Wedgewood Cup XXII took us to the mountains of Rising Fawn, Georgia, for a long weekend at McLemore Resort — and it delivered everything we could have asked for: great golf, brutal walks, fog delays, rain, steaks, wine, a little darkness, and a well-earned champion.
Most of the crew arrived Thursday, April 23, flying from Dallas into Chattanooga. Karl and Luke came in through Atlanta, while Scott Lacy made the drive from Fishers, Indiana. Once everyone arrived, we quickly realized we had landed in the perfect spot. The house was amazing — a beautiful property with the short par-3 course sitting right outside the door.
Thursday night kicked off the right way with our welcome dinner and Calcutta at The Creag. Our house host, Carl Frederick, was kind enough to gift us two bottles of wine for the dinner, which set the tone for a great opening night.
The views atop McLemore are simply stunning.
Friday morning, the competition officially began at The Keep, McLemore’s new course that has already earned strong reviews. It was just a short shuttle ride from the house, and we had caddies for the round. The opening team match featured:
Team A: S. Starnes, T. Kennedy, C. Melton, and B. Lacy
Team B: K. Jones, D. Patterson, L. Starnes, and S. Lacy
The Keep is a massive piece of property. Walking was encouraged, but after what felt like — and probably was — around 20,000 steps, I’m not sure any of us were fully prepared for that kind of march. Team B handled the challenge best and took the four points in the morning round.
“Some holes you only need a 5-wood off the tee”
Friday afternoon, we headed over to The Highlands Course, and that round turned into a grind. TK and SL were crowned the Best Ball afternoon champions, and we barely finished before darkness fell. That night, we grabbed burgers at The Creag and waddled back to the house, tired but still in good spirits.
Saturday morning started back at The Highlands Course with the 2-Man Krewe format. The rain came down hard on us for the first few holes, but it finally stopped as we reached the back nine. Even with the weather, the views were unbelievable — at times we felt like we were playing above the clouds, even though it was still raining. TK and DP took home the honors in that format.
Saturday afternoon, we returned to The Keep for a modified alternate shot round. CM and DP found their rhythm and secured first place. That evening, we cleaned up and headed to the resort hotel restaurant, Auld Alliance, for a fantastic dinner. After a tour of the meat locker, we enjoyed bone-in steaks, venison tartare, and a lovely 2016 Silverado SOLO Cabernet. It was easily one of the culinary highlights of the trip.
Sunday brought our final round, but not before a two-hour fog delay at The Keep. Once the fog finally lifted, we shuttled over for the last competition: Mano Y Mano. CM took first place in the final format, closing out the golf portion of the weekend.
With only one round on Sunday, we had time to get back to the house and prepare a proper champions dinner: filets, potatoes, and, of course, a frozen pizza appetizer. The evening ended with Scott Lacy handing off the trophy to this year’s champion:
Tim Kennedy — Wedgewood Cup XXII Champion
Congrats, Tim. A well-deserved victory.
Wedgewood Cup XXII gave us everything that makes this event special — competition, laughs, incredible golf, great food, and a setting we won’t forget anytime soon. McLemore was a worthy host, and the memories from Rising Fawn will be tough to top.
