played host to the Korn Ferry Tour’s Visit Knoxville Open, was ranked No. 6 in the state by Golf Digest. Click here to view the full list.

In South Carolina, Arnold Palmer’s spectacular design at Musgrove Mill Golf Club in Clinton was tapped as the state’s 19^th best layout. Click here to view the full list.

Last but certainly not least, in North Carolina, Sedgefield Country Club in Greensboro was ranked No. 18 in the state, Old North State Club in New London was ranked No. 24, while Treyburn Country Club in Durham was ranked No. 30. Click here to view the full list.

Of course, as we mentioned, golf course rankings are subjective. The North Carolina Golf Panel ranks all 10 of McConnell Golf’s North Carolina courses in the state’s top 100, including a trio of layouts — Old North State, Sedgfield Country Club and Raleigh Country Club — rated among the state’s top 20. Click here to view the full list. In South Carolina, the state panelists rank “The Mill” high every year, and also include Greg Norman’s memorable design at The Reserve Golf Club on Pawleys Island.

McConnell Golf was built upon the concept of “pure golf for the true golfer,” focusing on enhancing both the individual club’s and its company’s overall membership value. The McConnell Golf portfolio throughout the Carolinas, Tennessee and now Virginia includes courses designed by Ross, Fazio and Palmer, as well as other architectural legends Pete Dye, Greg Norman, Hale Irwin and Ellis Maples.

McConnell Golf is the only individual golf course proprietor in the world that owns four Ross-designed courses. This includes Greensboro’s Sedgefield Country Club, the longtime home of the PGA Tour’s Wyndham Championship.

“McConnell Golf is a company that has set its vision on building clubs of the future,” said McConnell Golf Chief Operating Officer Christian Anastasiadis. “We see things differently than other clubs or operators, focusing on the little nuances that make a trip to the club memorable for the customer.”

To arrive at its ranking of “America's 100 Greatest Golf Courses,” as well as the “Best Golf Courses in Each State,” the Golf Digest panelists play and score courses on the eight criteria below:

SHOT OPTIONS

How well does the course present a variety of options involving risks and rewards and require a wide range of shots?

CHALLENGE

How challenging, while still being fair, is the course for a typical scratch golfer playing from the tees designated as back tees for everyday play (not from seldom-used championship tees)?

LAYOUT VARIETY

How varied is the physical layout of the course in terms of differing lengths (long, medium and short Par 3s, 4s and 5s), configurations (straight holes, doglegs left and right), hazard placements, green shapes and green contours?

DISTINCTIVENESS

How individual is each hole when compared to all others on this course?

AESTHETICS

How well do the scenic values of the course add to the pleasure of a round?

CONDITIONING

How firm, fast and rolling were the fairways? How firm yet receptive were the greens? How true were the roll of putts on the day you played the course?

CHARACTER

How well does the course design exude ingenuity and uniqueness and possess profound characteristics that you would consider outstanding for its era?

FUN

How enjoyable for all levels of golfers would this course be to play on a regular basis? NOTE: Golf Digest's Fun category was introduced two years ago, so Golf Digest does not have enough data to use in the calculations of 100 Greatest rankings.

To arrive at a course’s final score, the magazine totals its averages in the seven categories, doubling Shot Options. A course needs 75 evaluations over the past 10 years to be eligible for America's 100 Greatest and the Second 100 Greatest.

“Our courses continue to merge history, beauty and opportunity for our avid golfing membership and their guests,” said McConnell Golf President & CEO John McConnell. “With the enhancements made at Raleigh Country Club and new projects planned at other McConnell Golf courses, I am proud of what we have accomplished in the past year and eager to see how the rankings play out in the future.”

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Once is Not Enough for Liam King

Junior golfer shoots two holes-in-one in 2020

It wasn’t all bad – indeed, 2020 was a banner year for Wakefield Plantation junior golfer Liam King.

On January 1, 2020, Liam started the year with a hole-in-one on #8 at Camelback Golf Club in Scottsdale, Arizona. From 113 yards out, the then-8-year-old struck the ball with his 3-wood for his first-ever ace. However, once was not enough for young Liam. While playing in the Wakefield Plantation Junior Club Championship on Sunday, October 18, Liam hit his second hole-in-one on #11 with his 4-hybrid from 127 yards out.

In addition to his two aces, Liam also qualified for and played in the U.S. Kids World Championship in Pinehurst last summer. This 9-year-old had a great golf season and we look forward to many more ahead from Liam!

