Catching up with Team North Carolina's Grayson Baucom

Grayson Baucom, 16, of Hickory, N.C., is a member of the Team North Carolina and was called up to the U.S. National Junior Team in April for the match against Sweden at the Vaquero Club, in Dallas, Texas. Baucom went 2-1 for the USNJT, including winning his singles match on Saturday, 4 & 2. He is currently No. 2 in the Carolinas Junior Boys Rankings and won the 2026 American Junior Golf Association Simplify Boys Championship. He recorded a T4 at the Dustin Johnson World Junior in March and won the Webb Simpson Challenge in December. He claimed two Carolinas Golf Association Championships in 2025: the Dogwood State Junior Boys’ Match Play Championship and the Mimosa Hills Junior Invitational.

You were called up from Team North Carolina to U.S. National Junior Team. What was your reaction when you got the call?

Baucom: I was entered into the Terra Cotta Invitational in Florida around that time which I was excited to play, but once I heard about this opportunity, I was super excited. I told my dad, I was like, we're going to that, because playing for the U.S. is a special opportunity, and anytime you can compete for your country, you do it. It was really fun being there with the guys. It's an awesome group and just playing against Sweden has been a good experience, especially at this place. It's awesome.

What are some big takeaways, from the coaches or from the other players, from your time with the USNJT?

Baucom: “Course management tips are the biggest thing I have learned. I think the main focus of the coaches was them talking about how I don't usually play with wind like it was blowing. A lot of pointers were geared toward playing more to the safe side. Learning how to play on a team and be a team was great. That' something I don't have a lot of experience with. I don't play high school golf or anything. I do online school, so getting ready for college golf, this has been an amazing experience and hopefully something a Team North Carolina and Team South Carolina match is in the near future. We had a ton of fun.”

Q. What has your experience been like with Team North Carolina? How does it compare to the week with the USNJT?

Baucom: “We unfortunately didn’t get to play during training camp in February. It was snowing, so we played indoors. We learned about physical training and nutrition and then did range sessions on the simulator. We were able to play pickleball and have fun with the team. I think everybody here (with the USNJT), their mindsets are different. They're really focused on what they have to do and their task and that's more of what I would like to be as well, more focused than I think I am, but it's a thing you have to develop.”

Q. What do your next few years look like in terms of recruiting and are you going to bring anything that you've learned this week with you as you go about your journey? 

Baucom: “Yeah, I haven’t put too much thought into college, but I'm excited to hopefully play somewhere, but we'll see how that goes, probably starting this summer sometime, [I'll be] more focused. [I'm] just trying to do what I can on the golf course, and hopefully the rest will take care of itself. These guys and how good they are and kind of playing with better players that I can learn from, like Tyler [Mawhinney] and Mason [Howell], Ronnie [Banerjee], Chase [Hughes] and Jaden [Soong], they're all really good and little things that they do is like learning how to chip a little bit better. I think I've improved my chipping a lot since I've been here, just watching Ronin [Banerjee] chip. He's got some saucy hands around these greens.”