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Augusta National’s Drive Chip & Putt Regional a Huge Success! Eight skilled juniors advanced to the finals for the Drive Chip & Putt Championship to be hosted at the 2014 Masters! It was a huge thrill for the kids and their parents! 160 of the best from our 10 local qualifiers gathered at Reunion Resort in Orlando for the Regional Finals. The champions from each division took to the Olympic style podium to receive their gold medals and punch their ticket to The Masters! It was worth all the efforts of staff, volunteers and associates to see the faces and emotions of all the competitors and their proud parents! Medals were also awarded to 1st, 2nd and 3rd for all the contests. A media center was set up
David Damesworth, PGA, and Rob Torri, GCSAA to interview the champions too! Thank you to Augusta National, The USGA and the PGA of America for initiating such a great competition. It’s not only growing the game but providing the thrill of competition to juniors throughout the country. We’ll be applauding our qualifiers on that special Sunday prior to the Masters! Truly a special day! David Damesworth; Orange Tree Golf Club, sunk a 25 foot birdie putt on the 18th hole to force a playoff with Charles Raulerson; Country Club of Orange Park at The Waldorf Astoria Golf Club in Orlando to win the North Florida PGA Professional Champion56
ship. Then it was off to the tenth tee for sudden death. David defeated Rich with Keith Kulzer Charles on that hole to claim the title. We appreciate the privilege of being able to compete at The Waldorf Astoria Golf Club! It was truly a test! 7 Section players qualified for the 2014 National Club Professional Championship. They are: Rod Perry; Crane Lakes, 2013 National PNC Champion (exempt) David Damesworth; Orange Tree Golf Club, Charles Raulerson; Country Club of Orange Park, Spencer Brown; Selva Marina, Ryan Hritz; Countryside CC, David Hronek, Jim Garrison; Temple Terrace CC and Sean Gorgone; The Whole Game of Golf. Barry Cheesman, Evie’s Family Golf Center, fired a final round 67 to hold off 10 other players who were under par to win our Senior PNC at Reunion Resort in Orlando. He finished at 8 under to edge out Jim Wright, Golftec, who finished at 7 under. Barry, along with 7 others are now qualified to compete in the PGA Senior Championship coming up this Fall. Even though the pins were tucked, our seniors proved that they still have game! The other qualifiers were all at 3 under or better for the competition! Our other qualifiers were: Gary Murfitt, Hyde Park, Ken Powell, Manatee County GC, Gerry James, Center Force Golf Systems, Bill Sellers, CC of Orlando and Tom Garner, Bay Hill. Thank you to Tray and his staff at Reunion Resort for the perfect conditions on the Palmer Course! How do you prepare for your final round in a championship? If you’re Keith Kulzer you don’t! Caught in traffic and arriving at the first tee just in time without a warm up shot, Keith Kulzer, Quail Hollow, shot an impressive 66 in the final round
Rich with Barry Cheesman to pass the field and win the NFPGA Assistants Championship at Reunion Resort! Keith finished at 135 to win the title. Tied for second were Brian Keiser, Waldorf Astoria Golf Club, Tyler Hitchcock, Walt Disney World Golf and David Hronek at 139. Brian and Tyler won the playoff to advance to the PGA Assistant Championship. Thank you to Reunion Resort for the great service and excellent conditions. The course was perfect! Thank you Brian from Cobra Puma for greeting the players both days. It was great to see our new breed of competitors tee it and have some fun. Congratulations to David Damesworth, PGA, and Rob Torri, GCSAA from Orange Tree Golf Club on their victory at our NFPGA Pro Superintendent at The Palmer Legends located in The Villages…again! David and Rob shot the magical 59 to edge out Nick Frontero, PGA and Nick Franz; Tee It Up and Chris DeBusk, PGA and Jeff Morris; Havana Golf & CC who posted 61’s! Thank you to Mark Verkey and the entire staff for the always great service and food! We always look forward to our visit to The Palmer Legends! Florida Golf Central • Volume 14, Issue 4