Major Champions Crowned at Sooner State Showdown

Golf Channel Am Tour Staff, Tulsa, OK (May 4, 2014)  The late April, early May date on the Golf Channel AM Tour Major schedule,reserved the past few years in the "Show Me State" made a detour, due to course ownership and temporary closures,  to Tulsa, OK for the Sooner State Showdown.

Players from 15 states and 16 tours took advantage of a beautiful weather weekend to compete for over $15,000 in Golf Galaxy gift cards and trophies.  36 National Championship / Senior National Championship qualification invitations were presented on Sunday to the top three (and ties) finishers in each flight.  Players raised, over $1,400, through the 50/50 raffle, for David Feherty's Troops First Foundation.


RESULTS:

Championship Flight:  First year member, Jared Taylor from Edmond, OK, started the Sunday round with a four stroke advantage.  Over the first fix holes, Taylor went five over par and looked to have let in a couple of players into the mix, but finished with three birdies over the final fourteen holes to hoist his first Major Championship win.  With his win this weekend, he has now won four events in as many attempts and has gone a total of +4 over those five rounds.  Five strokes back,  Wylie, TX player Dallas Webster birdied, two of his last three holes to even up the runner up finish with,  Marcus House of Olive Branch, MS. grabbing the last two National Championship invites.

Senior Championship Flight:  Curt Howard of Sapulpa, OK took a three stroke lead to the final round. Starting the Sunday round on the tenth hole, Howard went out in +1 with the help of two birdies and held on to a four stroke win, his fourteenth win on tour and fifth Major Championship.  McKinney, TX member Michael Fyfe, playing in his second event on tour, took nine strokes of his first day total and jumped into the runner up spot and a Senior National Championship invitation with the The Fall Classic at Tunica winner,  Sean Fenton of Fort Worth, TX rounding out the top three.

Palmer Flight:  Knotted up in the leader position going to the final round, Jeff Bankard of San Antonio, TX took a one stroke advantage to his final nine holes, but Burlington, CO member Warren Schaal regained the lead on the twelfth hole of the day and never looked back.  The win was Schaal's second Major Championship and third win on tour. Gregory Haddon of Rowlett, TX birdied his tenth hole on Sunday to take the second place honors, with Bankard picking up the final National Championship invitation.

Senior Palmer Flight:   Al Smith of Midland, TX backed up his April Major Championship at the Bayou Classic at Lake Charles with a two day total 148 - +6 with the help of three birdies on the weekend. Playing alongside of Smith in the final pairing, Mansfield, TX player Michael Fee and Stephen Fitzgerald of Dallas, TX battled back and forth during the round until Fitzgerald birdied two of his last three holes to secure the runner up finish with Fee rounding out the top three.

Hogan Flight:  With a pair of +4 - 75's, Pete Kaufman of Bolingbrook, IL and Lewisville, TX resident, Shawn Whitaker played there way into a repeat of first round pairings for the showdown on Sunday.  After Whitaker's tough start, Kaufman controlled the rest of the way for a two stroke win and the Championship.  Jeffrey Banner of Lawton, OK took six strokes off his first round total to jump into a T2 finish with Spring, TX member Aaron Brougher.

Senior Hogan Flight:    Hank Chang of Lawton, OK found himself tied after the first round with Overland Park, KS player Steve Morehead and six players within three strokes.  After starting out solid on the front nine,  Chang, stumbled early on the back nine but birdied the par 4 - 16th to hold on to a two stroke win, his seventh on tour and first Major Championship.  Michael Walker from Cypress, TX bounced back from a tough front nine on Sunday and played his final nine holes in +2 with two birdies for the runner up finish to edge out a pair of players tied in the third spot by a stroke.  John Hilgers of Wimberly, TX jumped from a T-16 first round position to tie up the last Senior National Championship invitation with Bella Vista, AR member Tom Stephens.

Sarazen Flight:  Looking at a four stroke deficit after day one, Jeff Workman of Fort Worth, TX strung together a flight low round of the event, with the help of a birdie on his final hole to pick up his second win on tour in as many attempts and first Major Championship.  Cypress, TX player, Greg Smith playing in the final pairing matched his first round score for the second place honors with Kerry Greer of Oklahoma City, OK and Stephenville, TX member, Tony Lyon splitting the show position finish.

Senior Sarazen Flight:  Taking advantage of a last minute addition off the waiting list, Jim Nedry of Lago Vista, TX shook off his day one cobwebs from the drive on Sunday.  Starting the day two strokes back, Nedry played his front nine in even par with the help of two birdies, added another on the back for a +5 Sunday and a three stroke win.  It was Nedry's first Major Championship, fifth win on tour and second of the season.  Muldrow, OK player Kirby Rogers, added two birdies on Sunday to an eagle on the par 5 - 14th on Saturday for the runner up finish.  Jamie Sansom of Plano, TX played his final four holes in two under par to share the third place honors with Edmond, OK player Bill Clark.

Jones Flight:  Locked up in a four way tie for the lead, Blake Barnes of Deer Park, TX had a win earlier in the year but had been a long dry spell, with his previous visits to the winners circle coming in 2010.  Barnes, reduced his Saturday total by eight strokes for get back on track for his fifth win on tour and third Major Championship. A pair of Arkansas Tour players, Bobby Deaton of Holiday Island, AR and Rogers, AR player Carl Imhof started the day tied with Barnes, but despite both recording birdies early in the round found themselves sharing the runner up finish.

Senior Jones Flight:  First year member,  Louis Ralph of Olive Branch, MS, playing in the final pairing came from three strokes off the lead to pick up his second win on tour and first Major title.  Michael Martori of Dixon, MO, a four time winner on the points season, made a jump from seven strokes off the lead to finish in second place, just three strokes back.  St. Charles, MO member Bill Slantz birdied two consecutive holes at the par 3 -5th and par 4 - 6th on Sunday grab the final Senior National Championship qualification.

Snead Flight:  Overnight leader, Doyle Fleming of Haslet, TX had a up and down day on Sunday and let his two stroke advantage slip away when Alan Brumley of Atascocita, TX took a two stroke lead to the final hole of the event.  On the par 5 - 9th, Fleming took back the championship with a birdie, his only one recorded over the two days for his sixth win of the points season and second Major Championship.  Brumley's runner up, was his best of the year and solidified his National Championship spot, with Brandon Walters of Springdale, AR, adding to his three wins on the season for the third place finish.