Overholt wins Festival of Flowers at Greenwood

By golfclubsc on June 26, 2022 • ( Leave a comment )

Greenwood Country Club member Rod Overholt won the 2022 Festival of Flowers Championship at the club shooting a 2-day total of 9-under par 135 for the win. (GolfClub Photo by Jim Martin)

Youth and enthusiasm wasn’t quite enough to top age and experience at the Festival of Flowers championship played at the Greenwood Country Club.

Cambridge Academy High School golfer Spence Hagood carded a blistering opening round 8-under par 64 to leave a field of golfers with statewide accomplishments in his wake.

Hagood, isn’t in short supply of accomplishments on the golf course himself.

The Class of 2023 junior won the SCISA 1A championship this past year and the Tee Off Classic at The Fort Club and won last year’s Greenwood Club championship.

Rod Overholt, who is a little over twice the teen’s age, trailed Hagood by 2-shots after the first round.

Hagood didn’t have as good a day in the final round as he did to open the championship, but held a share of the lead until the 15th hole.

Overholt, who recently shot a round of 60 (12 birdies) at Greenwood while playing with friends, caught up with the first round leader by the 15th hole and took a 1-shot lead with a par and Hagood’s bogey on number 16 .

Both golfers parred their 17th holes to go to number 18 tied for the lead.

Misfortune caught Hagood when his second shot on the par-5 18th hole went out of bounds. The errant shot opened the door for Overholt and he took advantage.

“We didn’t know it was OB when I hit my second shot,” said Overholt. “I wanted to get it up close to the green for a pitch and chance to make a birdie. Nothing changed and that was what I did,” he said.

Overholt’s birdie attempt slipped by the hole, but his par, while Hagood struggled to recover from the out of bounds shot wrapped up the win.

Patrick Stephenson started the final round in a third place tie with Jeremy Revis after both opened the tournament with 4-under par 68s.

Stephenson hung around the lead for most of the final round and was within 2-shots of the leaders when his second shot got to within 5-feet of the pin on the 515 yard finishing hole. He rolled in his eagle putt to finish second.

Overholt, who operates a masonry company in Abbeville, finished third last year, the first time he played in the championship and was happy with his winning effort.

“After my family and the business, I try to play as much as I can and anytime you can win at home you have to feel good about it,” he said.

Robbie Biershenk and Kyle Bearden each finished at 138, 6-under par to tie for fourth place, with Revis shooting an even par 72 in the final round to finish in 6th place.

The Senior title looked like the leader board at the Festival not too many years ago.

Walter Todd shot rounds of 70-69-139 -4 under par to top Yancey Johnson by two shots and former Festival of Flowers champion Steve Liebler who finished in third.

The Club Division title was won by Bryce Whitmer who finished a shot in front of Shannon Sears for the Division Championship.