UVA Men's Golf Signing Class Features Four Top Juniors
Nov. 14, 2016
Charlottesville, Va. – Virginia men’s golf coach Bowen Sargent announced today the signing of a four-man recruiting class of top junior golfers who will join the Cavalier program next fall. The class includes Jimmie Massie (Lynchburg, Va.), Brandon Yoon (Ashburn, Va.), Weiwei Gao (Cebu, Philippines) and Max Siegfried (Villanova, Pa.).
“I am excited to announce the signing off Brandon, Jimmie, Max, and Wei,” Sargent said. “All four are dedicated to being committed student-athlete’s while in Charlottesville. I know they all have the talent and ability to continue the positive trajectory of this program over the next five years. I’m looking forward to working with them starting next fall.”
Gao is rated the No. 34 prospect for the class of 2017 by Junior Golf Scoreboard. He is ranked No. 76 in the AJGA standings and the No. 71 boys player by Golfweek.
Gao competed in 2016 USGA’s U.S Junior Amateur Championship, tying for sixth in stroke play before advancing to the quarterfinals in match play. He recorded the 12th known hole-in-one in U.S. Junior Amateur history when he aced the par-3 third hole with a 4-iron during his first round.
He had four top-20 finishes at 2016 AJGA events. Gao was third at the PING Phoenix Junior, placed fifth at U.S. Junior Amateur, was sixth at Callaway Golf Junior and 17th at Ryan Moore Junior Championship.
Gao attends Centre for International Education (CEI) British School in the province of Cebu in the Philippines.
Yoon was a second team Rolex All-American in 2016 and figures as the No. 25 player in the AJGA junior rankings. He is listed as the No. 54 recruit for the class of 2017 by Junior Golf Scoreboard. Last summer he was the runner up at the 2016 AJGA TaylorMade-adidas Golf Junior at Innisbrook.
Yoon won the 2015 AJGA Gary Gilchrist Golf Academy Junior at Old South, finished third at the 2015 Jones Cup Junior Invitational and at the 2015 VSGA Junior Stroke Play Championship. That year he was named to the AJGA’s Junior All-Star Team.
Siegfried was the Golf Association of Philadelphia player of the year in 2015. He won that association’s Christman Cup that year and was the runner-up at the Pennsylvania Junior Boys’ Championship and the Jock MacKenzie Memorial.
He placed 26th at the 2015 Western Junior and also posted two top-10 finishes on the 2015 AJGA circuit with a runner-up showing at the AJGA Philadelphia Junior and a seventh-place finish at the AJGA JoS. A. Bank/David Leadbetter Championship.
His older brother Cory played at Virginia from 2008 to 2012.
Massie is fresh off earning all-state honors after helping E.C. Glass High School to the Virginia 4A state title, its first in 28 years. In 2015, he opted not to play for his high school team while concentrating on junior golf. That year he won the 2015 AJGA Junior at The Foundry in his first AJGA tournament appearance. He competed in the 2015 U.S. Junior Amateur Championship.
He has been active in Virginia State Golf Association events, helping his team win the 2016 Mid-Atlantic Junior Invitational versus squads from Maryland and West Virginia and helped the 2016 Virginia team win its third consecutive Capital Cup vs. Maryland. He was a member of the state’s victorious squad in the 2015 Virginias-Carolinas Junior Team Matches Championship.
He won the 2015 VSGA Junior Four-Ball title and finished third in the stroke play portion of the 2015 VSGA Junior Match Play Championship.