Seminoles Finish In 2nd Place At Season-Opening Gator Invitational

All-American Blixt leads three Seminoles in top-10 of the individual standings.

Feb. 10, 2008

GAINAESVILLE, Fla. - The No. 13 Florida State men's golf team, with three individuals earning top-10 placings, finished in second place in the final standings at the SunTrust Gator Invitational at the University of Florida Golf Course. Senior All-American Jonas Blixt and sophomore Seath Lauer finished in a tied for sixth place while freshman Drew Kittleson finished in a tie for ninth place in the individual standings.

Florida State, which is ranked No. 13 in the latest ranking by GolfWeek Magazine and No. 15 by GolfStat, finished with an eight-under par team score of 832. They finished behind the host Gators and ahead of five other teams ranked in the nation's top 30 including No. 9 Duke who finished in a tie for sixth place in the team standings. The Gators entered the event ranked No. 12 in the GolfWeek poll and No. 18 by GolfStat. Duke's Michael Schachner and Zach Sucher of UAB were co-individual medalists with identical scores of seven-under par 203. It was decided not to play a playoff and the two shared medalist honors.

"While I am disappointed that we did not challenge Florida in the final round, I am proud of the way we finished the final nine holes," said Head Coach Trey Jones. "This team loves to compete and never quits. When you have three guys finish in the top 10 and four in the top 21, it shows that our young guys are beginning to show signs of improvement. There were not two players in the field who played as well as Seath and Drew over the final 36 holes of the event."

Blixt (Hammaro, Sweden) earned his 13th career top-10 finish as he closed the event with a three-under par total of 207. His 207 total ranks as the best three-round score of his career and is six strokes better than his 213 total which earned him medalist honors at the 2007 Gator Invitational. Blixt carded back-to-back scores of 67 in the first and second rounds of the event.

Lauer (Huntington, Ind.) tied his career low with a 67 in the final round of the event and finished with a career-low score of 207. His tied for sixth place finish is the second best of his career - behind only his tied for fourth place finish at the spring 2007 Linger Longer Invitational. Lauer finished the event with scores of 68 in the second round and 67 in the third round and moved up 15 positions in the individual standings after beginning the final round in a tie for 21st place.

Freshman Drew Kittleson (Scottsdale, Ariz.) earned the first top-10 finish of his young career as he closed the event with a two-under par 68 to finish with a career best 208 total and a tied for ninth place finish. He closed the event with consecutive scores of 68. Kittleson's scores of 68 marked career-low scores for the freshman and were five strokes better than his previous low of 73 which he carded during the first round of the fall 2007 Isleworth/UCF Collegiate Invitational.

Junior All-American Matt Savage (Louisville, KY) finished in a tie for 21st while junior Nicholas Smith finished in a tie for 57th and Cameron Knight placed 65th. Savage played his best round of golf in the final round as he closed with an even par score of 70.

The Seminoles continue their spring schedule as the play host to the Seminole Intercollegiate at Golden Eagle Country Club in Tallahassee on March 2-4.

SunTrust Gator Invitational/Par 70/Final Team Scores
University of Florida Golf Course/Gainesville, Fla./Feb. 9-10, 2008
2/14.   Florida State    278   276   278   832
T6.     Jonas Blixt      67    67    73    207
T6.     Seath Lauer      72    68    67    207
T9.     Drew Kittleson   72    68    68    208
T21.    Matt Savage      67    75    70    212
T57.    Nicholas Smith   72    73    77    222
65.     Cameron Knight   76    73    77    226 *
* competed as an individual

SunTrust Gator Invitational/Par 70/Final Team Scores
University of Florida Golf Course/Gainesville, Fla./Feb. 9-10, 2008
1.   Florida            820   T6.   Louisiana State     853
2.   Florida State      832   9.    Coastal Carolina    856
3.   Mississippi State  842   10.   Georgia Southern    861
4.   UAB                844   11.   Ole Miss            862
5.   South Alabama      851   12.   North Florida       865
T6.  Duke               853   13.   South Florida       873
T6.  Wake Forest        853   14.   Georgia State       888

LPGA Playoffs 2008 begins this week

DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. – LPGA Playoffs 2008 gets underway this week with the prospect of a $1 million payout looming large for the third consecutive year. Last season, Lorena Ochoa used the $1 million ADT Championship paycheck—only the second in women's professional golf history—to set an LPGA record with more than $4 million in season earnings. But as the old adage goes, records are meant to be broken and beginning this week, players are eager to start earning points toward a spot in the ADT Championship, held November 20-23, 2008, at Trump International Golf Club in West Palm Beach, Fla.

