Rising game of Briggs Winfree

In recent years, several Alaskan golfers have successfully advanced to the collegiate level, among them Abigail Ante, Keira DeLand and Jack Carr.

Briggs’ journey has enabled him to meet the stars of the game, such as PGA Tour player Collin Morikawa.

Briggs Winfree, a 17-year-old from Anchorage and member of the high school class of 2027, is hopeful to add his name to that list. His golf journey goes back five years or so, when he picked up the game at age 12 having been a hockey and baseball player. Briggs has since entrenched himself within the game and now bases himself at the Junior Players Golf Academy (JPGA) in the renowned golf haven of Hilton Head, South Carolina, year-long playing territory.

His effort has been paying off. Briggs won the 2025 Alaska State Match Play and placed third in the 2026 Palencia Junior Open (boys 16-18 division) on the Florida-based Hurricane Junior Golf Tour.

It’s been quite the journey for the young golfer. Once he knew he was hooked on the game, Briggs found himself playing in a smattering of junior and Alaska Golf Association events, first taking on the State Match Play as an incoming high school freshman. Given Alaska’s obvious climate and lack of high school golf teams, he began searching for established programs further south and found the JPGA, 4,000 miles or more from Anchorage. Applying and submitting a video of his swing, he was soon granted the opportunity and suddenly had a major geographic adjustment to make.

“I could’ve never imagined being 15 and already being out of the house like that,” Briggs said in 2025, on the Foretee9th Golf podcast. “Just definitely different.”

Describing how he soon penciled out his goals and made some mental adjustments, Briggs has now made it to the back end of his second year at the JPGA and third as a high school student.

With proactive outreach being the key to a college coach’s attention, Briggs has been hard at work sending emails that contain his resume and swing video across the country.

With one more year of high school remaining until he further elevates his game, he’ll always be grateful for Alaska Golf Association’s support through it all.

“I love hanging out with everyone at the events,” he told Foretee9th. “If those events weren’t as fun as they are, I don’t know if I’d have the passion for golf that I do.”