Roy J. Akers- www.skyviewsports.net
(Bloomfield, Twp. Mi.) The U.S. Junior Amateur being held at Oakland Hills next month has bagged the son of a Tiger. Charlie Woods did the golfing on his own under the tutelage of Tiger, the greatest professional golfer of his generation.
All of the golfers playing in this prestigious event are qualifying and Woods shot a 1-under 71 on Wednesday to win his qualifier at Eagle Trace Golf Club in Coral Springs, Florida. Woods was the only player in his qualifier to play under par and was top seed of the four qualifiers that will make the trek to’a course Ben Hogan said “I brought this monster to its knees.’
Tiger is heavily involved in the coaching and managing of Charlie and the stage is one Tiger knows all about.
Woods has already golfed on television with his father in December made for tv events and already shows some of his famous fathers traits including his powerful swing. He is just one of 264 golfers that will play in this prestigious major at Oakland Hills from July 22-27. The field is massive enough that both the north and south courses will be used culminating with match play on the prestigious south course the final four days of the tournament.
Charlie has already won several local tournaments in his age group with Tiger either on the bag or watching from the gallery. Charlie is a -3.4 handicap which means his average score is in the high 60’s for 18 holes.
Other notables in the U.S. Junior Amateur field include Miles Russell, the 15-year-old phenom from Florida who made history in making a cut on the Korn Ferry Tour earlier this year, and then received a sponsor’s exemption into Detroit’s PGA Tour tournament, next week’s Rocket Mortgage Classic, as well as New Zealand’s Joshua Bai, 18, the runner-up at last year’s U.S. Amateur.
A generation ago, Tiger Woods won three consecutive U.S. Junior Amateurs from 1991-93.
For fans, the tournament is free to attend and for parking which is at Bloomfield Hills High School, where there will be a shuttle.
Roy J. Akers is a multi-media reporter and covers several sports for www.skyviewsports.net