Woodberry Forest Golf: Tiger golfers have record-setting day

Friday, May 13, 2016

Tiger golfers have record-setting day

Peter Knade ’16 shot a 9-hole match record 28 (seven under par) to lead Woodberry Forest to a 137-144 victory over the previously unbeaten and #1 ranked St. Christopher's. Starting with a par 3 on the fifth hole, Peter birdied holes 6, 7, and 8 before parring the difficult par 3 9th. He then finished with four consecutive birdies, holing a 25 ft. putt on his last hole (#4) to the delight of his coaches, teammates, and classmates in the gallery.

The previous record was set by E Stinson ’05 vs. Trinity at WFS. He shot 30 (-5).

Zach Randol ’01 shot 30 (-6) vs. Covenant at Meadowcreek GC in 2000.

With his record 28 today, Peter Knade has lowered his season scoring average to 35.56. He currently has the best scoring average in the last 30 years of Woodberry Forest golf.

Seniors Teddy Garner (36) and Bo Pettegrew (38) also distinguished themselves in their final home match. Fourth former Woodson Smith shot even par (35) to round out the team scoring.

The last time the Tigers shot under par as a team (-1) was almost 9 years ago to the day (May 12, 2007) at home against St. Chris (279-281). The last time the Tigers were under par for a nine-hole match as a team was at Collegiate in 2001 (142, -2).

The Tigers travel to Richmond on Tuesday to defend their Prep League championship at The Federal Club.

Thanks to all who attended today's match. You witnessed Woodberry golf history.

WFS 137 (-3)
St. Chris 144

Individual scores

Peter Knade 28* 9-hole match record
Woodson Smith 35
Teddy Garner 38
Bo Pettegrew 38
Andrew Jacobs 38
Basil Boyd 44

JV Golf defeated St. Chris today by a score of 164-172.

Jack Stein was match medalist with 4-over par 39.

Other scores were:

Crawford Humphreys 40
Sam Baker 42
Rob Neill 43
Jake Edwards 44
Wills Thompson 51

Golf Facilities

Our golf facilities are unmatched. The only high school in Virginia with its own course, Woodberry plays its home matches on a nine-hole golf course designed in 1926 by Donald Ross. We also have the Graves Golf Practice Area, built in 1991, which has a driving range, two practice greens and sand bunkers. With our Doppler-based TrackMan launch monitors, we can track each player’s clubhead speed, ball speed, launch angle, and carry distance. We can then use this data to test different equipment. Our indoor putting green allows us to practice putting and short-game skills in any weather.

Coach’s Corner: Varsity Golf Coach Marc Hogan

Of the campus’s many resources, the school’s golf facilities truly set it apart. With a nine-hole Donald Ross-designed golf course and a range of other amenities for the teaching of golf, Woodberry is poised to nurture the young golfer. And no one is more suited to bring together the promising golfers who choose Woodberry Forest with traditional techniques honed at the Graves Practice Area and modern-day technological tools installed in the Squash Pavilion than Marc Hogan.

Having worked with the golf program for over twenty years, Marc holds a Level III golf teaching certification from the United States Golf Teachers' Federation and a Level I golf fitness instructor certification from the Titleist Performance Institute. He was the first coach certified in the DECADE course management system, which teaches players course strategy. His contributions to the game have been honored by the Virginia Prep League, which has named him Coach of the Year nine times, and by VISAA, which has awarded him the title six times.

As he does in his English classroom, Marc embraces technology in the teaching of golf. With particular support from Mitch Hull ’77 and past parents Hallie and Ed Pettegrew, as well as an anonymous gift, the school has video-recording devices, computers, and three launch monitors that analyze a player’s stroke and help him match it to swings used by the world’s most successful golfers.

Marc is a Greensboro, North Carolina, native and earned his BA and MA from the University of Virginia. He has taught English at Woodberry Forest since 1987. A scratch golfer, Marc has qualified for the Virginia Senior Amateur Championship six times and made match play four times in 2017, 2019 (round of 16), 2020, and 2021. He has also qualified for the VSGA Amateur Championship in 2021 and 2022. He lives in the Rapp House with his wife Linda, who works in Culpeper. They have three daughters, Miranda, who lives and works in Staunton; Anna Grey ’14, who lives and works in Charlottesville; and Cordelia '17, who lives and works in Charlotte.