Cledus T. Judd qualifies for golf state amateur tourney

Cledus T. Judd (a.k.a. Barry Poole) made golf news this past week at his home course in Kentucky by earning a spot in the Kentucky Golf Association State Amateur.

Judd, the former country music parody, singer-songwriter from White, is now a morning show radio host with Clint McElroy and Judy Eaton on WTCR-FM in Huntington, West Virginia. The Cledus T. Judd Party with Clint & Judy is part of iHeartMedia.

Judd, who has been an avid golfer from his days at Cartersville Country Club and throughout his performing career in country music and radio, shot 82-75 last Saturday and Sunday (May 28-29) to qualify for the Kentucky Golf Association State Amateur.

The host site qualifier took place at Judd’s home course, Bellefonte Country Club in Ashland, KY, which is also the site of the 54-hole KGA State Amateur Championship July 12-14.

“I putted like a champ in that final round,” the 51-year-old Judd smiled. “I played like a dog that first day, but it felt like everything was going in during that second round.” Most of the remainder of the championship field is being determined at ten different qualifying sites throughout the state of Kentucky, including Bowling Green Country Club (Bowling Green), Gay Brewer Golf Club (Lexington), Owensboro Country Club (Owensboro), University of Louisville Golf Club (Simpsonville), Hopkinsville Golf and Country Club (Hopkinsville), Northern Kentucky Golf Club (Butler), Danville Country Club (Danville), Eagle’s Nest Country Club (Somerset), and Persimmon Ridge Country Club (Louisville).

The field will also include players exempt from qualifying.

The exempt group includes former Kentucky Amateur champions, top players in Kentucky’s amateur points standings, recent KGA Players of the Year, and winners of other KGA major amateur championships.

“I’ve been dealing with a little bit of an elbow injury of late and I let it bother me too much in the first round,” added Judd. “Making putts cures a lot of evils though,” he laughed.