Final Scoreboard

Course Statistics

Final Round Reports:

GSGA- Knox Holds Off Charge from Noll to Win Second Georgia Amateur

WRDW-TV Augusta- Lee Knox wins Georgia Amateur for second time

AJC- "Green light special" aids Georgia Amateur golf victory

• Knox's Streak...Knox went birdie, birdie, eagle on 7, 8 and 9 to make the turn at -9 and become the round's emerging leader.  He got it all the way to -10 with a birdie at 11, but made three bogeys over the last six holes.

• The Ninth played as a reachable Par 4 today, measuring 286 yards.  Lee Knox took advantage with the shot of the tournament, landing his drive near the hole and then making a 15-footer for eagle to take the lead.

• Settindown course architect Bob Cupp was present during Round 3 Play. 

• Top Player Bios:

Third Round Leader Lee Knox1 Lee Knox

• Senior at the University of Alabama 
• Qualified for the 2010 U.S. Amateur
• 2008 Georgia Junior Championship - 2nd
• 2008 GA-SC Junior Challenge Match
• 2010 Georgia Amateur Champion

2 Matt Russell 

• 1996 Georgia Amateur Runner-up
• 2011 Georgia Public Links Runner-up
• 2011 Billy Peters Cup Team
• Russell is a former Ansley Member and his uncle, Don Russell, is a longtime Ansley Member
   
  

3 Michael Garretson

• Junior at South Alabama University
• 2009 Junior Championship - 3rd
• 2009 GA-SC Junior Challenge Match

T4 Scott Weeks

• Played college golf for Georgia Southern
• Savannah native

T4 David Noll 

• GSGA Men's Player of the Year- 2003, 2005, 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011
• 2008 Tommy Barnes Award Winner
• 2003 & 2011 Georgia Amateur Champion

• Round 3 Scoring Average: 37.8-38.1-75.9 

• Final Group Tees off at 10 a.m.

Lee Knox: -7...69-70-70-209
Matt Russell: -5...71-71-69-211
Michael Garretson: -3...70-68-75-213

Lee Knox on the sixth green.

The second round was completed Saturday morning after being postponed by storms Friday afternoon.  

• After 36 holes of play, 17 players stand at Even Par or better.  Here is a look at the leaders:

1 Michael Garretson.....-6
2 Lee Knox.....-5
3 Scott Weeks.....-4
T4 Ridge Purcell.....-2
T4 Hunter Cornelius Jr......-2
T4 Matt Russell.....-2
T4 William Mitchell.....-2
T4 Chris Waters.....-2
T9 Franco Castro.....-1
T9 Jimmy Banyas.....-1
T9 William Sigg.....-1
T9 Bill Faith.....-1
T9 Travis Snyder.....-1
T9 Robert Sheats.....-1
T15 David Yowell.....E
T15 Will Snipes.....E
T15 John Hopper.....E 
 

• The third round will begin at noon, with the leaders teeing off at 2 p.m.  Here's a look at the players in the last three groups, all teeing off Hole 1: 

1:40 p.m.- Chris Waters, Hunter Cornelius Jr., Bill Faith 
1:50 p.m.- Matt Russell, William Mitchell, Ridge Purcell 
2 p.m.- Michael Garretson, Lee Knox, Scott Weeks

• Congratulations to Ansley members Matt Hayes and Tommy Caswell Jr. for making the cut.  Both players just ended their college golf careers, with Matt playing at Furman and Tommy at Georgia State.  Here's how the five Ansley members fared:

Matthew Hayes +1.....73-72-145
Tommy Caswell Jr. +8.....76-76-152
Ryan Parnell +14.....79-79-158 MC
Josh Rollins  +17.....86-75-161 MC
Adam Wright +18.....81-81-162 MC

• Scoring averages for the first two rounds:

Round One: 37.9-38.3-76.2
Round Two: 37.2-39.1-76.1  
Rounds 1 - 2: 37.6-38.7-76.1 

• Even for the state's top amateur players, the difficult challenge of Settindown leads to unusually high numbers of "others"- scores of triple bogey or higher.  A total of 52 "others" were recorded in the first two rounds, with the 18th causing the most problems with a total of 11.