LPGA Playoffs 2008 is a yearlong competition that splits the season into two halves and features 13 Winner Events, defined as official LPGA Tour events with a purse of at least $2 million. The first half of the season starts this week at the SBS Open at Turtle Bay and concludes in June with the McDonald's LPGA Championship Presented by Coca-Cola. A total of 15 players will qualify in the first half—eight via Winner Events and seven via ADT Points. The second half of the season begins at the Wegmans LPGA and will feature five players qualifying via Winner Events and 10 through the ADT Points designation. Following the end of the second half of the season at the Lorena Ochoa Invitational Presented by Banamex and Corona, two wildcards will be selected to complete the 32-player ADT Championship field.

The ADT Championship will feature three days of “playoffs,” with a final-round shootout. During the weekend, the scorecards will be wiped clean for both the third and final rounds. After 36 holes, the first cut will be made to the low-16 players, with a sudden-death playoff used in case of a tie. The third round will be played in eight groups of two, with all players starting with a fresh scorecard. After 54 holes, another cut will be made to the low eight players, again using a sudden-death playoff to break any ties for eighth place. For the second consecutive year, a live draw will take place with the final eight players immediately following the third round, where players will draft their own tee time based on their third-round finish.

The final round will be played in four groups of two, with all players starting with yet another fresh scorecard. The player who records the lowest score in the final round will win the ADT Championship and $1 million.

San Filippo, Logue, Ciampi claim titles in PGA Quarter Century event--Two Floridians Win

PORT ST. LUCIE, Fla. -- Mike San Filippo, Hobe Sound, Fla.; Jim Logue, Canton, Ohio; and Nunzio Ciampi, Palm City, Fla., were the major winners Jan. 15, in the 54th TaylorMade-adidas Golf PGA Quarter Century Championship.

San Filippo, 55, a conditional player on the Champions Tour, fired a bogey-free 5-under par 67, breaking out of the pack to finish at 136, low among age groups 49-under through 60-64 on the Ryder Course at The PGA Golf Club.

On the adjacent Wanamaker Course, Logue, 67, shot a 72, for 142, the lowest score for age groups 65-69 through 90-over. Ciampi, 71, totaled 152, the best among eight players who have been members of The PGA of America for at least 50 years.

The PGA Quarter Century Championship, for PGA Professionals with a minimum of 25 years of membership, drew 194 entries. It is the second of six tournaments that comprise the 55th annual PGA Winter Championships. The PGA Senior-Junior Team Championship follows at The PGA Golf Club, Jan. 22-25.

San Filippo, one of seven players to shoot 69 in the first round, got off to a good start in the final round with birdies on the second and fourth holes. "That was important, because the first four holes played into the wind," San Filippo said. "To be 2-under early was a good start, and I played solid all day," adding birdies at Nos. 6, 11 and 15.

Logue, former PGA head professional at Brookside Country Club, was low for the older divisions for the second year in a row. He shot 67-69--136 on the Ryder Course last year as well. "The wind made a huge difference today," he said after a round of just one birdie, a five-footer at the fifth hole, and one bogey, three-putting No. 8.

Ciampi had just achieved his 50-year PGA membership in April. He had spent 50 years at Glen Head Country Club on Long Island, N.Y., the last 35 as the PGA head professional before he retired in 2002.

These were the fourth Winter Championship victories for San Filippo and Logue, and the second for Ciampi. San Filippo won the PGA Stroke Play Championship in 1992, and the PGA Senior Stroke Play Championship in 2004 and 2006. This was the first year he was eligible for the PGA Quarter Century Championship. Logue was the junior member of the winning PGA Senior-Junior Team Championship in 1971, captured the PGA Senior Stroke Play Championship in 2005 and the PGA Quarter Century Championship last year. Ciampi was the senior member on the winning PGA Senior-Junior Team Championship in 1987.

San Filippo and Logue received $1,500 apiece for their overall victories. The balance of the $52,000 purse was distributed among the 10 age groups. Ciampi was fourth in the 70-74 division, earning $850.

The overall and age group winners:

TaylorMade-adidas Golf PGA Quarter Century Championship
The PGA Golf Club - Port St. Lucie, Fla.
Ryder Course (par-72, 6,626 yards)
Overall -- Mike San Filippo, Hobe Sound, Fla., 69-67--136, $1,500
49-under -- Larry Emery, Carterville, Ill., 73-70--143, $500
50-54 -- Gary Robison, Canton, Ohio, 72-68--140, and Bob Boyd, Wilmington, N.C., 69-71--140, $1,050
55-59 -- Mike San Filippo, Hobe Sound, Fla., 69-67--136, $1,850
60-64 -- Bryan Abbott, Stuart, Fla., 71-70--141, $1,500

Wanamaker Course (par-72, 6,037 yards)
Overall -- Jim Logue, Canton, Ohio, 70-72--142, $1,500
65-69 -- Jim Logue, Canton, Ohio, 70-72--142, $1,500
70-74 -- Dick Hendrickson, West Chester, Pa., 71-77--148, $1,500
75-79 -- Bill Erfurth, Northbrook, Ill., 71-80--151, $1,000
80-84 -- Ray Montgomery, Fort Pierce, Fla., 75-79--154, $750
Half-Century -- Nunzio Ciampi, Palm City, Fla., 73-79--152

