Conditions are prime and so is the field of competitors, as The Preserve Golf Club readies for the 28th Annual Stocker Cup, October 24-26.
Defending champion John Sawin of Pebble Beach, who captured his second Stocker Cup individual championship in 2018, returns to face a field that includes 21 competitors who have won their state Mid-Amateur championship in 15 states.
The 54-hole individual competition features a simultaneous best-ball event, similar to the AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am. Invited Mid-Amateur players are either paired with a single digit amateur or can propose their own partner to be introduced and invited by the Committee. The 2019 field is comprised of 25% Californians and 75% from the rest of the United States.
The Stocker Cup was founded in 1991 to honor the memory of Peter Stocker, a real estate developer who is recognized as the man behind the creation of Santa Lucia Preserve and considered “the quintessential amateur golfer.”
“This year’s field may be the most competitive ever,” said host golf professional Brian Sleeman. “Very favorable late summer and fall weather contributed to superb conditions that will challenge this field.”
The highly regarded Tom Fazio Design is rated among America’s 100 Greatest Golf Courses by Golf Digest. The Preserve’s fairways are Santa Ana Hybrid Bermudagrass, which produce firm and fast playing conditions throughout the year. The course’s strategically placed bunkers, which were renovated in 2016, and quick A4 bentgrass greens, contribute to challenging approach shots. For the Stocker Cup, the course will be set up to approximately 7100 yards.
The 2019 Stocker Cup will feature “at the turn” scoring powered by Golf Genius, AmateurGolf.com, and the NCGA. For the final round, the leading groups will be scored electronically through all 18 holes, providing an enhanced tournament experience for players and friends at the course or anywhere in the world. Those results can be streamed at www.stockercup.com starting Thursday, October 24.
The Preserve Golf Club is located within the Santa Lucia Preserve, a private community of only 300 home sites situated on 20,000 acres – approximately one and a half times the size of Manhattan – and the only community in America with a perpetually endowed, 18,000-acre nature conservancy. In the heart of the Monterey Peninsula, The Santa Lucia Preserve provides its resident and members with a range of recreational opportunities second to none, while offering a unique ethos of community, culture, and conservation.
For additional information on The Preserve Golf Club or Santa Lucia Preserve, access the web site at www.santaluciapreserve.com or call (831) 620-6762.
FEATURED PLAYERS
Joseph Deraney (Belden, Miss.) was the runner-up in the 2019 U.S. Mid-Amateur; also won the 2018-2019 Canadian Mid-Amateur, competed in the PGA Tour Bell Canadian Open, won the 2019 Mississippi State Amateur, the 2018 Carlton Woods Invitational, and the 2018 Timuquana Cup
Colby Harwell (San Antonio, Texas) won the 2019 Texas Mid-Am Match Play as well as the 2017-2018 Texas Mid-Amateur, and is a past champion of the Carlton Woods Invitational and Crane Cup
John Sawin (Pebble Beach, Calif.) is the defending Stocker Cup champion and also won in 2013; past Pennsylvania Amateur champion
Skip Berkmeyer (Town & Country, Mo.) was a 2019 Crump Cup semifinalist, a past Crump Cup champion, and a three-time Missouri State Amateur champion
Bobby Leopold (Coventry, R.I.) won the 2019 Rhode Island Mid-Amateur (his fourth), and is a past champion of the New England Amateur and Crane Cup
Patrick Christovich (New Orleans, La.) is a past champion of the Coleman Invitational, Birmingham National Invitational, and the Timuquana Cup; and is a four-time Louisiana Mid-Amateur champion
Kenneth Cook (Noblesville, Ind.) won the 2019 Indiana Mid-Amateur and is a past U.S. Mid-Amateur runner-up
Roger Newsom (Virginia Beach, Va.) was the runner-up in the 2019 U.S. Senior Amateur, won the 2019 Lowcountry Senior, and qualified for 2019 U.S. Senior Open
Derek Meinhart (Mattoon, Ill.) finished runner-up at the 2018 Stocker Cup, and is a past champion of the Carlton Woods Invitational and Champions Cup
Philip Lee (Nashville, Tenn.) won 2019 Carlton Woods Invitational and is a past Tennessee Mid-Amateur champion
The full list of Mid-Amateur competitors, including rankings results and biographies can be found at: http://stockercup.com/contestants/
The list of B player partners can be viewed at:
https://www.amateurgolf.com/amateur-golf-tournaments/8809/Stocker-Cup-2019-Invitational–B-Player-
The list of 21 players who have won their state Mid-Amateur in 15 states:
Arizona (Bryan Hoops of Chandler, Ariz.), Texas (Harwell; John Bearrie now in Landrum, S.C.), Massachusetts (Herbie Aikens of Kingston, Mass.), Tennessee (Lee), Alabama (Clay Guerin of Hoover, Ala.; Steve Hudson of Birmingham, Ala.), Ohio (Scott Anderson of Columbus, Ohio), Kentucky (Deraney), Louisiana (Christovich), Missouri (Berkmeyer), Indiana (Cook; Sean Rowen of Greenwood, Ind.; Brett Widner of Avon, Ind.), Oklahoma (Kyle Hudelson of Edmond, Okla.; Heath Myers of Kingfisher, Okla.), Nevada (David Nelson of Reno, Nev.), Montana (Mark Mance of Whitefish, Mt.), Rhode Island (Leopold), and Northern California (Jason Anthony of Fairfield, Calif.; Jerry Ledzinski of Carmel, Calif.).