Jake Valentine, center, holds his team’s state championship trophy alongside his teammates, including Charlie Woods.

You’ve always heard “Never meet your heroes.” However, no one has ever advised against balling out in a clutch tournament situation and pushing your team to win the state championship in front of a legendary 15-time major championship winner. So, that’s exactly what then-sophomore Jake Valentine, a Benjamin School (Palm Beach) teammate of Tiger Woods’ son Charlie, did at last November’s Florida state high school golf championship.

Valentine – fresh off of an enlightening two-day experience at the College Golf Experience Top25 DI Exposure Camp (East) at Chateau Elan, where he had the opportunity to engage with and learn from a dozen top college golf coaches – holed the winning putt on the 18th hole to clinch Benjamin School’s title. The championship moment went viral online thanks to a celebration that involved the famed father/son Woods duo. With the three teams tied and Valentine the last Benjamin golfer on the course, he jarred a lengthy birdie putt on the 17th hole to take the lead. He then secured the deciding putt on 18, sending the gathered crowd into a frenzy.

One of the first to show appreciation for Valentine’s stellar performance and pat him on the back was the elder Woods, his generation’s greatest player. No matter what Valentine goes on to do in his golfing career, he’ll always have this tale of heroism, with one of the game’s all-time greats looking on, to tell for the rest of his life.

Valentine says his time at the CGX Top25 East Camp was the perfect preparation for a big tournament.

“I wasn’t as nervous as you would think. I’d just finished playing in front of a dozen of the best college coaches in the country.” – Jake Valentine (2026)

“I wasn’t as nervous as you would think. I’d just finished playing in front of a dozen of the best college coaches in the country. In comparison, standing on the 18th with the state title on my shoulders was a breeze,” he said. “Several coaches at the camp shared their strategies for dealing with pressure. For example, the importance of thinking about a difficult shot as an opportunity rather than a chance to screw up, the need to focus only on the shot you are hitting, of thinking only about things you can control, to be accepting of bad shots, and to have a short memory.”

Facetime with college coaches gave Valentine and the other players at the Top25 East Camp insight into what coaches look for and value in potential players on their rosters. During meals and on-course practice rounds, players get hands-on coaching and a chance for coaches to see their personalities and decision-making skills in action.

Valentine makes his par putt on the 18th hole, securing the State Championship.

“(Notre Dame Men’s Head Golf) Coach (John) Handrigan said I was very coachable. I took that to mean that I was positive, a good listener, and open-minded about suggestions for improvement. That’s something he wouldn’t have known about me if I hadn’t gone to the Camp,” Valentine said.
Handrigan, who has participated in multiple Top100 and Top25 Camps, is quick to explain the value of attending a camp where players are surrounded by not only their talented peers, but also a panel of experienced coaches who are invested in the education and networking that goes on at the camps.

“Top25 players and parents receive a firsthand experience of what it takes to play college golf at a championship level program.” – John Handrigan, Men’s Head Golf Coach, Notre Dame

“The Top25 camp is an exceptional opportunity for College Coaches of elite programs to connect with the top juniors in the country, who are the future of college golf. Top25 players and parents receive a firsthand experience of what it takes to play college golf at a championship level program,” Handrigan said.

Rainy weather during part of last year’s Top25 DI Exposure Camp (East) also gave Valentine a chance to show coaches his mental approach and sense of humor. “The weather was so bad that at one point I just started laughing and saying, ‘I love the rain!’ A confused coach asked if I was OK, and I told him it was because I’m from England and was taught to have a positive attitude about bad weather. If you can embrace the challenge while other players are moaning about it, you’re already a shot or two ahead. That’s a view into my personality that the coach couldn’t have gotten from just looking at JGS and AJGA rankings.”

Valentine says he would attend another CGX Camp in a heartbeat, and perhaps one in a region far from where he usually competes. “I’d like to go to a College Experience Golf Camp in another part of the country. Coaches told us that they have limited time and it’s difficult to watch kids out of their region. The Camps are a chance to get in front of them. And, based on how I played at States (last year), I think [my high school coach] wants me to go again this year!”