What a distinction a couple of years could make.
Three summers in the past, Mack Edwards traveled to Nation Membership of North Carolina in Pinehurst as first alternate for the 2021 U.S. Junior Novice. He performed a observe spherical, similar to any competitor within the subject, however when it got here time for the primary spherical of stroke play, Edwards discovered himself warming up a number of occasions and keeping track of the shuttle that was taking gamers to the again 9 on the adjoining course.
“I assumed I used to be undoubtedly going to get in,” Edwards stated. “I sat by that bus the entire first day, and it simply didn’t occur. It felt like I used to be a full balloon that simply bought popped.
“However that’s OK, we’re right here now.”
Is he ever.
Edwards, a 17-year-old Charlotte native who attends boarding faculty in Virginia, fired a 4-under 66 Monday at Oakland Hills Nation Membership’s South Course, the spherical of the morning on the more durable of the 2 stroke-play layouts (a few shot and a half harder than the North Course) for this week’s U.S. Junior in Bloomfield Township, Michigan. It’s Edwards’ USGA debut, and thus far, he’s in nice place to punch his ticket to match play, which begins with Wednesday’s Spherical of 64, and on the primary web page of the leaderboard with the likes of AJGA standouts Tyler Watts (5-under 65, North), Blades Brown (66, North) and Miles Russell (68, North).
Edwards, who’s verbally dedicated to North Carolina, isn’t precisely a family identify on the nationwide junior circuit. Whereas Brown and Russell have notched PGA Tour begins already as high-school underclassmen, Edwards has solely performed in two AJGA invitationals and spent the primary 5 months of this 12 months solely enjoying prep golf for Woodberry Forest Faculty, a boarding faculty in central Virginia.
“Being up there with these guys is very nice,” Edwards stated. “I don’t get to play with these guys in occasions fairly often. You play in one of the best junior occasions, they usually’re within the Elite Am Sequence. They’ve carried out very well lately, so it’s good to see how I stack up, and being on the prime proper now, it’s feeling.”
Edwards has led Woodberry Forest, which has a nine-hole Donald Ross design on campus, to back-to-back VISAA Division I state group titles, and this 12 months helped the Tigers full an undefeated season, their first since 2000. Edwards set this system’s single-season report for scoring common, and his 63 at convention led Woodberry Forest to a 17-shot win on the Virginia Prep League Championship.
“That was the place my priorities have been for these first few months of the 12 months,” Edwards stated. “I wished to do all the things I might for that group.”
He’s excited to hitch his future group as properly. Edwards, who verbally dedicated to the Tar Heels in February, is ready to signal his nationwide letter of intent this November and be a part of the North Carolina group in Fall 2025. Final 12 months, Edwards let his sport slip due to strain to impress Tar Heels head coach Andrew DiBitetto, who has had Edwards, the 2019 North Carolina Junior Boys’ 13-Beneath champion, on his radar for years.
“I at all times knew that was the place I wished to go,” Edwards stated. “So, after I began enjoying poorly, I simply bought a bit of tight as a result of Carolina had been enjoying properly, was bringing in some good gamers, and I knew that chance can be robust to get.”
Edwards talked to a couple coaches final summer season, however he took only one go to: to Chapel Hill.
“It was a slender mindset,” Edwards stated, “however I knew that if I had the prospect, I used to be going to chunk.”
Fortunately for him, the Tar Heels supplied him a spot – and he bit.
“That was good to cross off my checklist,” Edwards stated. “This entire summer season, realizing the place I’m going to high school has been very comforting, and never having the added strain of coaches round has been good to have off my shoulders, and it’s freed me up.”
After a couple of failures at U.S. Junior qualifying extra domestically, Edwards determined this summer season to journey to Southampton, New York, together with his dad and take his possibilities there. He shot 69 and bought by a 2-for-1 playoff at Southampton Golf Membership. Additionally this summer season, Edwards tied for eighth on the AJGA Wyndham Invitational and was T-42 on the Western Junior.
Getting into his USGA debut, Edwards “felt like there was some great things cooking.” He missed simply two fairways Monday on the South Course, at Nos. 4 and 16, the one two holes he bogeyed on the spherical.
“I discovered fairways, and that was essential, that set me up for completely all the things,” Edwards stated. “Your discover the tough right here, you’re enjoying your butt off to make par.”
Simply two days earlier, Edwards’ driver was squirrely in a observe around the North Course. However he discovered a bit of repair on the vary and striped it on Sunday across the South – and clearly once more Monday.
“Hopefully,” Edwards stated, “it continues all through the week.”
If it does, Edwards received’t be simple deflated.
