Five things to know as you watch this week

Five things to know as you watch this week












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The Crosswater Course at Sunriver River is no stranger to big golf events.()

PGA.COM June 22, 2013 7:16 PM


By John Kim, PGA.com Coordinating Producer

SUNRIVER, Ore. -- The 46th PGA Professional National Championship might not be at the top of many golf minds when it comes to great championships, but those close to the game understand its history, its significance and its cherished view among the golf industry. A very respected media veteran once remarked there were only two golf championships that really meant something: Q-School and this PGA PNC event, because they were about people playing for their lives.

There's no way I could put it any better.

As you watch and follow the action this week, understand that people are playing for the chance to change their lives. This is not millionaires playing for more millions or simply to add another trophy on the mantle.

This is a chance for history, to significantly add to your finances, to play in a major championship alongside the biggest names in golf. So with that in mind, here are five items that will help you understand and follow the drama that will unfold here at Sunriver Resort.


• The tournament runs Sunday through Wednesday so that the majority of play will be televised by the Golf Channel and covered by all other golf media unopposed by any other professional golf event.

• The most wins by any player on the PGA Tour is 82, held by Sam Snead. Snead also won this event in 1971 and came in second (losing in a playoff) in 1974.

• The Crosswater Course will play at 7,530 yards - making it longer than any major championship on any tour this year. In fact, from 2007-2010, this same Crosswater Club course hosted a major championship (the Tradition) on the Champions Tour. And to give it an even more of a major championship vibe, four players (Jeff Coston, Sonny Skinner, Bob Gaus and Don Berry) who made the cut at the 2013 Senior PGA Championship held at Bellerive Country Club in St. Louis, are also competing here this week.

• The Golf Channel will air live coverage from 7:30 to 9:30 p.m. ET on Sunday, and from 6:30 to 9:00 p.m. ET on Monday. Coverage on Tuesday and Wednesday will air from 4:00-7:00 p.m. ET. You can, of course, follow all the action - from scores to photos to highlights - right here on PGA.com.

There also will be several social media accounts covering the action including, from PGA.com (PGA.com on Facebook, @PGA_com on Twitter, PGA.com on Instagram and @ThePGAofAmerica on Twitter. And with 312 PGA Professionals representing courses, PGA Sections and states from all over the country, you can probably follow every shot in some way, shape or form. Search for #2013PNC for all the best posts and tweets on social media.

• As many know but some do not - and all golf fans should - there is more at stake than national bragging rights, a $550,000 purse (winner gets $75,000) and the coveted Walter Hagen Cup. The top 20 players (ties will go to a tiebreaker so that 20 is a set number) will earn an exemption into the PGA Championship this August at Oak Hill Country Club in Rochester, N.Y. Players also will use this championship (along with last year's PGA PNC and this year's PGA Championship) to earn points toward earning a spot on the U.S. PGA Cup team - the PGA Professional version of the Ryder Cup.

Many viewers and readers will follow this event with a strong vested interest in a particular golfer - one from their home club or someone they know. But all golf fans should understand and appreciate that lives will be changed this week, and so will golf history. Many people in the golf world consider this their favorite event to attend, cover or read about. With some of these notes in mind, we hope your enjoyment and appreciation of the week increases as well.

For Lewis, tied for lead, victory would be Hog heaven

For Lewis, tied for lead, victory would be Hog heaven










The Sports Xchange June 22, 2013 7:20 PMThe SportsXchange


ROGERS, Ark. -- The fans at the Walmart NW Arkansas Championship are getting their wish after two rounds of play Saturday at Pinnacle Country Club.

Local favorite Stacy Lewis, the No. 2 player in the Rolex World Rankings and a graduate of nearby University of Arkansas, used a pair of birdie runs in her second round to move into a four-way tie for the lead at 10-under par with a second-round 6-under 65.

Lewis, who considers this weekend's event her most important tour stop next to the majors, was joined at the top of the leaderboard at 10-under par by tour rookie Chie Arimura of Japan, Beatriz Recari of Spain and So Yeon Ryu of South Korea.

"Today was really cool," Lewis said. "I kind of got on streaks there throughout the round and made four birdies in a row at one point and then three in a row. So it was cool.

"You could see the crowd feeling it. And I birdied 17 today, which was really cool. I think over the last few years I kind of figured out how to handle the pressure and not make it pressure and just make it fun and have fun out there."

Lewis first played in the NW Arkansas Championship as an amateur in 2007, and was declared the unofficial winner when the tournament was canceled because of poor weather after one round.

Since then, the former No. 1 player in the world has managed two top 10 finishes in five appearances atPinnacle Country Club.

As the local hero returning home this weekend, Lewis has clearly drawn the biggest galleries and has been on the receiving end of many "Woo Pig Sooie" calls, signifying her time with the Razorbacks.

