News >> Willis Captures WNB Golf Classic
Six Former Members Finish In Top Ten
Midland, TX (September 27, 2009)…With a four-under par 68 in Sunday’s final round, former Hooters Tour winner Garrett Willis, captured his second Nationwide Tour title at The WNB Golf Classic.(picture left courtesy of Fischer/Midland Reporter-Telegram)Willis, a former standout at East Tennesse State, carded rounds of 64-69-67-68 for a four day total of twenty-under par 268 and a one stroke victory over fellow Hooters Alum Chad Collins and a three stroke victory over Alum Darron Stiles. Collins fired the low round of the tournament on Sunday with a ten-under par 62 to move from a T-30 to second place.
"I do watch the leaderboards but I didn't see too many early on," Willis said. "I saw the one at number nine and knew Chad was in the house at 19. I felt like if I just stayed patient I'd make a couple of birdies. I knew that if I could shoot one-under on the back I'd be fine."
With the victory, Willis collects a first place check worth $94,500 and moves from 19th on the money list to 6th with $261,506 in earnings and locks up a spot in the TOP 25 at season’s end. The TOP 25 earn their 2010 PGA TOUR cards.
"It's an almost surreal feeling," Willis said. "I was kind of expecting this grand explosion of emotion and I suppose that will come at some point. This is our job and what we set out to do each year."
Chad Collins also locked up his PGA TOUR card for 2010 with his third runner-up finish of the year. Collins earned $56,700 and moved from No. 15 to No. 9 on the money list with $255,514.
Willis graduated from East Tennessee State University in 1996 where he was a first team All-America. He captured his first professional win in his first professional start in 1996 at the Hooter Tour’s event in Decatur, Alabama. He captured his second Hooters Tour title in 1998 in Fayetteville, Georgia.
Willis (1st), Collins (2nd) and Stiles (3rd) weren't the only former players that had strong finishes in Midland on Sunday as former members Keoke Cotner finished T-5 and Tom Gillis and John Kimbell finished T-7. All told, six of the top thirteen finishers on Sunday started their careers on the Hooters Tour.
The NGA/Hooters Tour is the 3rd largest men’s 72-hole professional golf tour in the country behind the PGA and Nationwide Tours, and boasts alumni like 2009 British Open Champion Stewart Cink, 2007 Masters Champion Zach Johnson, 2003 PGA Champion Shaun Micheel, 2003 US Open Champion Jim Furyk, 2003 British Open Champion Ben Curtis, British and PGA Champion John Daly, Two-time US Open Champion Lee Janzen, British Open Champion Tom Lehman as well as PGA Champion David Toms, Tour Championship winner Chad Campbell and back to back Reno Tahoe Winner Vaughn Taylor to name just a few. In all told, the NGA Hooters Tour alumni have an incredible ELEVEN MAJOR championships to their credit. The NGA Hooters Tour has helped more than 100 golf professionals acquire their PGA, Nationwide and Champion’s Tour cards. In fact, 32% of the players that earned their 2009 PGA Tour cards and 41% of the players that earned full exempt status on the Nationwide Tour started their careers on the Hooters Tour.
For more information about NGA Hooters Professional Golf Tour, check out our website at www.hooterstour.com or contact our Tour office toll free at 800-992-8648.