PONTE VEDRA BEACH, Fla. – On a hot Saturday in North Florida, countless families and friends from all over the Southeast – and beyond – descended upon TPC Sawgrass to watch 96 boys and girls vie for just eight spots in the 2027 Drive, Chip and Putt National Finals.
By all accounts, the opportunity to compete at Augusta National Golf Club on the Sunday before the Masters Tournament would be the thrill of a lifetime. For one South Florida family, however, the real thrill was in being at this event at all.
Gracie Hoffman advanced to regional qualifying for a second time in the Girls 7-9 age division. This time, the 8-year-old from Plantation, Fla., earned 108 total points, nine more than the next-best player in her age group, to qualify for the National Finals.
While the upcoming experience at Augusta National will certainly be exciting, being at this event as a family, given Melissa and Michael Hoffman’s long road to starting one, is perhaps the biggest driver of encouragement.
“Gracie’s our miracle child, our surprise,” said her father, Michael. “Because of my wife’s lupus, we were told we couldn’t have kids. We saw all kinds of doctors. None could help.”
Six weeks after giving up, Melissa and Michael found out they would indeed become parents.
Melissa credits Michael with getting Gracie interested in golf, and it has become her passion. Gracie’s instructor, Larry Levow, sees an outsized amount of heart, guts and determination in the young player.
“Her drive and desire to do well is second to none and is what produces champions,” Levow said.
At the regional qualifier, Gracie’s success validated the hard work she has put in.
“With everything she has done to get herself here, I’m so excited for her to have the opportunity to see it through,” Michael said. “We’re truly blessed. God has looked over this family for a long time now. Gracie came out and did what she had to do. We’re so proud.”
Added Gracie, grinning, “My favorite of the skills is putting because, as the saying goes, ‘Drive for show and putt for dough.’”
Seven of the eight National Finalists to move on from the regional qualifier at TPC Sawgrass call Florida home. That includes Guinn Hill from Brandon, Fla.
Competing in the Boys 12-13 age category, Hill racked up 150 total points by earning 45 points in the drive skill, 45 points in the chip skill and 60 points in the putt skill, respectively. He won his age group by two points to punch his ticket to Augusta National next April.
“I’m really excited to be making my first trip to the Masters,” Hill said. “As much as anything, I’m excited to see it all in person.”
Hill took up golf quite early in his life.
“My dad took me to the driving range when I was about 2 years old,” he said. “He told me it literally started by teaching me how to get the ball to stay on the tee. It must have worked, because here we are now.”
This makes it a dream come true for all of us to be able to go up there and experience it all.
According to his father, Matt, Guinn has always displayed a work ethic that sets him apart.
“Ever since he was the smallest kid, he had the desire to focus and work,” Matt said. “Even now, we’ll drop him at the golf course, and he’ll spend seven to eight hours there by himself. We love it, he loves it and we’ll keep taking him as long as he wants to go.”
Matt, a Canadian who grew up playing hockey, competed in that sport as a junior and continued into the minor leagues alongside his close friend Rob Guinn. Tragically, Rob Guinn was killed 18 years ago in a car accident, and it is after Rob that Guinn Hill was named.
“Guinn is a great golfer, but also such a great son, grandson and friend,” said Guinn’s mother, Lori. “We’re so proud of him and excited for him to have earned this opportunity.”
“This is a dream come true,” Matt said. “None of us have ever been to the Masters. Because I worked in the NHL, going to the Masters was never an option because it fell during hockey playoff time and I couldn’t get away. So, this makes it a dream come true for all of us to be able to go up there and experience it all.”
Indeed, it is the thrill of a lifetime.
About the Finalists
Gracie Hoffman, of Plantation, Fla., had the support of her parents while competing at the regional qualifier at TPC Sawgrass, but she took advantage of another asset on her way to victory in the Girls 7-9 division.
“I definitely have to say a big thank you to my coach, Larry Levow,” Hoffman told assembled media. “He was here today and before it started, he really helped me out on the putting green. After that, it took a few minutes, but I got dialed in.”
Hoffman scored 108 total points to win her division by nine, and she earned 50 of those points in putting.
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In the Boys 7-9 division, Alec Patullo of Parkland, Fla., found himself in a three-way tie along with Brady Drewitt of Ponte Vedra Beach, Fla., and Jason Yu of Suwanee, Ga. after the trio finished the three skills tied with 106 total points. Patullo prevailed in the overtime putting contest with his brother, sister and parents in the crowd cheering him on.
