Benjamin School golfers Kai Trump and Charlie Woods are competing in a tournament billed as “the most prestigious event in junior golf” this week in South Carolina.
Trump, the granddaughter of U.S. President Donald J. Trump, and Woods, the son of legendary golfer Tiger Woods, are in the field for the Junior Invitational at Sage Valley.
The four-day tournament began with Wednesday’s first round and both local golfers are facing an uphill climb from the bottom of the leaderboard.
Mar 19, 2025; Graniteville, South Carolina, USA; Charlie Woods lines up his ball on No. one green during the first round of the Junior Invitational at Sage Valley Golf Club. Woods is the son of golf legend Tiger Woods and finished at +6. Mandatory Credit: Katie Goodale – Augusta Chronicle/USA TODAY NETWORK
Woods shot 78 (6-over) and enters the second round in 32nd place in a field of 36 boys golfers. Woods carded two birdies, six bogeys and a double bogey, the latter of which came on the par-5 No. 8 and swung him from 1-under to 1-over.
Trump shot 89 (17-over) and is in last place in a field of 24 girls golfers. Trump carded a birdie, seven bogeys, two double bogeys, a triple bogey and a quadruple bogey.
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New Zealand’s Joshua Bai leads the boys competition at 5-under par. Thailand’s Pimpisa Rubrong and Canada’s Aphrodite Deng lead the girls competition at 2-under. Reigning girls champion Asterisk Talley is in 15th place after shooting 77 (5-over) in the first round.
The second round will begin Thursday morning. Tee times and pairings were not released Wednesday night.
Woods played on Benjamin’s No. 2 line this year and finished his sophomore campaign as No. 11 boys golfer in Florida. In 2023, Woods was part of Benjamin boys golf’s state championship team.
Trump was an All-County selection for Benjamin last fall and finished her junior campaign as the No. 151 ranked girls golfer in Florida.
Mar 19, 2025; Graniteville, South Carolina, USA; Kai Trump reacts to her putt on No. five during the first round of the Junior Invitational at Sage Valley Golf Club. Trump is the granddaughter of President Donald Trump. She finished at +17. Mandatory Credit: Katie Goodale – Augusta Chronicle/USA TODAY NETWORK
The Junior Invitational at Sage Valley was founded in 2011 and has quickly become a destination event for junior golf’s top names from around the globe.
Past winners include current professional golf stars like Scottie Scheffler, Akshay Bhatia, Joaquín Niemann and Austin Eckroat, the 2024 champion of the Cognizant Classic in the Palm Beaches.
Eric J. Wallace is deputy sports editor for The Palm Beach Post. He can be reached at ejwallace@gannett.com.
This article originally appeared on Palm Beach Post: How Charlie Woods, Kai Trump fared at Sage Valley Junior Invitational
