AGC Tour Player-of-the-Year Tanner Hughes
PEBBLE BEACH, California (December 21, 2014)
--
We can't recall the last time anyone has won
back-
to-back AmateurGolf.com championships. And
while
our historians are checking it out, we can tell
you for
sure that nobody had ever won the Christmas
Classic
(Del Monte) and the Tour Championship in the
same
year.
That is, until today.
Tanner Hughes played nearly flawless golf
on
Sunday at a challenging Poppy Hills Golf Course,
fresh off a 2013/2014 redesign by Robert Trent
Jones, Jr. The course plays almost links-like
and
requires the type of shotmaking that Hughes was
able to demonstrate.
And relatively new greens that had received
quite a bit of rain didn't stop him from making
the
big putts, including an 8-footer for birdie on the
par-
5 18th, with his next closest opponent, first
round
leader Sean Crocker of USC, looking at a nearly
sure
birdie from close range.
"I thought the putt was probably to
win," said Hughes, who added, "I hit the
green in two, but left the first putt short and was
glad to finish off the round that way."
Hughes is currently a redshirt freshman at
Cal,
and if he continues to play like this he'll likely
find
himself traveling with the team next year.
Until then, he has vaulted to the top of the
AmateurGolf.com Tour rankings and will take
home
not only the two titles he won in December, but
the
title of "Player-of-the-Year" as well. Not
a bad way to close out 2014.
SENIOR AND NET DIVISIONS
Mark Miller and Dale Bouguennec tied at 145
after shooting bookend tournament rounds of 71-
74
(Bouguennec) and 74-71 (Miller). After finishing
the
final hole tied, they headed to the tight-driving
hole
No. 1 for a playoff. Miller won with a par after
splitting the fairway while Bouguennec had to
settle
for bogey after finding the trees left off the tee.
Still, Bouguennec, a very consistent (and
long)
golfer from Pleasant Hill, has had an excellent
month
of December. He tied for the lowest score in
both the
Christmas Classic and Tour Championship, but
had to
playoff with two of California's best Seniors; first
Casey Boyns at Del Monte and then Mark Miller
today.
 |
| Net winner Andrew Zacks (L) w/ Sr
champ
Mark Miller |
Miller, from Antioch, will win the Senior
Player-
of-the-Year title again in 2014 - congratulations!
The Net field, playing the same tees as the
seniors, was topped by Andrew Zacks of San
Francisco. Zacks posted a gross 79 for net 70 in
the
first round, and followed with a 81 net 72 on
Sunday
to win by 4 shots over Chris Ladd.
Zacks made things a bit interesting by
playing a
little "hockey" around the hole on the
17th green (hey, we all do it from time to time)
but
his caddie Audra Keppler, the 2014 NCGA
Women's
Am champ and newly-turned pro, lightened
things up
by asking a non golf question as they walked off
the
green.
"What's your favorite food Andrew?"
A pro golfer, and pro caddie too.
ABOUT THE
AmateurGolf.com 2014 Tour Championship presented by Callaway Golf
The Tour Championship is now open to all
players who satisfy the handicap
requirements.
Join is at the completely renovated Poppy
Hills Golf
Course in one of three fields: scratch, senior
scratch, and net.
NOTE:
Poppy Hills recently reopened
after a complete remodel. The course plays
fast,
firm, and fun yet retains the charm of
winding
through the forest inside the 17 Mile Drive.
Read a
Poppy Hills
Pebble Beach Course Review.
View Complete Tournament Information