Depth in SC junior golf suggests game will continue to flourish

If the South Carolina Junior Golf Championship provides a clue, the game in the state will continue to flourish.

The event featured a field of 144 players competing for the South Carolina Golf Association’s top prize for boys 18 and younger, and Dawson Szabo edged Bennett Scaletta in a sparkling stretch duel at the Forest Lake Club.

The performances illustrate the excellence among the more skilled players, the ones who receive the most attention. But they merely scratch the surface. The strength comes from the depth.

Tom Mason, PGA of America professional who owns Par Tee Golf Center in West Columbia and one of the top advocates for junior golf, sums up the situation this way: “There are a lot of kids playing golf.”

John Winterhalter, the long-time pro at Forest Lake who oversees a junior program that placed 13 golfers in the state tourney, provides this evidence: “In addition to older, more accomplished players, we have what we call the Little Bombers, 4-5-6 years old. About 14 of them. In the pre-golf league, ages 7-10, we have 28 more.”

And, Mason pointed out, “A lot of clubs around the state have similar programs, and there are opportunities for competition all over the state.”

Indeed, the PGA of America sponsors the PGA Jr. League, and the South Carolina Junior Golf Association offers a myriad of opportunities for all skill levels. Plus, there are multiple First Tee programs.

Junior golf started its upward trajectory after Happ Lathrop, who led the South Carolina Golf Association for more than 40 years before his retirement, introduced the emphasis for youngsters in the 1990s.

“The difference between then and now is amazing,” Mason said.

Winterhalter remembered his interview with Forest Lake officials almost 30 years ago and how he noted his successful junior program at old Sunset Golf Club in Sumter.

“A member, George Dial, told me Forest Lake doesn’t have junior golf,” Winterhalter said. “I told him, ‘With respect, I beg to differ. I will show you we have junior golf.’ In the fall, Mr. Dial came by and said, ‘I owe you an apology. We do have junior golf.’ ”

And the skill levels continually improve.

“Go back 10, 11 years ago and maybe 20 to 25 (juniors) in the state could break par in a major tournament on a good golf course,” Mason said. “Five or six years ago, that number had doubled. Now, probably 100 or more can do it.”

Officials estimate that perhaps 20 to 25 players from the state’s junior program earned major-college scholarships this year, and Mason, who coaches the NAIA-sanctioned Columbia College golf programs can identify.

“We have 14 boys and some of them can go 6- or 7-under-par in a tournament at our level,” he said. “Really, there are so many kids who play very, very well.”

A lot of those who play “very, very well” earned places in the 2025 State Junior Championship and the Forest Lake membership that embraces junior golf provided a memorable experience. There’s the golf, of course, but there are also amenities — a giant, electronic scoreboard, for example — to create a grand stage.

“Forest Lake set the precedent for a tournament experience in 2021, and they did even better four years later,” Biff Lathrop, the SCGA’s executive director, said.

Bluffton’s Sage Bradshaw, bound for the College of Charleston, took the first-round lead with a 5-under 66. Scaletta, from Belton, moved in front after two rounds at 68-67—135. And Scaletta and Szabo, from Greer, dueled down the stretch.

Szabo hit the shot of the tournament, a pitch from 30 yards for an eagle-2 on the par-4 ninth hole, en route to a final 6-under 65 that included three birdies over the final six holes. He posted a 9-under 204 total.

Scaletta recovered from an early double-bogey with three back-nine birdies, but he fell one stroke short.

“Impressive playing,” Lathrop said, a fact displayed by the number of college coaches who watched.

But to emphasize the strength at the top, those coaches will have to wait on Szabo and Scaletta; both are rising high school juniors.

Even better, Lathrop said, is the depth. Or, back to Mason: “There are so many junior golfers it’s crazy” — and that bodes well for the game’s future.

This story was originally published June 26, 2025 at 10:41 PM with the headline "Depth in SC junior golf suggests game will continue to flourish."