MEMPHIS – Evan Woosley-Reed wasn’t feeling the most confident in his game entering the 2021 Tennessee Junior Amateur Championship.
But a little advice from his future college coach was just what he needed to get in the right mindset.
University of Tennessee head coach Brennan Webb told his 2022 commitment to “trust the process, not the results.” Woosley-Reed went on to win the state’s most prestigious junior title by rallying from a four-stroke deficit on the final day at Memphis Country Club.
“I just wanted to take it one shot at a time and not get ahead of myself,” Woosley-Reed said. “My game was iffy here and there before this week, and I decided to just commit to it and trust it. I believed in myself and committed to everything and it paid off.”
Woosley-Reed stormed back by turning in the low round of the tournament on the final day, a 5-under, 65 that gave him a 209 total (-1) for the three-day event.
There was only a total of nine rounds under par all week.
“This means a lot,” Woosley-Reed said of the win. “It’s been a lot of hard work. Memphis Country Club was in great condition and it gave us a great test.”
I’m just going to go back to work and keep on pushing to get better, like I had never won anything at all.”
Cameron Tankersley of Dickson and Patton Samuels of Clarksville tied for the runner-up spot at 212 (+2).
Following them at 214 (+4) were Michael Hake of Brentwood, J.J. Zimmer of Humbolt and Sheldon McKnight of Ooltewah.
A host of golfers tied for seventh place at 215 (+5), including: Riley Grindstaff of Thompsons Station, Kaleb Wilson of Knoxville, Aiden Coolier of Greenville, Haden Maxwell of Soddy Daisy and Christian Pardue of Arlington.
Woosley-Reed, a Shelbyville native who has been committed to the University of Tennessee since his 8th-grade year, turned in the only bogey-free round of the tournament in the final round.
His rally started with back-to-back birdies on 3 and 4. He was just getting warmed up, though, as he birdied three of four holes in the 9-12 stretch to move into a tie at the top of the leaderboard.
