Two premier designers – one a bit more known than the other – created courses in LaGrange which will play host to the Class 4A state championships at The Fields Golf Club and Highland Country Club Monday and Tuesday.
Highland, the host site for the boys side of the classification, was partially designed in 1922 by legendary golf course architect Donald Ross, who has designed courses like East Lake in Atlanta and Pinehurst No. 2, the host of next month’s US Open.
“Highland is an old Donald Ross course, the front nine is,” said Mike Young, the designer and owner of The Field Golf Club. “It’s a nice golf course. It should be a fun golf course for them.”
Highland plays 6,546 yards from the back tees, a relatively short track, but features relatively tight, tree-lined fairways and difficult putting surfaces to challenge every club in a golfer’s bag.
The Fields, a course laid out by Young in the late 80’s, is a more-forgiving course off the tee with a links-style feel on a majority of the holes. Young purchased the course in 2019 and runs it while continuing to design and renovate courses at Mike Young Designs.
“We have just been doing a little bit more each year,” Young said of the progress at The Fields. “We’ve expanded some greens and built some bunkers. The course gives the players plenty of width, so they can miss it off the tee out here.”
On the boys side of the class, Lovett enters the state tournament as the defending champions and No. 3-ranked team in the class behind 2021-22 champion North Oconee and North Hall. Benedictine enters at No. 5, while 12-time champion Westminster, which won four 3A titles in a row from 2018-2022, is ranked No. 5.
For the girls, three-time defending-champion North Oconee is ranked atop the class and favorited entering the tournament. The Lady Titans have won tiitles in 2013,2015, 2021, 2022 and last season. Lovett, Westminster, Madison County and Southeast Bulloch fill the top 5 girls teams.
Class 4A Boys Top 10
1. North Oconee
2. North Hall
3. Lovett
4. Benedictine
5. Westminster
6. Wayne County
7. LaGrange
8. Perry
9. Cherokee Bluff
10. Trinity Christian
Class 4A Girls Top 10
1. North Oconee
2. Lovett
3. Westminster
4. Madison County
5. Southeast Bulloch
6. North Hall
7. Starr’s Mill
8. Wayne County
9. West Laurens
10. Pace Academy
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