The Wyndham Invitational presented by Truist returns to Sedgefield Country Club to bring the 72 top-ranked boys in the Rolex AJGA Rankings to compete in a 72-hole, stroke-play tournament.
This will be the 20th year in the event's history in Greensboro, North Carolina, and the 13th time where Sedgefield Country Club has hosted the event.
Wyndham Invitational Alumni on PGA TOUR
More than 130 PGA TOUR golfers played the Wyndham Invitational presented by Truist early in their careers, including four-time major winner Brooks Koepka, 2015 Masters champion and FedExCup champion Jordan Spieth, 2011 Wyndham winner and 2012 U.S. Open winner Webb Simpson, and 2013 Wyndham Championship winner and 2018 Masters Champion Patrick Reed. Several years from now, some of the golfers playing in this year’s Wyndham Invitational will also be playing professional golf.
Top AJGA player
Benjamin James, No. 4 in the Rolex AJGA Rankings and the recent Team TaylorMade Invitational champion, is the top player in the field. Just two weeks ago, James won his first AJGA Invitational title at 14-under-par 202, and for his third national junior golf victory. The Milford, Connecticut, native will play college golf at the University of Virginia. James is a two-time Rolex Junior All-American and previously won the AJGA’s 2019 Killington Junior Golf Championship and 2021 Scott Robertson Memorial.
Field Strength
After graduating from high school, many of the best junior golfers begin their transition to college golf by playing amateur events and ending their junior careers. Seventy-six percent of this year’s Wyndham Invitational field of 72 golfers is made up of rising seniors, juniors, and sophomores. Ranked players from each class according to the Rolex AJGA Rankings are below:
- Class of 2022: five of the top 10
- Class of 2023: three of the top 25
North Carolina Natives
Some of the top junior golfers in North Carolina will play in the 2021 Wyndham Invitational presented by Truist. All gained entry through the same eligibility standards as the field. North Carolina golfers are listed with high school graduation, hometown, June 1 Carolinas Golf Association ranking, and June 8 Rolex AJGA Ranking:
- Michael LaSasso (2022) Raleigh – 15th / 68th
- Caleb Surratt (2022) Indian Trail – 3rd / 9th
- Sihan Sandhu (2024) Pinehurst – NR / 41st
Qualifing Tournament
More North Carolina juniors may earn entry into the Wyndham Invitational presented by Truist through an 18-hole qualifying tournament. The qualifying tournament is set for 7 a.m. on Sunday, June 13 at Holly Ridge Golf Links in Archdale, N.C., with a maximum field of 60 golfers. The top-four qualifier finishers will advance into the Wyndham Invitational presented by Truist field. The full qualifier field is here
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Future ACC Players in the field
Eleven Wyndham Invitational presented by Truist golfers are committed to play college golf in the Atlantic Coast Conference. They are listed below with high school graduation and school. Those with a (v) are verbally committed:
- Justin Burroughs, 2022, Clemson (v)
- Luke Clanton, 2022, Florida State (v)
- Benjamin James, 2022, Virginia (v)
- Michael LaSasso, 2022, North Carolina State (v)
- Bryan Lee, 2022, Virginia (v)
- William Love, 2022, Duke (v)
- Patrick McCann, 2021, Florida State
- Andrew McLauchlan, 2022, Wake Forest (v)
- Boyd Owens, 2022, Wake Forest (v)
- Calen Sanderson, 2022, Notre Dame (v)
- Mehrbaan Singh, 2022, Virginia Tech (v)
First Team Rolex Junior All-Americans
Three golfers in the field were among the top 12 junior golfers in the world, earning honors as 2020 first team Rolex Junior All-Americans: Wells Williams of West Point, Mississippi, Maxwell Ford of Peachtree Corners, Georgia, and Benjamin James of Milford, Connecticut.
Rolex Junior All-Americans
Twenty-one of the 72 players in the Wyndham Invitational field received Rolex Junior All-American recognition in the past:
- Wells Williams
- J. Holland Humphries
- Andrew Goodman
- Brendan Valdes
- Benjamin James
- Caleb Surratt
- Luke Clanton
- Nicholas Dunlap
- Kiko Francisco Coelho
- Maxwell Ford
- Frankie Harris
- Jack Usner
- Luke Coyle
- Zach Kingsland
- Mahanth Chirravuri
- Ryan Dupuy
- Kaelen Dulany
- You Seong Choi
- Mehrbaan Singh
- Matthew Troutman
- Daniel Kim
International Players
Ten of the 72 golfers in the Wyndham Invitational field represent six foreign countries. Those golfers are listed below with the country they represent and their current hometown, if applicable:
- Santiago Cervantes, Mexico City, Mexico
- You Seong Choi (South Korea) Hacienda Heights, Calif.
- Kiko Francisco Coelho (Portugal) Lake Mary, Fla.
- Alejandro Fierro Saul (Mexico) Howey-in-the-Hills, Fla.
- Jose Cristobal Islas of Pachuca, Mexico
- Byungho Lee of (South Korea) Plano, Texas
- Kyo Morishita of (Japan) Bradenton, Fla.
