The Florida high school golf season wrapped up with the kind of buzz usually reserved for college tournaments.
At Mission Inn Resort in central Florida, the Benjamin School Buccaneers showed up with unfinished business from last year’s runner-up finish. They also showed up with a familiar face in the gallery: Tiger Woods, watching his son Charlietake on the biggest stage of his young career.
Elin Nordegren was there as well, completing a moment that felt bigger than just another high school final.
The Buccaneers began the last round trailing First Academy by one shot. Charlie Woods had opened the tournament with a 74, a number he clearly wasn’t satisfied with. Anyone watching could sense the tension early. Mission Inn’s El Campeón course has a reputation for grinding players down, and on Thursday it looked ready to do exactly that.
But from the first tee on Friday, Charlie flipped a switch. His swing was faster, his decisions cleaner, his pace sharper. The gallery thickened as word spread, and Tiger’s familiar silhouette seemed to draw more phones than fairway bunkers.
Momentum Turns and a Star Emerges
Charlie delivered a sizzling 68, the joint-best round of the day and a six-shot improvement from Round 1. Five birdies and just a single bogey fueled the comeback Benjamin desperately needed. With teammate Andrew Tsar dropping a steady 71, the Buccaneers posted a final-round 284, finishing at four under for the championship and winning the state title by five shots.
Coverage from outlets such as Golf Channel and MaxPreps highlighted the impact of Charlie’s 68, noting it as the difference-maker that overhauled First Academy. Local reports also confirmed that both Tiger and Elin took in every moment, including Charlie’s emotional fist pump on the 18th green as the title officially swung in Benjamin’s favor.
This win comes at a pivotal time in Charlie’s development. He has climbed into the national top ten in the AJGA rankings and sits fourth in the Class of 2027. SEC and ACC coaches have been following closely, and Florida State’s Trey Jones has been spotted at multiple events. Results like this only increase the spotlight.
Charlie’s 2025 season already includes his first AJGA victory at the Team TaylorMade Invitational, where he set a tournament record with 26 birdies, plus a top-10 finish at the Junior PGA Championship. From his 2022 Junior PGA title to now, the arc points upward. This state championship simply reinforces that the growth is real.
The Buccaneers completed an impressive postseason sweep after district and regional wins. For Charlie, the fourth-place individual finishat two under represents his career-best result at the state level. For the team, this was redemption delivered.
Tiger watched his son win a state title. Elin watched him celebrate. And Charlie, still only 15, took another big step toward the future everyone in golf is paying attention to.
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