Wanamaker Course (par-72, 4,941 yards)
85-89 -- Manuel de la Torre, Milwaukee, Wis., 85-88--173, $250
90-up -- Duffy Martin, Guthrie, Okla., 99-96--195, $250

Morris-Bensel duo win PGA Senior-Junior Team Championship

Kevin Morris of Palm Beach Gardens, Fla., made a three-foot birdie putt on the first playoff hole, Jan. 25, as he teamed with Frank Bensel of Greenwich, Conn., to win the 50th anniversary TaylorMade-adidas Golf PGA Senior-Junior Team Championship. The Championship features teams paired of a PGA Professional 50 or older and a younger counterpart.

Morris and Bensel outlasted brothers Jerry Tucker of Stuart and Mike Tucker of St. Louis, Mo., after they tied at 28 under par 260 when they matched nine under par 63s the final round on the Wanamaker Course at The PGA Golf Club in Port St. Lucie, Fla. The two teams began the final round four strokes behind the leaders.

It was the second win in three years for Morris and Bensel, an unprecedented achievement in the historic championship. For the first 46 years of the four-ball stroke play event teams were formed by blind draw, hence it was unlikely the same two players would ever paired up more than once. They won with a 261 in 2006.

In the playoff, all four were in the fairway off the tee at the par-5 first hole. Only Bensel came close to reaching the green in two, his second shot landing in a swale in front of the green. Morris hit a 4-hybrid second shot and a 105-yard wedge to just below the hole and sank the putt after both Tuckers were in the hole with pars.

"We both played great today and the conditions were tough with the wind and cold weather," said Bensel, 39, an assistant professional at Century Country Club in White Plains, N.Y. Bensel made four of his five birdies on the front nine. Morris, 56, had all four of his birdies on the back. They made one team bogey in 72 holes.

It was Bensel's third victory in the PGA Winter Championships, counting the two Senior-Juniors and the 2004 Match Play Championship. Morris has the two team titles. Bensel grew up playing at Westchester Hills in White Plains, N.Y., where Morris was the head professional for 30 years before he retired in 2006.

Don Brigham and Jamie Fordyce of Port St. Lucie, the third-round leaders who both consider The PGA Golf Club courses home turf, made only one birdie on the first 13 holes before the former birdied the 14th and 15th holes and Fordyce the 16th. They finished third with 68-261.

Morris and Bensel earned $3,500 apiece from the $89,180 purse. Brigham and Fordyce received $2,500 each.

Nicklaus/PGA teaching grants awarded to 18 chapters of The First Tee --Clearwater Chapter is Recipient

PALM BEACH GARDENS, Fla. -- The PGA Foundation, in conjunction with golf legend Jack Nicklaus, has begun the 2008 golf season awarding teaching grants totaling $90,000 to 18 chapters of The First Tee representing 14 states.

To date, 155 of the 206 active chapters of The First Tee nationwide have been recipients of either a PGA of America or Nicklaus/PGA teaching grant. The combined PGA and Nicklaus/PGA grants total $1,810,000.

Since 2001, The PGA of America and Nicklaus have partnered to create a $2 million endowment to provide teaching grants to certified chapters of The First Tee that utilize PGA Professionals for instruction.

"The PGA of America is proud to kick off this New Year with our partner Jack Nicklaus to extend Nicklaus/PGA Teaching Grants coast to coast," said PGA of America President Brian Whitcomb. "The wonderful messages and reports we receive are that these grants continue to produce success stories in communities. The First Tee momentum has helped grow the game of golf and brought many young people into the game."

The program continues to highlight The PGA of America's commitment to partner with its PGA Professionals to grow participation in golf.

The current Nicklaus/PGA teaching grants totaling $5,000 each have been awarded to The First Tee Chapters in California, Colorado, Florida, Georgia, Idaho, Louisiana, Maryland, Nevada, New Jersey, New York, North Carolina, South Carolina, Texas and Washington.

Since its inception in 1997, there are 206 chapters of The First Tee in operation and 264 golf-learning facilities that have introduced the game of golf and its values to more than 2.2 million participants and students (which include the students of the National School Program). The focus is to give young people of all backgrounds an opportunity to develop, through golf and character education, life-enhancing values such as honesty, integrity and sportsmanship.

The PGA Growth of the Game Program is one of a number of initiatives administered by The PGA of America through its PGA Foundation

The PGA Foundation, a 501(c)(3) non-profit charity, is dedicated to enhancing lives through the game of golf. The Foundation provides people of every ability, race, gender, and social and economic background an opportunity to experience the game and learn vital life lessons. The PGA Foundation achieves its mission through programs which provide instruction and access to playing the game of golf along with enriching those lives by providing educational, employment and scholarship opportunities.

