Reaching that next level: Boyd golfers, best friends, commit to in-state rivals

McKinney Boyd seniors Branson Davis and his best friend Vincent Whaley are taking their friendly golf rivalry to the next level.

On Wednesday both signed National Letters of Intent to play collegiate golf for in-state rivals. Whaley will be heading to Georgia Tech while Davis is heading to the University of Georgia.

"We've been best friends since we were 8," Whaley said. "We were talking about that today. It's funny how it all played out. You never know if you're going to get to that level or not and these schools, they're big rivals, so it should be fun."

Whaley said he knew for certain that Georgia Tech was the right fit for him during his official visit.

"Signing that letter felt awesome, I've been waiting for it for the last six months," he said. "I really like the coaches and the facilities and I just fell in love with the campus and my future teammates. I already felt like part of the team when I went down for my official visit."

Just like his buddy Whaley, Davis also got an offer from his dream school.

"I've been wanting to go to Georgia since I was in diapers, so it was a dream come true today," Davis said. "I felt ecstatic. I'm just excited to be a Bulldog."

Davis said his campus visit also left an indelible impression on him.

"Georgia is great," he said. "I was up there last week and there's nothing like it."

Receiving offers from their top choice of schools didn't happen by accident, as Davis is grateful to see that all of the hard work he and Whaley have put in since their early grade school days has come to fruition.

"It feels awesome to know that hard work really does pay off," he said.

Playing golf at the collegiate level is just the next step in the promising future for Davis and Whaley, who both played in the U.S. Junior Amateur Championships in July.

Whaley made it through the first elimination round.

"It had always been a goal of mine to play in that so it was great to get there," Whaley said. "And then to make it to match play and to win my first match, it was awesome."

Davis also had success at the junior amateur championships, making it nearly to the end.

"I made it to the quarterfinals," Davis said. "It was the best experience I've ever had happen to me. It was unbelievable, the caliber of play, the crowd, everything about it."

Davis is taking that same competitive mindset with him to Athens, where he hopes to make an impression right away.

"I'd like to be an All-American," he said. "Hopefully I can shoot for that my freshman year."

While Davis settles in to Athens next fall, Whaley will be less than an hour away in Atlanta. Whaley said his passion for the game has driven him all these years.

"I just love how competitive it is," Whaley said. "There are so many shots you can play. It gets really creative."

Both Davis and Whaley hope college is merely the beginning of their adult golf careers.

"I'd like to one day play on the PGA Tour," Whaley said. "And [Georgia Tech] has had a lot of players that have had success that went on. I'd like to just follow in their footsteps."

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