After win at Laurel Hill, Falls Church resident is set to turn pro
There’s little debate that Laurel Hill is the best public golf course in Fairfax County. There’s no question that A.J. Gerlach agrees.
Earlier this month, when the Falls Church resident won the Virginia Public Links Championship at the Lorton course, it was his third victory there in 15 months. Last year at Laurel Hill, he won the Northern Virginia Amateur and was medalist at a Virginia Amateur qualifier.
“The course fits my eye. It gives you a lot of different looks and its always in great condition,” said Gerlach, 24. “It can play fairly long. The fairways are wide. It really suits my game.”
At 5-foot-9, 170 pounds, Gerlach packs a lot of punch in his compact frame and swing. The highlight of his 4 and 2 victory over Fairfax’s Jeff Topp in the Public Links final was a cart-path aided, 380-yard drive at the par five 9th, which left him a 9-iron to the green. He two-putted for a birdie to take a 4-up lead.
At the previous green, Gerlach drained a curling, 60-foot putt for one of his five birdies in his wire-to-wire win. In claiming his first Virginia State Golf Association title, Gerlach never trailed in any of his four match-play wins.
If that sounds like someone ready to step up to another level of competition, you’re right. Later this fall, Gerlach will quit his caddie job at Burning Tree, move to Florida, turn pro, and take a stab at mini-tour golf.
Gerlach doesn’t have a traditional golf pedigree. He’s never been a member of a country club, and doesn’t play many rounds, opting for long hours at the driving range. He took up golf in middle school, was a solid but unheralded player at J.E.B. Stuart High, and made an unsuccessful attempt to walk on at UNC Greensboro, where he earned a degree in finance.
“It’s comforting having a degree. One of these days, I’ll have to use it,” said Gerlach. “For now though, it’s great to have this opportunity. I have my family, all the support they’ve given me, to thank for that.”
Gerlach notes
» Last fall, Gerlach won the Mid-Atlantic Amateur at Congressional.
» He will defend his Mid-Atlantic title at Belle Haven, Oct. 2-5.