 

2020 McConnell Golf Hole-in-One Club

Hitting a hole-in-one is a special feat for golfers of all ages. The chances of an average PGA Tour player making an ace are 3,000 to 1; a low-handicapper’s chances are 5,000 to 1, and an average player’s chances are 12,000 to 1. On average overall, a hole-in-one is scored once every 3,500 golf rounds.

In 2020 alone, 124 holes-in-one were made by members at McConnell Golf properties. Nine members made two holes-in-one last year: Bob Beasley, Thomas Bonney, Stanley Griffin, Denny Hattersley, Carolyn Hopper, Tim Massie, Don Troutman, Tony Villa and Daniel Wright. Three of them made their double aces on the same hole: Carolyn Hopper on #2 at The Cardinal by Pete Dye, Tim Massie on #4 at Holston Hills, and Thomas Bonney on #16 at Sedgefield Country Club. Bob Beasley, a member at Sedgefield Country Club, made both of his holes-in-one while playing at The Cardinal; all told, 17 members made their aces while visiting other McConnell Golf clubs.

McConnell Golf’s 2020 Hole-in-One Club members – listed with their home club, hole-in-one and date they achieved it – include:

Scott Saunders, MM: #12 at Musgrove Mill (1/5)

Laurie Jennings, RES: #3 at The Reserve (1/5)

Dr. James Foster, HH: #14 at Holston Hills (1/6)

Thomas Bonney, SCC: #16 at Sedgefield (1/17)

Denny Hattersley, HH: #8 at Holston Hills (1/19)

John Zhang, PCC: #2 at Providence (1/19)

Michael Kennedy, PCC: #6 at Providence (1/26)

John Elder, HH: #8 at Holston Hills (2/5)

Patrick Reynolds, PCC: #6 at Providence (3/7)

Bill Winkler, CCA: #6 at Asheville (3/15)

Bill Paone, RES: #12 at The Reserve (3/15)

Bill Hoyle, RES: #3 at The Reserve (3/16)

Kevin O’Connor, CCA: #6 at Asheville (3/18)

Charles Capps, CCA: #13 at Asheville (3/18)

Michael Carlisto, PCC: #6 at Providence (3/20)

Becca McKinney, RCC: #14 at Wakefield (3/21)

Ted Broering, RCC: #14 at Wakefield (3/27)

Carolyn Hopper, CARD: #2 at The Cardinal (4/5)

Garrett Greene, CCA: #6 at Asheville (4/5)

Randy Kiser, ONS: #7 at Old North State (4/10)

Paul Urben, RCC: #2 at Treyburn (4/12)

Callum Chadwick, RCC: #5 at Wakefield Plantation (4/13)

Arnold Neal, CARD: #2 at The Cardinal (4/17)

Tony Villa, GD: #13 at Grande Dunes Members Club (4/17)

Don Troutman, SCC: #2 at The Cardinal (4/18)

Josh Minor, TCC: #7 at Treyburn (4/25)

Brian Seay, PCC: #6 at Providence (4/25)

Rachel Delcampo, WE: #7 at The Water’s Edge (4/26)

Scott Ruerup, RCC: #7 at Treyburn (4/26)

Wayne Dicastri, CCA: #13 at Asheville (4/26)

Bob Beasley, SCC: #2 at The Cardinal (4/29)

Kirk Patterson, SCC: #3 at Sedgefield (5/2)

Ella Perna, TCC: #3 at Treyburn (5/3)

Kathleen Riordan, WE: #7 at The Water’s Edge (5/14)

Dr. Bill Young, CCA: #6 at Asheville (5/15)

Andy White, CCA: #13 at Asheville (5/16)

Carolyn Hopper, CARD: #2 at The Cardinal (5/16)

Greg Seamster, RCC: #14 at Old North State (5/22)

Matt Lindley, RCC: #3 at Old North State (5/23)

Tom Hickman, HH: #11 at Holston Hills (5/25)

John Chaplin, PCC: #4 at Providence (5/25)

Sue Elwell, WE: #7 at The Water’s Edge (5/31)

David Acomb, RCC: #2 at Treyburn (6/6)

Curtis Collins, SCC: #16 at Sedgefield (6/6)

Drew Brown, SCC: #16 at Sedgefield (6/8)

Bob Huie, PN: #6 at Porters Neck (6/11)

Tim Massie, HH: #4 at Holston Hills (6/19)

