From staff reports
This week, Dataw Island welcomes the prestigious 53rd Southern Junior Championship. The event was to start on Wednesday, June 11 and will conclude with a champion to be crowned Friday, June 13.
With a full field of 156 players expected from 24 states and nine countries, this event often attracts more than 50 collegiate coaches who scout the field of some of the world’s most elite junior players. Past champions include the likes of Ben Crenshaw, Webb Simpson, and Harris English.
The Championship was first played in 1973 with Buddy Rountree from Ft. Lauderdale, Fla., winning the inaugural event. Charles Howell III, of Augusta, Ga., holds the record with three victories (1994-1996).
This year marks the 53rd playing of the Southern Junior Championship. In 2024, Tyler Sanford of Montgomery, Texas was crowned the 52nd Southern Junior Champion.
This is the first time that Dataw Island Club in the South Carolina Lowcountry has hosted the Southern Junior Championship. The format is 54 holes of stroke play, cut to the low 50 and ties after 36 holes, and will be played on Tom Fazio’s Cotton Dike course.
The Southern Golf Association was started in 1902 and it the is the founding organization of the Elite Amateur Golf Series (EAGS), created to challenge the best in amateur golf to unlock the most competitive landscape and build the game’s next greats.
For more information about the Southern Golf Association, visit www.southerngolf.org.
