After Braden Duvall won his second Greater Pensacola Junior Golf Association Summer Tour event, he said this summer has been one of his best.
Even though Duvall missed the last two Summer Tour events from the GPJGA, he was elsewhere golfing – ultimately qualifying for two major championships in August and November. And after his first day at the GPJGA’s Divot Derby, Duvall isn’t slowing down.
At Stonebrook Golf Club, Duvall shot a two-under 70 going into the second round at Perdido Bay Golf Club on Tuesday. Duvall noted that he has “a bunch of confidence” going into the last couple of rounds of the Divot Derby. The final round of the Divot Derby is Wednesday at Tiger Point Country Club.
“The summer tour events, they just got me ready for the big tournaments, to get into the tournament play groove,” Duvall said.
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The 2022 PNJ Boys Golfer of the Year performed well at the 74th Annual Press Thornton Future Masters in Dothan, Alabama, where he finished in a five-way tie for 21st overall. Duvall finished with a three-round score of 218 (74-70-74).
It was at Dothan where Duvall said something “clicked” in the mental side of his game. After going four-over in the front nine of the first round at the Future Masters, he eventually brought it back with a trio of birdies to finish with a 74. Duvall carded a 70 in the second round, but again found himself in trouble at the turn for the third round.
“Then I birdied five in a row to get it back to even. I bogeyed a couple more coming in (to the clubhouse), but it was just knowing that I can come back from that five-over to get back to even,” Duvall said. “In the big tournaments, something really clicked in my head at the Future Masters. After that, it’s just been playing really good golf.”
That “really good golf” continued at the Georgia Regional for the Notah Begay III Jr. Golf National Championship. With just two qualifying spots for the championship, Duvall stormed out to an early four-stroke lead at the University of Georgia Golf Course after the first round.
Duvall held on over Rohan Gopaldas, from Suwanee, Georgia, with a second-round 71 to win the qualifier. Both Duvall and Gopaldas both qualified for the national championship in November at Koasati Pines Golf Club in Kinder, Louisiana.
But that’s not all. Duvall, on July 12-13, also won the Alabama-NW Florida Junior PGA Championship in Mobile, Alabama, at the Azalea City Golf Club. Duvall shot a two-round 139 (69-70) and will now compete at the 47th Junior PGA Championships at Hot Springs Country Club in Hot Springs, Arkansas, in the beginning of August.
“It’s really exciting. It didn’t really sink in until a couple days ago,” Duvall said. “I’m really excited for those two (tournaments).”
All of the summer success has been associated with one primary focus: a stronger mental game. Duvall mentioned that the physical game of golf has always been there for him – as evident with some long drives and close approach shots during the first day of the Divot Derby – and now he knows “you’ve just got to keep fighting” during any round of golf.
“My mental game hasn’t been my strong point. Now, I feel like it’s really good,” Duvall said. “You never know where everyone else is at. You can play poorly and still get it done.”
While Duvall looks to add a Divot Derby championship to his summer résumé – he finished third in the tournament last year, just five strokes behind champion Luke Godwin and one strike behind runner-up Jack Wallace – he said he’s also excited to return to the high – school golf season.
Duvall will be a senior at Pace High School this season, fresh off a two-way tie for second at the Region 1-3A meet and a four-way tie for 41st at the state tournament. Duvall also won the individual District 1-3A crown at Stonebrook last season.
“Going into my senior year, I have a lot of confidence right now – so hopefully that continues until then. I’m just ready to go play high school golf with my boys and get it done,” Duvall said. “It’s just really good competition (at the Divot Derby). The better people you play with, the better you get. They make me play better.”
This article originally appeared on the Pensacola News Journal: Pace’s Braden Duvall successfully headed into the Divot Derby