Ron Koksal, HH: #14 at Holston Hills (6/20)

Sylvia Beale, PCC: #16 at Providence (6/26)

Jeff Gibson, BV: #5 at Brook Valley (6/27)

Mack Braxton, PN: #11 at Porters Neck (6/27)

Daniel Wright, PCC: #6 at Providence (6/28)

Stanley Griffin, HH: #11 at Holston Hills (7/1)

Jackson Slayton, PCC: #6 at Providence (7/1)

Patti Haslett, WE: #15 at The Water’s Edge (7/2)

Chris Davis, HH: #8 at Holston Hills (7/2)

Art Graepel, BV: #8 at Brook Valley (7/4)

Jack Paynter, RCC: #7 at Treyburn (7/5)

Landon Harper, RCC: #3 at Wakefield (7/10)

Bill Wolcott, CCA: #3 at Asheville (7/11)

Ed Hann, HH: #14 at Holston Hills (7/12)

Timbs Jones, HH: #14 at Holston Hills (7/12)

John Sanford, HH: #11 at Holston Hills (7/14)

Scott Krasner, PCC: #16 at Providence  (7/17)

Tony Cortiglio, PN: #11 at Porters Neck (7/18)

Avery Barnes, CARD: #12 at The Cardinal (7/23)

Wendie Waddell, WE: #7 at The Water’s Edge (7/26)

Matthew Mardjanov, PCC: #2 at Providence (7/30)

Ric Goodman, CCA: #3 at Asheville (8/2)

Dan Schisler, BV: #5 at Brook Valley (8/12)

Kevin Teeters, HH: #11 at Holston Hills (8/14)

Thomas Bonney, SCC: #16 at Sedgefield (8/20)

Tim Hansen, SCC: #8 at The Cardinal (8/22)

Jim Walsh, WE: #7 at The Water’s Edge (8/26)

Russ Lamkins, SCC: #2 at The Cardinal (8/29)

Steve Ackels, PCC: #4 at Providence (8/30)

Mike Rugg, GD: #6 at Grande Dunes Members Club (8/31)

Craig Meck, PN: #6 at Porters Neck (9/1)

Joel Book, PCC: #2 at Providence (9/1)

Lucie Tonon, PCC: #6 at Providence (9/2)

Kyle Perry, PCC: #11 at Providence (9/3)

Brady Blackburn, CCA: #13 at Asheville (9/4)

Nancy Steinauer, WP: #3 at Wakefield (9/6)

Gates Grainger, PCC: #2 at Providence  (9/6)

Genie Leonard, GD: #4 at Grande Dunes Members Club (9/7)

Tom Buis, GD: #4 at Grande Dunes Members Club (9/11)

Dave Pitaro, TCC: #13 at Treyburn (9/13)

Chris John, WE: #7 at The Water’s Edge (9/16)

Dan Sanderoff, WP: #14 at Wakefield (9/18)

Daniel Wright, PCC: #16 at Providence (9/18)

Jeff Carr, HH: #4 at Holston Hills (9/19)

Michael Maher, WP: #11 at Wakefield (9/22)

Bob Boyer, PN: #11 at Porters Neck (9/23)

Don Troutman, SCC: #7 at Sedgefield (9/23)

Jack Sowisdral, WP: #3 at Wakefield (9/27)

Rich De Ruiter, RES: #7 at The Reserve (9/27)

Ron Hickman, SCC: #7 at Sedgefield (9/29)

Will Johnston, BV: #12 at Brook Valley (10/4)

Nadine Hooks, SCC: #8 at The Cardinal (10/6)

Hugh Holman, GD: #8 at Grande Dunes Members Club (10/16)

Clyde Dunn, HH: #8 at Holston Hills (10/16)

Mike Hayes, CCA: #6 at Asheville (10/17)

Liam King, WP: #11 at Wakefield (10/18)

Jeff Orlando, RCC: #13 at Treyburn (10/21)

Joey Calderazzo, TCC: #17 at Treyburn (10/22)

Todd Reynolds, PCC: #16 at Providence (10/24)

Rick Hakes, WP: #7 at Wakefield (10/31)

Jeff Fiorello, SCC: #7 at Sedgefield (11/1)

Tom Smith, ONS: #14 at Old North State (11/5)

Phil Butler, ONS: #14 at Old North State (11/5)

Karen Buckley, RES: #7 at The Reserve (11/10)