Friday's Highlights...

 • Two weather delays postponed completion of the second round until Saturday morning.  Play will resume at 7:30 a.m., with the range opening at 6:30.

• Third round tee times will begin at noon, with the final group teeing off at 1:50 p.m.

• The morning wave completed their second rounds, with Acworth's Michael Garretson, a sophomore on The University of South Alabama golf team, leading at -6.  2010 Champion Lee Knox of Augusta and a senior on The University of Alabama golf team is one shot back at -5. 

• Scott Weeks of Savannah and Jimmy Banyas of Duluth, who has not completed his second round, are tied for third at -4. 

• In the morning field, the average score was 75.465, with the back nine playing almost two shots harder than the front.

• The projected cut is +7. 

• The low score of the day was 68 by leader Michael Garretson and Ridge Purcell of LaGrange who is T5.

• Defending Champion David Noll is T20/+1. 

Stan Awtrey writes about Settindown and The Georgia Amateur in the cover story of Golf Georgia's July / August 2012 issues.

Stan Awtrey:

Since it opened in 1988, Ansley Golf Club - Settindown Creek in Roswell has fostered a lofty place in the state's golfing circles.  The club is often the first mentioned when conversation turns to determining the best courses in Georgia.  And that's high praise indeed in a state that's loaded with strong candidates.


GSGA Senior Director of Rules & Competitions Layne Williams:

"It's got its defenses.  You've got to play hard and play well to get around in decent shape."


Defending Champion David Noll Jr.:

"It's a man-sized golf course.  There are spots around these greens where it's an absolute bogey.  Once you get your tee ball in the fairway is when the fun begins."

Ansley Director of Golf Phil Taylor:

"It's a player's golf course.  And it's a difficult player's golf course. 

Our members like to host events that have some meaning.  Everyone is excited to have the best players come back and test it."

Ansley Director of Agronomy Courtney Young:

"This course will reward you with birdies and punish you for poor play.  You can put a score together, but it's difficult to do it over four days."


read the entire article here

Harris English, 2007 Georgia Amateur Champion1995 Nike Tour Championship
Champion: Allen Doyle
Allen Doyle went on to become a rookie on the PGA Tour in his late 40s before moving on to The Champions Tour, where he has won four majors, including back-to-back U.S. Senior Open titles in 2005 - 2006.

1996 Nike Tour Championship
Champion: Stewart Cink
Stewart Cink has enjoyed a stellar career on the PGA Tour, with six victories, five Ryder Cup appearances and, of course, winning The Claret Jug at the 2009 British Open.

2003 Georgia Open
Champion: Justin Bolli
Justin Bolli moved on to The Web.com Tour in 2004 (formerly Nationwide Tour), where he has won three times over the last eight years.

2005 U.S. Women's Amateur
Champion: Morgan Pressel
Morgan Pressell turned professional after her victory at Settindown, and has five worldwide wins, including a major championship at the 2007 Nabisco.  She has played on three Solheim Cup teams, including the 2011 team captained by longtime Ansley member Rosie Jones.

2007 Georgia Amateur Championship
Champion: Harris English
Harris English was an incoming freshman when he won The Georgia Am title, and he went on to a remarkable four-year career at The University of Georgia, earning All-SEC and All-American honors and ending his amateur career as member of the 2011 Walker Cup Team.  He won as an amateur on The Nationwide Tour in 2011, and turned pro after the Walker Cup.  He then successfully qualified for the PGA Tour through Q-School and is now in the midst of a successful rookie season.

A wonderful story is waiting to be told again this week, and the glory of golf will certainly be on display for players and fans to enjoy.  There will be highs and lows, exhilaration, drama and heartbreak, but for just one single player, there will be...victory.

Welcome to the 2012 Georgia Amateur Championship!