PASS CHRISTIAN, Miss. (WLOX) \u2014 Some of the biggest names in golf have competed at the U.S. Kids Golf World Championships since its inception in 2002.<\/p>\n
Pass Christian 11-year-old Charlie Magee recently achieved a feat that five major champions including world No. 1Scottie Scheffler were unable to accomplish, winning the world title for his age group. Entering the final round at Talamore Golf Club in North Carolina, Magee was tied for the lead. With the other three leaders grouped together for the final tee time, Charlie felt little pressure in the penultimate group, firing a bogey-free round of 5-under par. <\/p>\n
\u201cThere was four people tied for first at five under,\u201d Magee said. \u201cI had no clue what the people behind me were at. I just played well the last day with no pressure.\u201d <\/p>\n
Alongside Charlie was his coach and caddie, Cole Baggett, who is the head golf professional at The Oaks Golf Club in Pass Christian.<\/p>\n
\u201cRight when he made the putt for par, I knew doubling his score for the first two days, going from 5-under to 10 under, I didn\u2019t think anyone was going to catch him,\u201d Baggett recalled. \u201cI hugged him and I told him I\u2019m pretty sure he pulled it off.\u201d<\/p>\n
Magee captured the 11-year-old world title with a 3-stroke victory over the rest of the field, joining PGA Tour winner Chad Ramey as the second Mississippi-born player to win a World Championship. After hitting a staggering 50 of 54 greens in regulation, all of Charlie\u2019s hard work came to fruition.<\/p>\n
\u201cThis one was definitely more important than any of the other ones,\u201d said Magee. \u201cIt was really fun because it\u2019s a far trip away, and it was really cool.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cIt was emotional,\u201d Baggett added. \u201cSeeing how much time he spent on [The Oaks] golf course, practicing, he deserved it. A lot of hard work went into it, so it was awesome.\u201d<\/p>\n
Two-time PGA Tour winner Davis Riley, Picayune native Cameron Guidry, and Ole Miss alums Jackson Suber, Cohen Trolio, and Caden Prieskorn (football) are among the notable individuals to compete at the event. Among that group is Baggett who became Charlie\u2019s Godfather prior to caddying for him in North Carolina.<\/p>\n
\u201cDay one when I met Charlie, I asked for his dad,\u201d Baggett detailed. \u201cI was like your kid\u2019s got something different. He\u2019s always been different and he\u2019s got the love for the game. If you don\u2019t love it, you\u2019re not going to do well, and he loves it.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201c[Cole\u2019s] meant a lot,\u201d Magee said. \u201cHe\u2019s helped me get this far and we\u2019re going to go further.\u201d<\/p>\n
As the U.S. Kids Golf World Championships have grown in popularity over the years, many of the game\u2019s best have made their name at the competition. In recent years, many of the sport\u2019s fastest-growing stars captured victories including Miles Russell, Michael Thorbjornsen, and Luke Clanton while names such as Akshay Bhatia, Jackson Koivun, and world No. 3 Cameron Young have tallied respectable finishes.<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019ve always watched them play on TV and they\u2019re extremely good,\u201d Magee said. \u201cIt\u2019s cool knowing that they did it, and I did it too.\u201d <\/p>\n
\u201cI think it\u2019s a huge step, very huge step,\u201d added Baggett. \u201cWe\u2019re going to do one step at a time. He\u2019s going to focus on winning it again next year. I know he\u2019s already thinking about it, but it\u2019s a huge success for him.\u201d<\/p>\n
It\u2019s almost impossible to conceptualize how difficult it is to be the best in the world at your age in a sport as popular as golf. Out of an estimated 143 million 11-year-olds on the planet, Charlie Magee from Pass Christian, Mississippi stands alone at the top.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt means something really good,\u201d Charlie stated. \u201cIt was really cool knowing that I beat everyone.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s awesome. I see the hard work he puts in and he deserves everything,\u201d Baggett said. \u201cHe works harder than anyone else, and it\u2019s really cool to see him grow. You see kids from tons of different countries and all over the world from Russia, Thailand, so it was awesome to see Charlie Magee from Mississippi standing out in the front.\u201d<\/p>\n
Prior to the 2026 U.S. Kids Golf World Championship, Magee beat Scottie Scheffler\u2019s one-day scoring record for ages 10-11 at the Greenville Future Tour Championship. He went on to set the two-day record, shooting 9-under par to win the tournament.<\/p>\n
The 11-year-old phenom also captured the Mississippi Junior Amateur title with a score of 10-under par across the three-day event, adding to his collection of well over 100 trophies.<\/p>\n
Charlie has many people to thank for his success, but is grateful for the support from his family, his coach, Bloom Golf Management, PXG, Bettinardi, Titleist, and the Oaks Golf Club which sent three players to the U.S. Kids Golf World Championships.<\/p>\n
Notable former winners of U.S. Kids Golf World Championships:Karl VilipsChad RameyMichael ThorbjornsenMiles RussellLuke ClantonBrad DalkeTom McKibbinBen JamesCole HammerMajor Winners who competed in U.S. Kids Golf World Championships:Scottie SchefflerJustin ThomasPatrick ReedAaron RalCollin MorikawaNotable PGA Tour Pros who competed in U.S. Kids Golf World Championships:Robby SheltonZachary BauchouRichy WerenskiZach BlairKristoffer VenturaAdam SvenssonChase KoepkaAndy OgletreeSam HornsfieldBrandon WuDanny WalkerMax GreysermanHank LebiodaHarry HiggsSteven FiskDavis RileyAaron WiseRomain LangasqueVincent WhaleyDaniel BergerRyan GerardFrankie CapanWill ZalatorisRicky CastilloSahith TheegalaMarco PengeGrayson MurrayCameron YoungChandler PhillipsBeau HosslerMatthias SchwabAustin EckroatJams PiotGeorge CunninghamJayden SchaperJackson SuberDoc RedmanRobert MacIntyreHayden SpringerWilson FurrEthan FangNick DunlapCasey JarvisMaxwell MoldovanChristo LamprechtJohn PakAkshay BhatiaJackson KoivunMichael BrennanAustin GreaserGordon SargentNotable players with Mississippi ties who competed in U.S. Kids Golf World Championships:Thomas Dillard (Former Shuckers player)Chad Ramey\u00a0(PGA Tour Winner)Davis Riley\u00a0(PGA Tour Winner)Caden Prieskorn (Ole Miss Football)Peyton Prieskorn (Ole Miss Football)Andy Ogletree (2019 U.S. Amateur Winner)Jackson Suber (Ole Miss Golf)Hunter Hammett (Mississippi State Golf)Cole Baggett (PGA Professional at The Oaks Golf Club)Wilson Furr (Korn Ferry Tour)Wells Williams (NCAA Golfer)Cohen Trolio (Ole Miss Golfer)<\/p>\n