Eileen Johnson, GD: #6 at Grande Dunes Members Club (11/13)

Stanley Griffin, HH: #8 at Holston Hills (11/15)

Tim Massie, HH: #4 at Holston Hills (11/15)

Roger Williams, RES: #17 at The Reserve (11/17)

Michael Spillars, RCC: #3 at Wakefield (11/19)

Denny Hattersley, HH: #4 at Holston Hills (11/24)

Bob Beasley, SCC: #8 at The Cardinal (11/25)

Graham Chase, PCC: #4 at Providence (12/4)

Michael Adams, CCA: #13 at Asheville (12/6)

Jimmy Henderson, MM: #2 at Musgrove Mill (12/9)

Tony Villa, GD: #16 at Grande Dunes Members Club (12/10)

Larry Chiappetta, RES: #12 at The Reserve (12/15)

Tim Cunneen, TCC: #13 at Treyburn (12/19)

 

CLUB KEY:

BV: Brook Valley Country Club

CARD: The Cardinal by Pete Dye

CCA: Country Club of Asheville

GD: Grand Dunes Members Club

HH: Holston Hills Country Club

MM: Musgrove Mill Golf Club

ONS: Old North State Club

PCC: Providence Country Club

PN: Porters Neck Country Club

RCC: Raleigh Country Club

RES: The Reserve Golf Club

SCC: Sedgefield Country Club

TCC: Treyburn Country Club

WE: The Water’s Edge Country Club

WP: The Country Club at Wakefield Plantation

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For the first time in its 17-year history, Raleigh-based McConnell Golf propelled all 10 of its North Carolina courses into the state’s top 100 rankings, including a trio of layouts ranked among the state’s top 20.

Those three — Old North State Club on the shores of Badin Lake, near New London, Greensboro’s Sedgefield Country Club and Raleigh Country Club — all remained in North Carolina’s top 20, while the other seven helped McConnell Golf maintain its status in the state’s top 100.

A perennial state top 10, Old North State Club was ranked No. 9 in North Carolina, while Sedgefield CC — which annually challenges the world’s best golfers during the PGA Tour’s Wyndham Championship — moved into the state top 10 at No. 10. Raleigh CC was ranked No. 20 in the state.

In 2020, along with the addition of Porters Neck Country Club in Wilmington to its portfolio, McConnell Golf unveiled a $5.5 million restoration of Donald Ross’ last design at Raleigh CC, overseen by architect Kyle Franz. Architecture experts predict RCC will jump higher in the state rankings following the modern-day reimagining of the iconic course.

In December, McConnell Golf expanded its footprint across the southeast with the purchase of The Water’s Edge Country Club in Penhook, Va., on Smith Mountain Lake.

McConnell Golf is an owner and operator built upon the concept of “pure golf for the true golfer,” focusing on enhancing both the individual club’s and its company’s overall membership value. The McConnell Golf collection of clubs throughout the Carolinas, Tennessee and now Virginia includes courses designed by legends Pete Dye, Tom Fazio, Arnold Palmer, Greg Norman, Hale Irwin and Ellis Maples.

In the 2021 North Carolina Top 100 rankings, Durham’s Treyburn Country Club was ranked No. 31, followed by the Country Club of Asheville (48), The Cardinal by Pete Dye in Greensboro (52), Porters Neck Country Club (75), Charlotte’s Providence Country Club (79), The Country Club at Wakefield Plantation in Raleigh (81) and Brook Valley Country Club in Greenville (100).

The 2021 state rankings also included two specialty categories. Old North State Club was ranked No. 4 among the state’s “Fairest Courses to Play” (“regardless of overall difficulty, courses that best reward good shots and penalize poor ones in a manner that is reasonable”). Meanwhile, Sedgefield ranked No. 10 in the state for “Most Strategic Courses” (“the degree to which the course requires thoughtful planning and precise execution of shots from tee to green”).

“Our courses continue to merge history, beauty and opportunity for our avid golfing membership and their guests,” said McConnell Golf President & CEO John McConnell. “With the enhancements made at Raleigh Country Club and new projects planned at other McConnell Golf courses, I am proud of what we have accomplished in the past year and eager to see how the rankings play out in the future.”

Raleigh Country Club’s restoration project turned out to be a masterpiece and I cannot tell you how impressed I am with the new layout.

The N.C. Golf Panel presented its 26th annual report on the state’s 100 best courses in the April issue of Business North Carolina magazine.

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