The PGA Tour season begins in earnest this week in Hawaii and it will get started with a large contingent of newcomers with Georgia ties.
Making their full-time debuts are former Georgia Tech star Roberto Castro and former Georgia standouts Harris English and Brian Harman. All will be in the field for this week’s Sony Open in Hawaii.
Castro’s presence means there will be six Georgia Tech players on Tour. The two new Bulldogs will mean there are eight former UGA players on the tour.
Castro, 26, earned his way by finishing 23rd on the Nationwide Tour’s money list. He played his way onto the Nationwide Tour in 2009 after winning twice on the TarHeel Tour, one of the top mini-circuits in the region. Although he had secured his PGA card, Castro tried to improve his position by playing in the PGA Q-School and tied for 13th, which will enable him to play in more tournaments at the beginning of the season.
“I’ve never really been a big goal-setter,” Castro said. “I don’t want to limit myself. I just want to see how good I am. I’m trying to build a career more than just have a good year.”
Harman, 24, has played in four previous PGA Tour events. The left-hander has great credentials. He won the 2003 U.S. Junior Amateur championship, the 2005 Georgia Amateur and played on a pair of Walker Cup teams. Harman spent most of last season competing on the eGolf Tour, finishing 10th on that mini-tour’s money list. He played his way through the Q-school process and earned his card by finishing tied for eighth in the final stage.
English, 22, turned pro after he graduated in the spring. He won the Nationwide Tour’s Children’s Hospital Invitational as an amateur in the spring, but delayed becoming a professional so he could compete on the U.S. Walker Cup team. English won the 2007 Georgia Amateur when he was 18, the third-youngest player to accomplish the feat behind Bobby Jones and Charlie Yates.
A four-time All-American at Georgia, English was fully exempt for the Nationwide Tour, but earned his PGA card by tying for 13th on PGA Q-school.
Etc.
PGA Tour commissioner Tim Finchem received a four-year contract extension, keeping him in charge through 2016. He has been commissioner since 1994. ... With his victory in the Hyundai Tournament of Champions, Steve Stricker has extended his win streak to four seasons, matching Dustin Johnson. Phil Mickelson has won at least once in eight consecutive years. Stricker, 45, is the only player on Tour to have multiple wins over the past three seasons. It is his ninth victory since his 40th birthday. David Toms, playing as a single on the final day Monday, completed his round in two hours and 31 minutes. Toms, a huge LSU football fan, wanted to give himself plenty of time to get ready for the BCS Championship game against Alabama. Stricker will attempt to become the second player to win back-to-back events in Hawaii. Ernie Els won the 2003 Tournament of Champions and the Sony Open. ... Sonny Skinner of Sylvester is the PGA of America’s Senior Professional of the Year. The award is based on a point system that involves national and sectional events. Skinner, the PGA professional at River Pointe Golf Club in Albany, won an event on the PGA Tournament Series and was second on the money list. He tied for 10th at the Senior PGA Professional National Championship, was second in the PGA Senior Stroke Play Championship, and was the low PGA Club Professional at the Senior PGA Championship.
Material from Associated Press was used in this article.
About the Author
