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East Surry repeats as 2A State Champion

SOUTHERN PINES — To call East Surry’s performance in the 2A Golf State Championship Tournament dominant may be the understatement of the century.

East Surry’s boys golf team not only captured their second consecutive 2A State Championship on May 16, but they did so with a team score of 588 strokes at Longleaf Golf and Family Club – 44 better than the state runner-up, Seaforth.

East Surry’s 12-over par was the lowest score by a state champion this year among all four classifications.

“I’m still wired up from today and just so excited for these young men,” said East Surry coach Darrin Haywood. “What they’ve done the past two days has just been incredible. This means so much to our guys and the community as well. Everybody at states knew the Pilot Mountain contingency was there, and it was really cool to see.

“It says a lot about the community that so many people made the trip. It was awesome to see our guys get that kind of attention, and I know it meant a lot to them.”

The 2023 State Championship is East Surry’s eighth in school history.

East Surry first won the 1A/2A State Title in 1988, then won the 1A Title in 1999 and four-peated from 2005-08. The Cardinals captured their first title in 14 years in 2022, the 2A State Championship, then repeated this season. The boys golf team holds the most team state championships of any East Surry program.

Since East Surry’s first golf championship in 1988, only one team in North Carolina – among all classifications – has won more boys golf state championships than East Surry. Broughton holds that honor with nine, while Pinecrest sits just behind East Surry with seven after winning this year’s 4A State Championship.

“There again it speaks to golf community we have around here and all the people that have worked to maintain that success throughout the years,” Haywood said.

Adding to the historical impact of this year’s team, the Cardinals’ team score of 588 set a new school record for the lowest score at a state championship. The record previously belonged to the 2007 championship team with a score of 589.

“After we had such a great first day that was part of what we were aiming for,” Haywood said of the school record. East Surry held a team score of 289 (+1) after the first day of competition, with the second- and third-place sitting at +25 and +26.

“To avoid becoming complacent and losing focus, I told them to try to find another goal of just winning the title,” Haywood said. “That record was in reach and I told them, ‘we don’t want to go out of the way to put that pressure on you, but if we play like we did today we can make East Surry golf history.”

East Surry’s team championship wasn’t the only piece of historic hardware the Cardinals took away from Southern Pines.

Cardinal freshman Pennson Badgett won the Individual 2A State Championship with a score of 140 (-4). Pennson was the only 2A golfer to finish under par both days, and was one of just five golfers among all classifications to accomplish that feat.

Pennson was the only freshman to finish in the top seven of the 2A State Championship.

“He’s definitely not your typical freshman,” Haywood said. “When a 15-year-old goes out and plays like Pennson did it’s special. He’s not experienced in high school golf, but is a very knowledgeable and experienced golfer that is extremely dedicated to his craft. He’s played in a lot of tournaments in his life, and from this point until the end of the fall he’ll be playing in a lot more.”

Pennson’s individual state championship is the fifth in East Surry history and the first in the 2A Division. The 15-year-old is the first Cardinal to win an individual state title in…well…15 years. John Weldon is the most recent East Surry golfer to win an individual title, having won the 1A Championship in 2008.

Rickey Arrington was the first East Surry golfer to win an individual title in 1998. Johnson York followed with a title in 2007, then Weldon won the individual championship in 2007 and 2008.

Fellow Cardinal Connor Key took home the 2A State Runner-up Trophy this season. The Pfeiffer University-commit led the field after the first day with a score of 66 (-6). Key’s first day score was the lowest 18-hole score of any 2A golfer either day by two strokes.

Key shot 75 (+3) to finish in a three-way tie for 2A State Runner-up at 141 (-3).

“When you get in the run for the individual championship and your team does well I think you add a little more pressure to yourself to be perfect on your shots,” Haywood said. “I think Connor and Pennson were putting extra pressure on themselves the second day because they wanted that title.

“Toward the back nine, when they realized we had the team championship pretty much secured, they were able to relax and just played. They cut everything else out and focused on making their shots.”

Anderson Badgett and Jace Goldbach rounded out East Surry’s 588 score.

Anderson, a senior, competed in his third state championship this season and has contributed to East’s team score in all three: the 1A State Runner-up team in 2021, and then both 2A State Championship in 2022-23.

Anderson shot 153 (+9) in the championship and tied for 15th.

“I’ve always said you can never just look at what Anderson did on one hole, but focus on what he did at the end of the day,” Haywood said. “He’s one of our senior leaders and just so steady all the time. Nothing ever rattles him, and that’s such an important skill in golf.”

Goldbach competed in the state championship tournament for the second time. The junior didn’t compete as a sophomore, but finished in the Cardinals’ top four as a freshman on the 2021 State Runner-up team.

Jace tied for 17th this season with a score of 154 (+10).

“I’ve told everybody as they year has gone on that Jace is our most improved golfer, and this week he played his best two rounds of golf all season,” Haywood said. “As a junior, he’s going to be so important for our program moving forward.”

For Haywood, the most important factor in East Surry’s championship was the team’s experience. Multiple players competed in multiple championships, and would’ve likely had another one under their belts if the 2020 season wasn’t cancelled.

“We were the most experienced team there, and that experience was our big advantage over the teams that finished below us,” Haywood said. “That state championship experience is invaluable and made such a difference for us this year.

“We had strong performances top to bottom, and I can’t say enough how proud I am of these guys. They all stepped up. Things didn’t always go our way, but they were able to leave any problems at that hole and move on.”

Haywood added: “People thought we might have problems after losing two starters last year, two guys that had been big parts of our team for years, but this group never paid any attention to that pressure and just wanted to play. That’s everybody, not just the four that competed at states.

“They just like being around each other, they motivate each other and they all want to compete against each other instead of worrying about what any of their opponents are doing. That’s so fun to see as a coach. They set such a high standard for each other, and it definitely paid off.”

2023 2A State Championship team score (to par)

1. East Surry, 588 (+12)

2. Seaforth, 632 (+56)

3. Bandys, 635 (+59)

T4. Polk County, 638 (+62)

T4. Pine Lake Prep, 638 (+62)

6. Salisbury, 654 (+78)

7. Raleigh Charter, 659 (+83)

8. Forbush, 664 (+88)

9. Research Triangle, 683 (+107)

10. Beddingfield, 686 (+110)

11. Farmville Central, 724 (+148)

12. East Carteret, 739 (+163)

Top Individual Scores (to par)

1. Pennson Badgett, East Surry, 140 (-4)

T-2. Connor Key, East Surry, 141 (-3)

T-2. Nate O’Neal, Beddingfield, 141 (-3)

T-2. Holden Rucker, Farmville Central, 141 (-3)

5. Cooper Mizelle, Pine Lake Prep, 144 (even)

6. Drew O’Neal, Beddingfield, 145 (+1)

7. Jonathon Jones, Lincoln Charter, 146 (+2)

8. John McCoy, Salisbury, 149 (+5)

T-9. Rob Vergevin, Washington, 150 (+6)

T-9. Ethan Cooper Hayes, East Gaston, 150 (+6)

T-9. Atley Gabriel, Bandys, 150 (+6)

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