By Barbara Palmgren
As a golf enthusiast and now occasional reporter, I covered this prestigious two-day event held at Santa Rosa Golf & Beach Club July 17-18. The private club boasts an 18-hole, par 72 championship golf course renovated last year to challenge the most skilled golfers. Santa Rosa Club was one of seven courses in Florida selected to host a qualifying tournament that selects two winners who advance to the national tournament in Colorado, August 14-20, at Cherry Hills Country Club and Colorado Golf Club.
The tournament began with 70 players in the field, the youngest just age 13, but all with a handicap index of 2.4 or less to compete. Nine different states were represented and three different countries. Some of the most famous names in golf have been U.S. Amateur Champions including Tiger Woods, Bobby Jones, Jack Nicklaus and more. The winner receives an automatic invitation to play in all of the majors except the PGA championship. The runner-up also receives an invitation to play in the Masters and the U.S. Open.
The second day, July 18, the field was reduced to 27 players who scored 75 or less. The winner was Nate Gahman from Albany, Ga., with a score of 139. Runner-up was Matthew Soucinek from Lake City, Fla., with a score of 140. Golfers began the day with tee times from 7:30 a.m. to 8:51 a.m. Conditions on the course were excellent with no high winds or rain to impede scoring.
Both players, when interviewed after their rounds, were excited to achieve this goal and travel to Colorado for the national championship. Nate, a young businessman with a wife and two young children, is pursuing a dream he’s had for many years. Matthew wants to become a professional golfer and sees this as an important step toward realizing that goal. He is in his last year at Southeastern University and was a member of the SEU men’s golf team.
From the heat of Florida to the high altitudes of Colorado, these two young men experienced a competition like no other. The last two men standing played 36 holes of golf at the end of a six-day event. Young men who dedicate time and energy to this sport, are role models for future young golfers as this sport continues to grow and amaze us all.
