‘You can play ahead’: What was it like following Charlie Woods’ group at 2024 U.S. Junior Amateur?

BLOOMFIELD HILLS, Mich. — When Oakland Hills Country Club’s South Course underwent a renovation a few years back, the goal was to bring championship golf back to the historic Michigan golf course while moving in the next step of the course’s evolution.

The USGA awarded Oakland Hills eight championships to be played at the course between 2024 and 2051, starting with the U.S. Junior Amateur Championship this week.

Some of the championship atmosphere was present on the 106-year-old course on Monday and Tuesday during the stroke play portion, thanks to the large crowd following Charlie Woods, Chase Kyes and Davis Ovard. Woods, the 15-year-old son of Tiger Woods, was the main attraction for the crowd — along with his father, who walked alongside fans on both days and absorbed the action from outside the ropes.

Woods failed to make the 64-golfer cut after struggling on both days, finishing at 22-over par through 36 holes. Ovard and Kyes, both 18-year-old college golfers, had to deal with the attention alongside Woods, and finished inside the cut line to advance to match play. Ovard, a Baylor golfer, finished at 1 over while Kyes, an Alabama golfer, finished tied for third place at 4 under.

Here are some takeaways from the most popular group’s vantage point through the first two days of action, as well as a look ahead to bracket play.

‘You can play ahead’

Hundreds of people began crowding the ropes around the 10th tee on the South Course, where their round began, and the putting green behind it half an hour before the group teed off Tuesday. The swell of people filmed Woods’ initial tee shot, a drive in the center of the fairway, then migrated down the hill after him for his second shot.

Photos: Charlie Woods at the 2024 U.S. Junior Amateur

Ovard was the furthest out and hit first, followed by Woods. After Woods hit his approach, he waited for Kyes’ shot, but the rest of the crowd started moving towards the green beforehand. Kyes’ caddie asked for the group to hold, which most did. But some didn’t, causing motion and some noise off to his right during his swing. Kyes was unfazed and stuck his approach inside 15 feet to set up a birdie, but Woods still made sure he wasn’t being bothered by the crowd.

After the shot, Woods told Kyes the group could play out of order with Woods going last, if needed, to avoid crowd movement during other swings. Woods’ acknowledgment, however, didn’t change how the group played and they stuck with going furthest out hitting first.

Woods has length, struggled with short game

If you walked onto the course with no priors, it would be hard to tell Woods was 15 and Kyes and Ovard were each three years older. Woods could match their distance off the tee with driver and often had similar club selections from the same distances when reaching for an iron.

A lot of the struggles came near the green in the short game. He had multiple holes, such as the 14th on the North on Monday or the 18th on the South on Tuesday, where he had to chip multiple times, whether it ran too fast through the green or he fell victim to the false fronts. Some three-putts featuring burnt edges and lip outs also visibly frustrated him, though he was always quick to shake it off before his next shot.

Who was in the crowd

The crowd following Woods’ group, double the size of Monday’s at the least, peaked before Tuesday’s rain delay on the South Course, with hundreds of people in the gallery until a thunderstorm rolled through during the 14th hole.

It consisted of some avid golf fans rocking Tiger Woods-branded hats and some Oakland Hills 1996 U.S. Open merchandise but mostly families eager to get a glimpse at two generations of golf’s most popular family. Plenty of parents brought their kids to point out Tiger in the flesh and be able to crowd the ropes and cheer for Charlie’s tee shots and made putts. Groups of teenagers rolled up to watch their contemporaries at the top of their field. Locals in Bloomfield Township walked over to enjoy the free action, and the rain delay allowed families of players from around the world to interact with golf fans from Michigan and connect by talking about the game while huddled under the bathroom canopy near the 13th tee box.

The atmosphere felt like a high-stakes tournament, but nearly all positive, with people providing the soundtrack to each shot. There were claps for nearly every shot hit and cheers for made putts from all three players, as well as gasps in the right spots when a putt came one revolution short of ending up in the cup.