Preston Lawhon of St. Marys tees off on the 18th hole at the Wirt County Invitational at Mingo Bottom Golf Club on Friday. Lawhon shot 2 under par on the back nine holes and finished the round with an even par 72. (Photo by Jay W. Bennett)
ELIZABETH – St. Marys High School head golf coach Catie Hamilton watched her Blue Devils lead the field Friday at the Wirt County Invitational at Mingo Bottom Golf Club.
Blue Devil Preston Lawhon earned the medal after playing an even par round of 72 strokes.
Although he had hoped to get into the red, Lawhon turned a 2-over shot on the turn into a 2-under shot on the back nine.
Teammates Tripp Morrison (77) and Trent Renner (78) also earned All-Tournament honors for the Blue Devils, who posted a team score of 308 thanks to Kenzie Armstrong’s 81.
“Today was definitely a tough fight,” Lawhon admitted. “It started off rough. I didn’t hit the ball the way I wanted to, and then I just forgot my previous shots and got a new mindset, came back on the back nine and recovered well.”
Toby Thompson of Williamstown hits an approach shot during the Wirt County Invitational on Friday at Mingo Bottom Golf Club. (Photo by Jay W. Bennett)
“I tried it on the ninth hole and hit the ball just into the water. It was an all-or-nothing situation. It didn’t blow me away. I hit it really well and thought ‘man, it’s over, no way,’ but then the wind came and I had no chance.”
Gilmer County, which sent both Austin Stewart (74) and Seth Stewart (75) to the All-Tournament team, finished second with 324 points as Braylon Mencer (87) and Troy Woodford (88) also contributed to the team score.
On the second hardest handicap hole, the par 4 17th, Lawhon hit a 95-yard wedge to within a few feet of the hole and sank his birdie putt to get back into the tie. He made a par on the 18th to cap off a 72nd.
“Today was definitely a tough fight,” Lawhon added: “I just had to get my mentality right. It wasn’t my golf game. I just had to stay mentally strong and that worked out. I was hoping to get that red score, but it’s OK. I’m really happy with how I started and how I finished.”
“We look solid. Last year we lost Cole Darnold, who committed to Fairmont State. That hurts a little bit, but Tripp Morrison, Kenzie Armstrong and Brady Rinard (87) have all stepped into that position and it’s almost like the shoe has been filled and I have a pretty good feeling about this year.”
Trent Renner of St. Marys keeps his balance while hitting a shot out of the rough on a hillside during the Wirt County Invitational on Friday at Mingo Bottom Golf Club. (Photo by Jay W. Bennett)
Williamstown, led by All-Tournament participant Madilyn Buttrey’s 80, finished third with a score of 342, six strokes better than Hampshire’s 348. Roane County, where Lucas Hall also scored an 80 to earn All-Tournament honors, finished fifth with a score of 352.
“I’ve shot better than that. This summer I shot a 77, but I think I was pretty good,” admitted Buttrey, who together with Wyatt Siley (84), Toby Thompson (86) and Hunter Haddox (92) secured the team score.
“I had a couple of putts that went off the edge, which would have helped my score. Things are going well. My game is good. I worked hard and it was a good score for me.”
Bryson Moorehead of Frankfort also received the All-Tournament award with a 5-over-par 77.
Ravenswood’s Kelan Lucas, who like Lawhon was a member of the Class A All-Tournament team in 2023, was one stroke off the lead, finishing with a score of 81, three strokes better than teammate Marshall Creel.
Hunter Haddox of Williamstown hits a drive during the Wirt County Invitational on Friday at Mingo Bottom Golf Club. (Photo by Jay W. Bennett)
Peyton VanMeter (83), Brayden Hott (84), Landin Ludwick (88) and Cyrus Chaney (93) led the Trojans to fourth place, while Daren Raines (86), Nick Taylor (90) and Erik Starcher (96) also scored for the Raiders from Roane County.
Keyser was led by Evan Ack and Ryan Pratt (88) with 88 each, while Doddridge County was led by Luke Rokisky and Caleb Sutton with 87.
Other top performers in their respective programs included John Mace (89) of Tyler Consolidated, Wyatt Boice (90) of Wirt County, Carson Hall (95) of Ritchie County, Maddox Brown (103) and Madelyn Williams (103) of Webster County, Carson Logston (105) of Parkersburg Catholic and Baron Davis (118) of Calhoun County.
Contact Jay Bennett at [email protected]