- Jean-Philippe Parr of St-Célestin, Quebec, Canada
- Jaeyoung (Jeffrey) Kwak of (South Korea) La Mirada, Calif.
- Yuze Zhang of (China) Windermere, Fla.
2020 Tournament Recap
The Wyndham Invitational presented by Truist was the AJGA’s first event of the summer after COVID-19 shut down all of golf for most of the spring season. David Ford of Peachtree Corners, Georgia, won the 19th annual event by two strokes at 8-under-par 272. The North Carolina signee posted an opening round 2-under-par 68 and followed with a 5-under-par 65 to take a lead he would not relinquish. Two shots clear of the field to start the final round, Ford compiled 13 birdies and an eagle to win his first of three AJGA major events in 2020.
The Rolex Junior All-American won all three at PGA TOUR courses starting with Sedgefield. His other victories included The Junior PLAYERS Championship at TPC Sawgrass over Labor Day weekend (THE PLAYERS Championship) and the Rolex Tournament of Champions at PGA Resort and Spa’s Champion Course (The Honda Classic) over Thanksgiving.
Previous Winners
The AJGA first hosted an event in Greensboro in 1988 for boys and girls, but the Wyndham Invitational presented by Truist was created in 2002 as a boys-only major opposite the Rolex Girls Junior Championship. The 2021 tournament will be the 20th Wyndham Invitational. Previous winners include current PGA TOUR champions:
- 2002: Steve Han
- 2003: Brian Harman
- 2004: Brian Harman
- 2005: Daniel Woltman
- 2006: Andrew Yun
- 2007: Peter Uihlein
- 2008: Cameron Peck
- 2009: Justin Thomas
- 2010: Tanner Kesterson
- 2011: Billy Kennerly
- 2012: Matthew NeSmith
- 2013: Matt Gilchrest
- 2014: Austin Connelly
- 2015: Charles Huntzinger
- 2016: Eugene Hong
- 2017: Trent Phillips (UGA)
- 2018: Karl Vilips (Stanford)
- 2019: Brett Roberts (Florida State)
- 2020: David Ford (UNC)
54-hole Cut
The 72-player Wyndham Invitational presented by Truist will utilize a cut following the third round of play. The top 48 golfers and ties will advance to the final round. A tie after 72 holes will be decided by sudden-death playoff.
Wyndham Exemption History
For five years, Wyndham Invitational winners earned a sponsor’s exemption into the Wyndham Championship. However, when the PGA TOUR changed the structure of its season in 2013, that practice could no longer happen. The Wyndham Championship sets the field for the FedExCup Playoffs and ends the TOUR’s regular season. After the Wyndham, the top-125 players in points enter the playoffs while the next 75 play four tournaments with the top-75 finishers from the Web.com Tour in the Web.com Tour Finals. With PGA TOUR golfers trying to keep their cards, the Wyndham could no longer give an exemption to the winner of its AJGA tournament – however, these winners took advantage of the exemption:
- 2008: Cameron Peck
- 2009: Justin Thomas
- 2010: Tanner Kesterson
- 2011: Billy Kennerly
- 2012: Matthew NeSmith
Players to Watch
Of the 35 players who have won an AJGA event, a few highlights:
- Wells Williams of West Point, Mississippi, was the runner-up at Sedgefield Country Club in 2020. Williams is a two-time AJGA champion and is currently committed to Vanderbilt
- J. Holland Humphries of Austin, Texas, will be looking for his second win of 2021 as he recently won the Sergio and Angela Garcia Foundation Championship back in March. Humphries has three career AJGA wins
- Andrew Goodman of Norman, Oklahoma, will be looking for his first AJGA win since the Payne Stewart Championship in 2019. Goodman is a University of Oklahoma commit
- Caleb Surratt of Indian Trail, North Carolina, is looking for his first win of 2021, but has not finished outside of the top-15 this season. Surratt is still looking for his second career AJGA win, but is ranked No. 9 in the Rolex AJGA Rankings
- Ben James of Milford, Connecticut, is a Rolex Junior All-American and is coming off a win at the Team TaylorMade Invitational back in May. James is currently ranked No. 4 in the Rolex AJGA Rankings and is committed to the University of Virginia
Tournament History
Despite several name changes, the Wyndham Invitational has been a staple on the AJGA schedule since 2002.
Noteworthy host courses have included:
- The Cardinal Golf and Country Club
- Forest Oaks Country Club
Notable past champions include:
- Matthew NeSmith (2012)
- Justin Thomas (2009)
- Brian Harman (2004, 2003)
10 of the Top 20 Players in the Rolex AJGA Rankings
4 Benjamin James of Milford, Connecticut
6 Wells Williams of West Point, Mississippi
8 Luke Clanton of Miami Lakes, Florida
9 Caleb Surratt of Indian Trail, North Carolina
11 Nicholas Dunlap of Huntsville, Alabama
13 Maxwell Ford of Peachtree Corners, Georgia
17 Bruce Murphy of Johns Creek, Georgia
18 Kyo Morishita of Bradenton, Florida
19 Shawn Lalmoni of Orlando, Florida
20 Bryan Lee of Fairfax, Virginia
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