UVA Men’s Golf signs stellar class of three top juniors

Courtesy UVA Media Relations

Virginia men’s golf coach Bowen Sargent announced today the signing of a three-man recruiting class of top junior golfers who will join the Cavalier program next fall.

The class includes Ben Haggin (Lexington, Ky.), Matthew Monastero (Leesburg, Va.) and Deven Patel (Johns Creek, Ga.).

“Of the three, Devin comes in the most decorated,” Sargent said. “He has demonstrated very consistent play at the national level, finishing inside the top 30 in most junior events regularly. He had a solid 2020 including several top 10s and a sixth-place finish in the Georgia State Amateur.

“Benny and Matthew bring their own strengths to the program, as both are explosive players with a lot of firepower. We’ve seen stretches of very good golf from both when they are on. In the coming year, both look to gain experience, consistency and growth. I think Matthew and Benny are on a good trajectory and, with hard work, they’ll come in ready in August. All three are committed student-athletes who fit our team goals of academic and athletic excellence.”

Patel qualified for the 2019 U.S. Junior Amateur where he advanced to the match play portion of the event. He placed fourth at the 2019 Junior Jones Cup and tied for sixth at the 2020 Georgia Amateur Championship. Was ranked as high as third in the state by Golfweek, Rolex and Junior Golf Scoreboard and figures No. 36 nationally in Golfweek’s junior rankings.

Patel took home top honors at the 2018 PGA Georgia Section’s UGA Junior Classic. He was a first-team all-state pick for Johns Creek High School in 2020, helping his team to four consecutive AAAAAA state titles.

Monastero was a recipient of the 2020 Middle Atlantic PGA Denny McCarthy Scholarship. He captured the individual title at the 2020 Hurricane Junior Golf Tour’s College Prep event at UVA’s Birdwood Golf Course. He took medalist honors at the 2019 Denny McCarthy Invitational and had four top-six finishes at AJGA events from 2019 to 2020.

Monastero qualified for match play at the 2018 U.S. Junior Championship and won the Bobby Bowers Championship that year. He played in the Virginia State Amateur Championship in 2018 and 2020 and the State Open in 2020.  He competed in the Virginia-Carolinas, Capital Cup and MidAtlantic Boys Invitational events. Monastero was the Michael Breed Invitational Champion in 2018 for the Freshman/Sophomore Boys division and was an all-state golfer at Loudoun County High School in 2019.

Haggin, a native of Lexington, Ky., attends Woodberry Forest School in Virginia. He was his home state’s 2019 Junior PGA Champion and went on to place in the top 50 at the 2019 Junior PGA Championship. That same year he tied for fourth place at the 2019 Southern Junior Championship, had a top-10 finish at the Kenridge Invitational – where he also received the Low Junior Award – and placed in the top five of the Kentucky Junior Amateur.

Haggin was the top-ranked player for the Class of 2021 in the state of Kentucky. He was ranked as high as No. 36 in the nation for the class of 2021 and figured in the top 150 nationally of the Junior Golf rankings.

At Woodberry Forest, Haggin was the Virginia Prep League Champion and MVP in 2019. He is a two-time all-state selection (2018 & 2019) and set the school’s lowest single-season scoring average in 2020.