En route to winning his division, Patullo also won the chip skill with 55 points. He scored 25 points in the drive skill and 26 points with his putter, respectively.
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Jocelynn Ayala of Tampa, Fla., scored the most points with her putter on her way to winning the Girls 10-11 division. Ayala earned 46 points on the putting green, but winning the driving competition was also key to her day. She placed all three drives between 170 and 180 yards to score 36 points in that discipline. With 119 total points, she won her age group by a 12-point margin.
Ayala will be making her first trip to Augusta National for the Drive, Chip and Putt National Finals.
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After draining a dramatic 30-foot putt in the Boys 10-11 division to win that category with 70 points, Jayan Chary, who is local to Ponte Vedra Beach, Fla., shared his first celebratory hug with his biggest fan: his twin brother Kiryn.
“We’re best friends,” said Jayan, who began playing golf at the age of 7 with his brother. “Sometimes, if I’m putting bad or frustrated with something, he’s always there to help me. It definitely helps having a twin.”
In addition to winning the putt skill, Jayan also won the chip skill on his way to topping the division with 153 total points.
As for which Drive, Chip and Putt category elevated Jayan’s confidence the most?
“Putting was my favorite, especially after sinking that long putt at the last,” Jayan said. “That was very shocking, but I was very happy. When I hit it, I was very confident. But, when it was three feet from the hole, I was like, ‘Oh, yeah. That’s going in.’”
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In the Girls 12-13 division, Scarlett Konecny of Gainesville, Fla., punched her ticket to the National Finals after scoring 142 total points. That left her three points clear of her closest pursuer, McKenzie Morris of Canton, Ga.
Konecny did the bulk of her work with the putter and as a result, won that skill, too. She holed her first putt from 6 feet and left the next two putts, from 15 and 30 feet, respectively, within an inch of the hole.
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When asked to name his favorite golfer, Guinn Hill, winner of the Boys 12-13 division, offered a popular choice.
“Scottie Scheffler is my favorite player because … well, just because of the way he handles himself on the course,” Hill said, also noting that Scheffler “always aims for the middle of the green.”
With his upcoming trip to the Masters, perhaps he can tell Scheffler to keep up the good work in person.
“I’ve watched it every year on TV, but this will be my first trip to Augusta,” said Hill, who lives in Brandon, Fla. “I’m excited to go and watch the action at No. 12. I really like that hole because of the risk/reward factor. It’s always a big factor in who wins.”
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Lily Wachter, a National Champion in 2024, is returning to Augusta National. Wachter, from St. Augustine, Fla., won the Girls 14-15 age group at TPC Sawgrass to advance to the National Finals for a third time.
“I’m just excited and happy to experience it again,” she said. “The golf course is just amazing, and so is the food and the people. This is a 10 out of 10. It’s just so cool, because after all, it is Augusta National. How cool is that!”
Wachter finished 10th in the Girls 10-11 age group at the 2023 National Finals before becoming a National Champion in that division the following year.
Wachter’s 10-year-old brother, Kevin Wachter, Jr., was on site to root on his sister, of course, but also to compete in the Boys 10-11 division where he finished ninth.
Though her father caddied for Lily in previous National Finals appearances, she jokingly claimed to need more time to decide if he would reprise that role.
“I’m not sure if it’ll be my dad again or not,” she laughed, shifting her eyes his way. “We’re still in negotiation for 2027.”
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Colton Johnson, an Augusta, Ga., native, did a lot of driving en route to qualifying for the National Finals. Johnson, who won the Boys 14-15 age group in a playoff with David Whidden of Hahira, Ga., has his learner’s permit, so the 15-year-old drove his parents from the family’s home to the regional qualifier at TPC Sawgrass.
Johnson was born right after the 2011 Masters. His father, Craig Johnson, had tickets to the Tournament and went to Augusta National that Sunday.
“Meanwhile, my wife, Kat, was home about to give birth … all while I’m out on the course at the Masters … with no phone,” Craig said. “As it turned out, Colton was born the very next day.”
Colton received his first set of golf clubs from his grandmother when he was 4, at which point golf balls really started flying.
“I remember my grandma had bought me my first set of clubs – plastic – that I used to hit plastic balls all over inside the house, at the walls and sometimes at my sister,” Colton said. “I just remember loving that set of clubs and never putting them down.”
