Charlie Woods has some ground to make up after carding a pair of triple bogeys in the first round of the Junior Invitational at Sage Valley.
Woods, a junior at the Benjamin School and son of legendary golfer Tiger Woods, shot 75 (3-over) in the first round on Wednesday, March 11 at the Sage Valley Golf Club in Graniteville, South Carolina.
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He’s tied for 22nd in a field of 36 players and 11 shots back of the leader, Miles Russell, whom Woods was paired with in the first round.
Russell, the No. 1 player in the AJGA’s Rolex Rankings and a fellow Florida State commit, is the tournament’s reigning champion. He began his defense with a bogey-free round that included eight birdies.
Woods found his first triple bogey on the course’s second hole, Azalea. Sage Valley considers the downhill, 194-yard par 3 to be its “signature” hole.
He fought back, however, pulling inside the tournament’s top 12 with four birdies and a bogey to move to even par through 13 holes.
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Woods then carded another triple bogey on hole No. 14, a 447-yard par 4 called “Red Plum.” He finished the day on a high note with his fifth birdie of the round on No. 18.
Hosted at Sage Valley Golf Club, which is less than 20 miles from Augusta National Golf Club, the Junior Invitational aims to be the junior equivalent of the Masters Tournament with prestigious fields and traditions. Tournament winners are awarded a gold jacket.
The Junior Invitational has established an accomplished list of champions in less than two decades of competition. Scottie Scheffler, the world’s current world No. 1 golfer, won the event in 2014.
Other notable champions include reigning Arnold Palmer Invitational champion Akshay Bhatia (2018) as well as Joaquin Niemann (2017) and Austin Eckroat (2016).
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Here’s a hole-by-hole look at Charlie Woods’ first round scorecard from the Junior Invitational at Sage Valley:
Charlie Woods hole-by-hole scorecard
Sage Valley Junior Invitational
March 11, 2026
Hole — Score (Strokes)
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No. 2 — Triple Bogey (6)
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No. 14 — Triple Bogey (7)
Final: Out 37, In 38, Total 75 (+3)
Eric J. Wallace is deputy sports editor for The Palm Beach Post. He can be reached at [email protected].
This article originally appeared on Palm Beach Post: Charlie Woods in Junior Invitational at Sage Valley: First round score
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