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Oklahoma golf commit PJ Maybank III has summer to remember as he continues run as top junior player in Michigan
PJ Maybank continued to show why he is one of the top junior golfers in the state this summer by winning his second consecutive Michigan Junior Amateur Championship. (Courtesy: PJ Maybank III)

Oklahoma golf commit PJ Maybank III has summer to remember as he continues run as top junior player in Michigan

CHEBOYGAN, Mich. (BVM) — Not many have the golf resume that PJ Maybank III does at just 16 years old. A former Drive, Chip & Putt winner, back-to-back Michigan Junior Amateur champion, two-time American Junior Golf Association (AJGA) first-place finisher, MHSAA state champion and Mr. Golf award winner are just some of the incredible achievements he has accomplished so far.

And as Maybank III concluded the summer, he made what had already been a much-anticipated announcement when he committed to continue his golf career with the Oklahoma Sooners come 2023.

“I was definitely talking to some other schools down south, but Oklahoma and Coach [Ryan] Hybl were talking to me and Coach Hybl was really the deciding factor,” Maybank III said. “I’ve only known him for three months now but I feel like I’ve known him my whole life. They have a great golf program and I’m super excited to be there in the upcoming years.”

Eventually, the golf star will travel over 1,100 miles from home to Norman, Oklahoma, with hopes of winning both individual and team national championships. But first, there is plenty to accomplish over the next couple years back home in Cheboygan, Michigan, as Maybank III looks to add to what is already an incredibly impressive golf career.

PJ Maybank III, right, will be taking his golf talents to Oklahoma in 2023. (Courtesy: PJ Maybank III)

Since he could hold a plastic club, Maybank III has had golf on his mind. By the time he got strong enough to swing his own set of real clubs, the golf standout’s family took him out to the course. Since, there haven’t been many days gone by that Maybank III has not been on the links.

At 5 years old, Maybank III began getting lessons from PGA instructor Brian O’Neill, who remains his coach to this day. O’Neill had not seen many 5-year-olds with the same amount of talent that he saw in Maybank III, and he has helped grow that promise even further.

Immediately seen as a contender in any junior tournament he would enter, one of Maybank III’s first major accomplishments came at 12 years old when he won the Drive, Chip & Putt competition held at Augusta National.

“Whenever you’re at Augusta, it’s a special feeling,” Maybank III said. “To win there was a dream come true. Eventually, one day, I’d like to win a green jacket there, but to win Drive, Chip & Putt was awesome and that was one of my big goals back then.”

Maybank III gained additional fame at the competition thanks to the socks he wore that displayed one of legendary golfer Jack Nicklaus’ previous wins at the Masters. 

As a result, Maybank III even earned the opportunity to meet Nicklaus as well as several other pro golfers while at Augusta. Although he had already had dreams and goals of doing so before, moments like these have only fueled Maybank III’s professional golf aspirations.

“If my game continues to progress, which I truly think it will, I think I could do some real good out there on tour and compete with some of those guys,” Maybank III said about playing on the PGA Tour. “It would feel amazing that all the hard work over the last 20 years would have paid off and that’s been my goal for a long time is to win out there.”

Seeing his potential at a young age, Maybank III joined Orlando Golf Academy in Florida, allowing him to keep his game sharp during the winters.

“I started going down to Florida when I was 13 or 14 and being able to play year round has really progressed my game,” he said.

In addition to becoming a back-to-back Michigan Junior Amateur champion this summer, PJ Maybank III also became an MHSAA state champion and two-time AJGA winner. (Courtesy: PJ Maybank III)

Despite the time in Florida, Maybank III has not lost his Michigan roots. Throughout his life, he has competed in Golf Association of Michigan (GAM) events. And in 2020, one of the biggest breakthroughs of his career came about when he won the Michigan Junior Amateur championship.

“That was definitely my biggest win in my career so far at that point,” Maybank III explained. “That was another one of my big goals. It’s a long week, you play a ton of golf against some really good competition and to come out on top was huge. It was very special to win that.”

This summer, Maybank III returned to the same tournament looking to defend his title, and once again, the 16-year-old hoisted the trophy as the first-place finisher.

“It felt great,” Maybank III added. “I really wanted to defend and to win the match-play trophy and the stroke-play portion of that event was awesome. We have some great competition here in Michigan so it was a lot of fun.”

Maybank III’s second consecutive Michigan Junior Amateur win built on what was an impressive early summer for golf standout, as he also won an MHSAA state championship playing for Cheboygan High School. And not only did he win it, but Maybank III dominated the rest of the field by 10 strokes with a nine-under score, the lowest ever in a Division 3 state tournament competition.

“High school golf was a great experience,” Maybank III said. “I didn’t get to play my freshman year because of Covid but we got to tee it up this spring and to win state was awesome. To win by 10 shots was really cool and I was very excited about that.”

Coming as no surprise to most, the 16-year-old’s dominant efforts throughout the spring season earned him Michigan’s Mr. Golf honor as just a sophomore.

“I didn’t know if I would get it or not because I was a sophomore and still young, but it was a thrilling moment,” Maybank III added. “It was really cool.”

PJ Maybank III got a chance to play in his first USGA event over the summer, and he hopes to compete in many more down the road. (Courtesy: PJ Maybank III)

While he likely already is a household name for many in the state of Michigan, Maybank III is beginning to take his success to the national stage as well. Playing recently with the AJGA, Maybank III finally broke through this summer, winning his first event with the tour at the Coca-Cola Junior Championship, and later following that up with another victory at the Randy Wise Junior Open.

“The GAM and AJGA are two great organizations, and to be the best you have to play with the best and beat the best,” Maybank III said. “To win in AJGA has always been a big goal of mine growing up and winning an AJGA event is like winning a PGA Tour event for us juniors. It’s the PGA Tour of junior golf.”

Maybank III gained additional high-level experience this summer when playing in the Junior PGA Championship, and also competing in his first USGA event when he teed it up at the U.S. Junior Amateur.

“Those USGA events are like our major championships,” Maybank III said. “They’re always great events and they treat us like pros. You have the best competition in the world there. The U.S. junior was great, I made it to match play and unfortunately lost in the first round. But that was a great experience and I can definitely build off that and improve in the future.”

The future for Maybank III holds as much potential as perhaps any high school golfer in the Class of 2023. A college tenure at a Division I men’s golf powerhouse is set, and a PGA Tour career is certainly in the cards. But for continued success, Maybank III knows he has to continue to put the work in, and plans to do so over the next couple of years.

“I definitely want to keep progressing from where I’m at,” Maybank III said. “I want to become the No. 1 junior in the world by the time I get to college, that’s definitely at the top of my list.”