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Dates Set for the 2010 Harvey Penick Invitational
AUSTIN, Texas (January 1, 2010)--The 2010 Harvey Penick Invitational has been scheduled for October 8-10, with a practice round scheduled for October 7.
The tournament honors Harvey Penick, the renowned Hall of Fame teaching professional who created the tournament in 1935 and whose association with Austin Country Club spanned 82 years. He was one of the finest teachers and gentlemen of the game, whose students included Tom Kite, Ben Crenshaw, Mickey Wright, Kathy Whitworth, and countless other golfers of all ability levels. His instructional books Harvey Penick’s Little Red Book (1992) and And If You Play Golf, You’re My Friend (1993) became the top two all-time sports best-sellers.
The Harvey Penick Invitational is a 54-hole individual stroke play event with two divisions, one for Mid-Amateurs aged 25 and over and one for Senior Amateurs aged 55 and over. The event is played at Austin Country Club, a Pete Dye design that opened in 1984 and has consistently been rated as one of the best courses in Texas. It is the home of the Morris Williams Intercollegiate, one of the premier college tournaments in the nation, and regularly hosts USGA qualifiers including those for the U.S. Open.
The tournament has long drawn a top amateur field, with an impressive list of participants and past champions. Winners of the tournament have gone on to win 12 PGA Tour titles, including the Masters, and 29 Champions Tour titles. Closer to home, winners of The Penick have won seven Texas State Amateur Championships, over fifty state titles overall, and the USGA State Team Championship for Texas. Participants in The Penick have included winners of the U.S. Amateur, British Amateur, NCAA Championships, and numerous state, regional and national amateur championships; as well as qualifiers for every USGA Championship including the U.S. Open.
2009 Results: Miller, Lutz Beat the Weather and the Field
AUSTIN, TX (October 11, 2009)--The weather was the story at the Harvey Penick Invitational, as a weather system brought unusually cool and rainy conditions to Austin Country Club. After Friday's round was rained out, the players managed to play one dry round on Saturday before the rains returned on Sunday.
The result was a very long and wet golf course, which combined with the cool temperatures to send scores soaring. In the end, Duane Miller managed to outlast the field and post a two-shot win with scores of 75-74--149. Zac Burton of Manhattan, KS rode the day's low round, a 73, to a runner-up finish, with Phil Thomas of Austin in 3rd at 152.
In the Senior Division, Ricky Lutz of Oklahoma City shot 69-76--145 for a five-shot win over John Grace of Ft. Worth, TX, with Mike Rice of Houston and Jaime Beaman of Austin tied for 3rd at 153.
Click here for 2009 results
2007 Results: Mathias
Repeats as Champion
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AUSTIN, Texas (Sept. 23, 2007)-- Jonathan Mathias was a bit tired when he began play in the Harvey Penick Invitational, Sept. 21-23 at Austin Country Club. It was understandable considering that he had played in the Texas Golf Association Mid-Amateur Championhip and the USGA State Team Championship in the week leading up to the Penick.
Mathias, an Air Force officer who is stationed at Lackland AFB in San Antonio, showed no signs of fatigue in Ausitn. He shot three consecutive rounds under par on the demanding ACC course to win the Penick Invitational for the second year in a row.
Mathias shot rounds of 69, 71 and 70 for a 54-hole total of 6-under 210. That was just good enough to hold off Austin's Michael Cooper, the 2005 Penick champion, who shot a closing round of 5-under 67 to take second place at 213. Gene Black, another accomplished Austin golfer, shot 69 in the final round to finish third at 215.
Mathias began the final round with a four-shot lead. Cooper and Black put pressure on him through the final round but could not finish the deal. Cooper got within one shot of the lead with a birdie on the par-5 17th.
Mathias answered with a birdie on No. 17 and another birdie on the par-4 18th to clinch the championship.
"I really like this course, and I really like the tournament," Mathias said. "I feel very comfortable here. Every year when the calendar turns to September I start to get excited about coming up here."
Prior to the final round, Austin's Billy Clagett predicted he would need a 3-under 69 to have a chance for a victory in the senior division.
He was exactly right.
His final round of 71 left him at 2-over 218 and one shot behind the winner, Doug Farr of Monroe, La., who also shot 71 Sunday for a 217 total.
Steven Hakes of San Diego, Gayle Sanchez of Denham Springs, Ia. and Ted Smith of Knightstown, In. tied for third at 219.
Click here for 2007 results and story from amateurgolf.com.
2006 Results: Mathias, Hullender Take Titles
AUSTIN, TX (September 24, 2006)--Taking an eight shot lead into the final round, Jonathan Mathias of San Antonio closed with a 75 to finish at 3-under-par 213 and a six shot win over Steve Trafton of Austin. Bob Niger of El Dorado Hills, CA and Kirk Kashevaroff of Saddle River, NJ finished tied for third at 222.
Mathias was coming off a five shot win last week at the Texas Mid-Amateur Championship, where he shot a final-round 66 at the Jackrabbit Course at Champions Golf Club in Houston. His strong play continued at Austin Country Club, with consecutive 69's in difficult playing conditions allowing him to distance himself from the field. The lead might have been even bigger except for the double bogey he took at the 18th hole in round two, holing out in darkness as the field raced to finish the round after a storm interrupted play.
In the Senior Division, Bob Hullender of San Antonio shot his age (69) on day two on his way to a five shot win over Andy Wall of Tyler and Van Stewart of Shreveport, LA. It was Hullender's third Harvey Penick Senior championship, having won in 1998 and 2005.
Click here for 2006 results and story from amateurgolf.com.
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