Woodberry Forest Golf: 4/21/24

Friday, April 26, 2024

Another stellar performance: The Tigers shoot even par!

Woodberry met Trinity Episcopal in a Prep League golf match at the Salisbury Country Club's Buckingham course. Battling cool temps and a freshening breeze, the Tigers rolled to a 144-154 victory. The even-par team score matched their season-best mark at CCV-Westhampton against St. Christopher's back on April 2nd.

Just as in the St. Chris match, Mack Edwards fired a -4 round, 32 on the par 36 Buckingham course, to earn medalist honors. Will Brown chipped in on the ninth hole for a birdie and a round of 35 (-1). James Doyle (38) and Henry Cardwell (39) completed the scoring, while Chris Nabors (42) and Hunter Hueman (43) also participated.

Woodberry improves to 13-0-1 on the year and finishes the regular season at Collegiate on Tuesday.

Tuesday, April 23, 2024

Senior Day = Two wins!

Woodberry's A team faced the Episcopal Maroon today in warm, windy conditions. Leading scorer Mack Edwards was sidelined by illness, but it didn't matter. James Doyle fired a one-under-par round (34) as the Tigers cruised past Episcopal 141 (+1) - 160. Henry Cardwell continued his strong play with an even par round of 35. Tommy McMillan and Hunter Hueman both shot 36 to complete the scoring. Will Brown (37) and Will Guthrie (41) also participated.

In the B match, Chris Nabors was the medalist with 36 as Woodberry easily won, 154-182, over Eastern Mennonite. James Gavin shot 38, while Gray Smith, Taylor Blackwell, and Bud Miller all had 40's. Jack Wilson shot a 43.

The wins move the #1 ranked Tigers to 12-0-1. They play at Trinity Episcopal on Friday.

Senior Day 2024

Today's matches versus Eastern Mennonite and Episcopal mark the last home events for the following seniors. Please congratulate this group of young men on their accomplishments and see them in action today beginning at 4 pm.

Gray Smith -- has been a varsity player for the past two seasons. In four matches last year, Gray averaged 40.25 strokes. Today will be Gray's second match played this season. Gray has not yet decided where he is going to college next year.

Jack Wilson - Jack has been a two-year varsity letter winner. Last season, Jack played in two matches and averaged 42.00 strokes. This year, Jack has improved his average to 40.80. He is playing in his third match today. Jack will attend the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill next fall.

Hunter Hueman - Hunter has been a varsity golfer all three years at Woodberry. He played in three matches in his fourth-form year, averaging 40.33 strokes. Last year, Hunter played in five events, averaging 39.67 strokes. This year, he has improved, averaging 38.40 strokes in qualifying and two matches. Hunter will attend Wake Forest University in the fall.

Chris Nabors - A four-year varsity golfer, Chris averaged 40.50 strokes in his first season. As a fourth-former, he played in five matches, averaging 39.67 strokes. Last year, Chris made All-Prep and helped the Tigers to the 2023 VISAA state championship. He played in nine events and improved to a 38.27 stroke average. Chris has averaged 39.29 in seven matches this year. Chris will attend Wofford College in the fall.

Will Brown - A three-time All-Prep League and All-State golfer, Will ranks fourth all-time in career scoring average. Only two other WFS golfers have earned All-Prep during their first three seasons. Will is one of five Tigers who have earned All-State honors three times.

As a third-former, Will had the third-lowest stroke average (37.72) and won the team's MVP award. The next year, Will improved his scoring average (36.33) and won his second MVP award.

Elected captain for the 2023 season, Will had the second-best season in WFS golf history. He averaged 35.43 strokes and led the Tigers to the 2023 state championship. Will won the William H. White Golf Trophy Prize as the team's most outstanding player. He was again elected captain, the first two-time golf captain since 2007-08.

This season Will has been the medalist in four matches. His invaluable leadership has propelled the Tigers to an undefeated season and #1 ranking in the state golf poll.

Will has accepted a spot on the Wofford College men's golf team next year.

Woodberry rolls over Bishop O'Connell

The Tigers ended the week with a comfortable 146-156 win over Bishop O'Connell on yet another chilly, windy spring day at Woodberry Forest. Will Brown and Mack Edwards shot a pair of 36's (+1), followed by Tommy McMillan and Henry Cardwell each with 37. James Doyle (40) and Chris Nabors (42) also competed.

With the win, the Tigers improve to a record of 10-0-1. They host Episcopal and Eastern Mennonite on Tuesday, Senior Day.

Tigers defeat St. Chris

The #1 ranked Tigers faced the #3 Saints today in a battle between perennial golf powers. Trailing by five shots after the first two groups had concluded play, Woodberry rallied behind the final pair, medalist Tommy McMillan's two-under-par 33 and Mack Edwards's one-over-par 36, to post a 141-146 win.

James Doyle shot an even-par 35 and Henry Cardwell fired a 37 to complete the team score. Will Brown (39) and Hunter Hueman (41) also competed.

With the win, the Tigers improve to 9-0-1, 4-0-1 in the league. They host Bishop O'Connell on Friday.

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.