Eklund, Moyers to vie for Cup

Usually where you find one, you’ll find the other. That’s how close Weston Eklund and Mikey Moyers have become over time. Almost like brothers.
Once again this morning, the two young golfers will continue their friendly rivalry during the opening round of the Jefferson Cup tournament at Birdwood Golf Club.
Not only will they be vying for the Jefferson Cup title in perhaps the strongest field that the tournament has attracted in its eight years of existence, but the Battle Trophy is up for grabs. Eklund, the only local player to have won two events this season (Old Trail and Reines Jewelers City Championship), has a
19-point lead over Moyers, the only other golfer in the field with a chance to steal Eklund’s thunder.
With Central Virginia’s player of the year honors up for grabs and the top seed in next weekend’s Central Virginia Match Play Championships at Spring Creek at stake, the best friends figure to put up quite a battle at Birdwood.
The Eklund family joined Greene Hills Country Club in Stanardsville, where Moyers’ father, Mike, has been head golf pro for more than 25 years, in the mid-90s. With Wes and Mikey being about the same age, it was only natural they became pals.
“We practiced and played a lot together, almost every day during golf season, ever since we got to know each other,” said Eklund, who recently finished his freshman season as a golfer for Radford University. “Sometimes I would spend the night at Mikey’s house just so we could get out to the course earlier the next day.”
In recent years, although they attended different high schools, the two continued their friendship and their time on the golf course together. Over the past couple of years, they have collided in various ways in tournaments, either battling each other in stroke play, meeting head-to-head in match play, or finding themselves in playoffs for tournament titles.
Moyers will be playing for Virginia Tech in the fall, but even though he and Eklund will be at opposing schools, the Hokies and the Highlanders share the same home course, the River Course in Radford.
On any given day, one can beat the other, and there’s really no predictability or method to one prevailing.
“I can’t pinpoint anything, any key to beating Mikey,” Eklund said. “He can be striking the ball and putting like crazy and beat anybody out there. I just have to stick to my game and not worry about anything else.
“I do know that Mikey’s going to be under par at Birdwood, but I can’t afford to think about that,” Eklund continued. “Sure, we want to beat each other but we can’t be consumed by it.”
Moyers, who shocked the local golf scene by winning the Jefferson Cup and became the youngest golfer in the history of the Battle Trophy to win that prestigious title in 2006, is clearly taking this weekend’s event
seriously.
While his scheduled practice round Thursday morning at Birdwood was rained out, he worked on his game well into the evening at Greene Hills that night.
Eklund worked at Birdwood and realizes that even though Moyers is the only golfer who can possibly catch him in the Battle Trophy competition, plenty of players will be gunning for the Jefferson Cup title.
Among the favorites in the field this weekend is Farmington’s Paul Kane, a previous Battle Trophy champion, who is ranked third in the competition’s standings. Other players to watch are Farmington’s Phil Mahone and Spring Creek’s Jerry Burton, along with Daniel Walker, coming off a strong showing at the SunTrust of Virginia State Open.
Others considered threats to win the Jefferson Cup include Jeff Toms, Scott Garrison, Ty Grove and Tony Good, among others.
Eklund and Moyers will not be playing in the same group this morning. Eklund will tee off at 10:50 with Walker and Tim Driver. Moyers will be in the group behind them, teeing off at
11 a.m., also consisting of Burton and Nick Biesecker.
The three-day, 54-hole, stroke play event will continue through Sunday and the public is invited to attend.