Wyndham Clark may wrap up his outstanding junior golf career this weekend, but what he’s accomplished on and off the course as a teenager certainly hasn’t gone unnoticed on a national and international level.
The senior at Valor Christian High School has made a name for himself by twice qualifying for the U.S. Amateur while still in high school, winning the 2010 CGA Stroke Play Championship as a 16-year-old, and claiming two 4A state titles, the last one by shooting 64-64 at Pelican Lakes last fall.
And now, as the Greenwood Village resident gears up for his final summer of competition before becoming an Oklahoma State golfer, he’s set to receive a prestigious international junior golf honor.
Clark was informed last week that he and two other Americans (Matt NeSmith and Cody Proveaux, both of South Carolina) and an Australian (Ricky Kato) have been named the 2012 winners of the Byron Nelson International Junior Golf Awards.
The foursome will be honored on May 19 in Irving, Texas in conjunction with the 2012 HP Byron Nelson Championship. In addition to receiving the award, they’ll get to mingle with some of the participating PGA Tour players on the range at the TPC Four Seasons Resort and meet some of Golf Channel’s on-air talent. The award winners and two adult guests each will have their airfare and most travel expenses paid as part of the honor.
“It’s a real humbling award because of who Byron Nelson was and what he stood for,” Clark said this week. “I wasn’t aware how prestigious an award it is, but now I’m learning.”
The Byron Nelson International Junior Golf Awards are given based not only on a player’s record in junior golf, but for community involvement, academic excellence and strong character. They’re named in honor of the late Byron Nelson, a PGA Tour great who was known for his gentlemanly manner and his mentoring and support of young golfers.
The awards have only been around since 2008, and including this year’s recipients a total of 19 people have been selected for the honor. Probably the most well known winner of the award was Jordan Spieth (2010), currently the top-ranked college player in the nation.
Clark was nominated for the award, and his parents and a combination of teachers and coaches and golf instructors wrote letters and attested to Wyndham’s credentials. Then an international panel of golf professionals and golf officials pick the winners out of the many candidates.
Clark said much of his community service work has been done through Valor Christian’s Heart & Soul outreach program. Specifically, he’s served at the Denver Rescue Mission and participated in “Operation Christmas Child”, which arranges for and sends gifts to kids in Third World countries.
Asked how he compares the Byron Nelson honor to his other accomplishments in golf, Clark said, “To me, this is more important than winning a tournament. This is who I strive to be.”
Clark, currently 26th in the national AJGA Polo Rankings, will play this weekend in arguably the most competitive junior tournament in the country, the Junior Invitational at Sage Valley in Graniteville, S.C., not far from Augusta, Ga. Most of the world’s top junior golfers are expected to compete.
Last year’s Junior Invitational was the nation’s top-ranked junior tournament according to Golfweek. The tournament pays for the players’ travel, lodging and food, and provides for professional caddies. In a take-off on the Masters, the winner is presented a jacket — in this case, gold-colored.
“It’ll probably be my last junior event,” Clark said.
Clark has already started off the spring in strong form, finishing sixth in the 64th Azalea Invitational that concluded on April 1 in Charleston, S.C. He shot rounds of 71-72-68-65 for a 276 total.
