News >> Hooters Tour Brings $250,000 Purse To McCormick

The Savannah Lakes Village Classic
Presented by McCormick County
Monticello Course @ Savannah Lakes Village
April 26-May 2, 2010
$250,000 Purse
 
The 2010 season continues to pick up steam and next week the Hooters Tour will return to Savannah Lakes Village for the eighth consecutive year. The 2010 event, The Savannah Lakes Village Classic presented by McCormick County will be contested over the challenging 7,032 yard Monticello Course and will feature a purse of $250,000 with $40,000 going to the winner.

When the Hooters Tour comes to town, the pros will play on Savannah Lake Village’s Monticello Course, one of two 18-hole award-wining championship golf courses, carved from the rolling landscape wrapping Lake Thurmond, that offer unique challenges and breathtaking vistas of the lake and piedmont forest.
 
“The #1 goal of The Hooters Tour has always been, and always will be to help professional golfers achieve their dream of playing on The PGA Tour,” said Robin L. Waters, Hooters Tour President. “Playing on a course consistently voted as one of the best by our players will provide invaluable experience to them. We are ecstatic to continue our relationship with Savannah Lakes Village and the Monticello Course.”
 
The Savannah Lakes Village Classic will also offer weeklong activities that allow Hooters Tour professionals to interact with the numerous volunteers, spectators and other touring professional. There will be a First Citizens Bank Junior Clinic held for selected McCormick County middle school students interested in learning the fundamentals of golf from the pros as well as a Palmetto Angler Fishing Tournament for all the NGA Hooters Tour players interested in “reeling in the big one.”
 
The Savannah Lakes Village Shootout which has quickly become a Tuesday tradition will be held again this year. The shootout is an alternate shot format in which a professional is paired with an amateur and one team is eliminated each hole until one team remains and on Wednesday April 28th there will be a pro-am sponsored by Lakeland’s Orthopaedic that gives amateurs the chance to play with the future stars of the PGA TOUR. As part of the pro-am, participants will also compete in the Lee Builders Putting Contest.
 
 The 2009 event, The Savannah Lakes Village Classic presented by Michelob Ultra, was captured by former Michigan State golfer Matthew Harmon of Grand Rapids, Michigan. Harmon started the week hot with 65 in the opening round but cooled slightly with a 71 on Friday before bringing home his second career win with weekend rounds of 67 and 69 for a four day total of sixteen-under par 272. The former Spartan outlasted David Skinns, Russell Knox and Matt Anderson by one stroke.
 
The field for this year’s Savannah Lakes Open will be highlighted by a group of players that have captured Hooters Tour titles in the past. The list of players includes Oscar Alvarez (1), Todd Bailey (3), Travis Bertoni (1), Mark Blakefield (2), Ryan Blaum (2), Ben Briscoe (1), Jeff Corr (2), Chip Deason (2), Marion Dantzler (1), Matthew Harmon (3), Billy Hurley III (1), Russell Knox (1), Grant Leaver (1), Andrew Medley (3), David Miller (1), Blaine Peffley (2), Phillip Pettitt Jr (1), Ted Potter (5), Jim Renner (1), Nick Rousey (2), David Skinns (3), Shawn Stefani (1), James Vargas (1) and Michael Welch (2). All told, there will be forty-three combined wins in the field next week in McCormick. A group of players with local ties will also take aim at taking home the $40,000 check. These local players include Augusta’s William Lanier, Evan’s Adam McKenney as well as former Clemson golfers Danny Ellis and David May and former South Carolina golfer Scott Feaster.
 
The Race for The Fort Smith Exemption is starting to heat up heading into McCormick. The exemption into The Nationwide Tour’s Fort Smith Classic at Hardscrabble Country Club will be given to the Hooters Tour member that accumulates the most money earned over the four events in April and May (Hampton, GA, McCormick, SC, Edwardsville, IL and Georgetown, KY). Through one event, defending McCormick champion Matt Harmon is in the driver’s seat after taking his third career title in Hampton on Sunday. The former Spartan has $31,650 and leads Blaine Peffley by more than $13,000.
 
 The 2010 season will be the best yet with stops at Golden Hills Golf & Turf Club (Host course of US Women's Mid-Amateur), Rock Barn Golf & Spa (Host to the Champions Tour Ensure Classic 2003-present), Cherry Blossom GC (Golfweek #1 in KY 5 years running), McCormick, SC (Consistently voted best event by players), The Auburn University Club (Host site of PGA Tour Q-School 2007-Present as well as the home course for Auburn University men’s and women’s golf teams), Callaway Gardens (Host to the PGA Tour’s Buick Challenge for 12 years as well as Stage 2 of PGA Tour Q-School 2008-present) as well as a stop at Mount Vintage Plantation (Host to the LPGA Tour’s Asahi Ryokuken International Championship 2001-2004).
 
The NGA/Hooters Tour is the 3rd largest men’s 72-hole professional golf tour in the country behind the PGA and Nationwide Tours, and boasts alumni like 2009 British Open Champion Stewart Cink, 2007 Masters Champion Zach Johnson, 2003 PGA Champion Shaun Micheel, 2003 British Open winner Ben Curtis, 2003 US Open winner Jim Furyk, two time U.S. Open winner Lee Janzen, British Open and PGA Champion John Daly, as well as British Open winner Tom Lehman, PGA Champion David Toms, 2003 Tour Championship Winner Chad Campbell, 2004 & 2005 Reno Tahoe Open winner Vaughn Taylor and TPC winner Craig Perks to name just a few. All told, the NGA/Hooters Tour’s alumni have an incredible 11 “Majors” to their credit. The NGA/Hooters Tour has helped more than 100 professionals acquire their PGA, Senior PGA, and Nationwide Tour cards. In fact, 48% of the players that earned their 2010 PGA Tour card, and 53% of the players that earned full exempt status on the Nationwide Tour started their careers on the NGA/Hooters Tour.
 
For more information about the NGA/Hooters Tour, please visit our web site, www.NGAHOOTERSTOUR.com. If you have any questions about sponsorship opportunities or interview requests before or during tournament week please contact Regional Tournament Director Ryan Waters at (803) 348.3045 or the NGA/Hooters Tour office at 843-281-TOUR (8687).