Woodberry Forest Golf: Tiger golfers celebrate seniors with a win

Sunday, May 6, 2018

Tiger golfers celebrate seniors with a win

The varsity golfers cruised to an easy win in today's trimatch vs. Bishop O'Connell and Virginia Episcopal, 150-165-200. Senior Woodson Smith and third former Benny Haggin were co-medalists with 37's (+2). Seniors Crawford Humphreys and Andrew Jacobs fired 38's (+3). Fifth former Jack Stein (39) and fourth former Luke McNabb (40) rounded out the Woodberry team.

With the win, Woodberry improves to 10-2 overall. The Tigers are next in action on Tuesday at home vs. Benedictine.

Left to right: Crawford Humphreys, Woodson Smith, and Andrew Jacobs

The match was an opportunity to recognize three senior golfers playing together at home for the last time.

Crawford Humphreys is a three-year letter winner. In his career, Crawford has averaged 41.30 for nine holes. A founding member of WFSPN, Crawford has been at the mike numerous times for Woodberry sporting events. He will attend Washington & Lee University.

Andrew Jacobs is a four-year letter winner. As a third former in 2015, Andrew played in six matches and was second on the team in scoring (38.75).

In 2016, Andrew improved his scoring average to 37.36. He earned his first All-Prep and All-State honors by shooting 73 in the tournament. Andrew was presented with the Thomas D. Bond MVP in Golf.

Last season, Andrew earned All-Prep and All-State distinction again. He averaged 37.19 strokes for the season and won the Sam A. Doughtery Golf Prize. During the summer Andrew was runner-up in the VSGA's oldest and most prestigious tournament for junior golfers, the Junior Amateur.

This season Andrew is second on the team in scoring (38.25) and is currently 15th all-time in career scoring at WFS. He will attend the University of Delaware and play golf.

Captain Woodson Smith is a three-year letter winner. As a newboy fourth former, Woodson had a 37.85 scoring average. His 79 in the VISAA state tournament was the winner tie-breaker that gave the Tigers the VPL and the VISAA titles.

Last year, Woodson averaged 38.13 strokes per nine holes, earned All-Prep, and again helped WFS to its sixth consecutive VPL title. Woodson was presented with the Bond Golf MVP Award.

This season Woodson leads the team with a scoring average of 38.00 and is currently 20th all-time in career scoring. He will attend Sewanee-The University of the South next year and play golf.

Congratulations to each of these fine young men.

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.