For more information about the PGA Foundation, visit www.pgafoundation.org, or call (561) 624-7612.

Nicklaus/PGA of America Teaching Grant - $5,000 awarded to each chapter
The First Tee of Greater Trenton - Hamilton, N.J.
The First Tee of The Tri-Valley - Pleasanton, Calif.
The First Tee of Myrtle Beach - Myrtle Beach, S.C.
The First Tee of Columbia Basin - Pasco, Wash.
The First Tee of New Orleans - New Orleans, La.
The First Tee of Albany - Albany, Ga.
The First Tee of Clearwater - Clearwater, Fla.
The First Tee of Modesto - Modesto, Calif.
The First Tee of Metropolitan NY/Essex County - Newark, N.J.
The First Tee of Northern Nevada - Reno, Nev.
The First Tee of Eagle County - Edwards, Colo.
The First Tee of Idaho - Boise, Idaho
The First Tee of the Lake Norman Region - Cornelius, N.C.
The First Tee of Central Louisiana - Pineville, La.
The First Tee of Harford County, Md. - Aberdeen, Md.
The First Tee of Metropolitan NY/Nassau County - East Meadow, N.Y.
The First Tee of Metropolitan NY/Golf Club at Chelsea Piers - New York, N.Y.
The First Tee of Brazoria County - Lake Jackson, Texas

Since 1916, The PGA of America's mission has been twofold: to establish and elevate the standards of the profession and to grow interest and participation in the game of golf.

By establishing and elevating the standards of the golf profession through world-class education, career services, marketing and research programs, the Association enables PGA Professionals to maximize their performance in their respective career paths and showcases them as experts in the game and in the $195 billion golf industry.

By creating and delivering dramatic world-class championships and exciting and enjoyable golf promotions that are viewed as the best of their class in the golf industry, The PGA of America elevates the public's interest in the game, the desire to play more golf, and ensures accessibility to the game for everyone, everywhere.

The PGA of America brand represents the very best in golf.

My Round at: Sugarloaf Mountain

The newest Coore-Crenshaw course transports you to another state

By Tom Cunneff

During the PGA Merchandise Show in Orlando, Fla., the hottest ticket in town (next to a table at Roy's) was a round at Sugarloaf Mountain, Bill Coore and Ben Crenshaw's first design in Florida. These two minimalist masters are very selective about the sites on which they choose to build, so anytime a course of theirs opens, industry cognoscenti beeline it to the 1st tee.

Typified by large sandy areas and native grasses, the 7057-yard course is beguiling, and not just because of its natural setting and shot values, but because it's so unique for Florida. The private club, which will allow some resort play, is situated on the 312-foot namesake mountain, the highest point on peninsular Florida. (As for the name, that elevation is a hill in most places, but it's positively Himalayan in flat-as-a-scorecard Florida.) From the site of the proposed clubhouse, the panoramic views of Lake Apopka and even downtown Orlando, 25 miles away, are unlike any in Florida.

I was in another state—of mind, that is—during the round. I don't think I've ever enjoyed playing a new course more. The sandy areas give the fairways wonderful definition but are never excessively punitive like desert golf. The ball doesn't bound away, yet the sand is firm enough to allow for clean lies. The layout was challenging but extremely fair. There are a few blind shots, but those can be fun, especially if you play the course regularly.

The 433-yard opener (left) sweeps down and to the left, making for a fairly easy par. The approach shot on the downhill 405-yard 4th is one of the prettiest on the course, with moss-draped oaks and a small lake framing the green. The 200-yard 5th doesn't play its length because you can land the ball short and right of the Redan-inspired green and count on a big kick to the left. After the short dogleg-left 7th, you begin a gentle climb back up to the turn with a long par 4, medium par 3 and reachable par 5.

The back nine proves a little more difficult. One of the highlights is the 507-yard 13th. “First time I've ever played a par 4 over 500 yards,” said my playing partner. In fact, it's the longest par 4 in Florida, but the blind tee shot plays severely downhill, reminiscent of the 10th at Augusta National, so the hole plays quite a bit shorter. If the drive comes off the slope correctly, the approach can be as little as a wedge.

In a dramatic demonstration of the variety presented by the course, the longest par 4 in Florida is followed two holes later by one of the shortest. The 283-yard 15th plays steeply uphill, so only the longest hitters will be able to reach the putting surface with their drives.

The highlight was having Bill Coore (below, left) walk a few holes with us on the back nine and provide some insight into his design. He said that the biggest challenge was the routing because of the elevation changes. Part of the answer came from the common-sense solution of following paths carved by animals. “Nature won't steer you wrong,” he said.

Neither will a Coore-Crenshaw design.