Lewis, who started the round on the back nine, carded four straight birdies from Nos. 14 through 17 got Lewis to 8-under for the tournament.


After a bogey at the par-5 18th, Lewis used a stretch of three consecutive birdies on Nos. 2 through 4 to get back to 10-under.

She briefly got to 11-under with a birdie at the par-4 eight, but fell back to 10-under with a bogey on her final hole of the day.

"I think the hard part is I'm going to want it so bad, and I know the fans are going to want me to get it really bad," Lewis said. "So, it's going to be hard.

"The hardest part is going to be staying patient and not trying to force putts in and running them through four feet by. You can't leave yourself those on these greens.

"So I'm definitely going to use the crowd some, but then I need to also just kind of scale it back and just stay in what I am doing right now, because it's working."

Arimura and Recari began the day, like Lewis, among a group of 10 players who sat two strokes off the lead at 4-under, and also posted 65s in round two.

Arimura, an LPGA Tour rookie from Japan who has 13 victories on the LPGA Japan Tour, closed with back-to-back birdies at the 17th and 18th holes.

Recari, the No. 25 ranked player in the world who won earlier this season at the Kia Classic, was 4-under through her first seven holes Saturday and added birdies at Nos. 12 and 14 on the back nine.

Recari has hit 25-of-26 fairways and 32-of-36 greens in regulation through two rounds.

"I felt really great on the range, hitting really solid," Recari said. "And then I felt like today there are some good opportunities out there where you can be aggressive, and I took advantage of that.

"I started really low very early in the round, so that helped me keeping that momentum and felt really great."

Ryu, ranked No. 5 in the Rolex Women's World Golf Rankings, is seeking her third career win and first victory of the LPGA season. She opened with a 66 on Friday and followed with another 66 on Saturday.

Mika Miyazato, the first-round leader at 6-under, is three strokes behind after a 70 on Saturday.

Miyazato got to 10-under with birdies on four of her first five holes Saturday before bogies at Nos. 2, 3 and 5 on her final nine dropped her off the lead.

Four players -- world No. 1 Inbee Park (65), I.K Kim (64), Ji Young Oh (66) and Pornanong Phatlum (65) -- are two strokes back at 8-under in a tie for fifth.

Defending champion Ai Miyazato of Japan bounced back from a 73 in the opening round with a 64, equaling the best round of the day posted by Kim, to move into a tie for 17th.

The cut-line after Saturday's round fell at even par. Among the notables who failed to make the cut wereBrittany Lincicome at 71-72 -- 143, and Michelle Wie at 75-69 -- 144.

Saturday Notebook: Family Fun Zone a big hit

Saturday Notebook: Family Fun Zone a big hit












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The free Family fun zone featured group lessons, a giant Golfzilla air target and other family-friendly activities.(Montana Pritchard/The PGA of America)

PGA.COM June 22, 2013 7:41 PM


By Randy Stutzman, The PGA of America

SUNRIVER, Ore. -- On Saturday afternoon, residents ofCentral Oregon were treated to a unique and exciting experience, as Riverbend Park in Bend, Ore., was transformed into a Get Golf Ready Family Fun Zone.

The free family golf festival featured group lessons, a giant Golfzilla air target and other fun activities conducted by a group of local Pacific Northwest PGA Professionals.

Tim Fraley, the PGA head professional at Awbrey Glen Golf Club in Bend, Ore., praised the concept of hosting events like the Get Golf Ready Family Fun Zone, which provide a dynamic way to introduce communities throughout the country to golf.

"It's always great to get out and connect with the community, and let them know just how fun the game of golf really is," said Fraley. "Through events like this, we are able to reach out to new golfers, non-golfers, kids and families to grow the game and think outside the box as golf professionals."

Marcus King, president of the Pacific Northwest PGA Section and PGA general manager at Overlake Golf and Country Club in Medina, Wash., helped coordinate the event at Riverbend Park.

"This is what we live for as golf professionals," said King. "To see smiles on the faces of kids and adults while they are swinging a golf club or learning more about the game, it makes it all worth it."

KOESTERS LOOKING FOR REPEAT SUCCESS: Dan Koesters of Las Cruces, N.M., knows "the neighborhood" as he prepared for this year's PGA Professional National Championship presented by Club Car, Mercedes-Benz and OMEGA, which begins Sunday.


Koesters, the PGA director of golf at New Mexico State Golf Course in Las Cruces, N.M., won the 1996 Oregon Open, which was hosted at Crosswater Club.

The 54-year-old Koesters, who currently serves on The PGA of America Board of Directors, also has his best career finish in the National Championship when it was staged at Sunriver Resort in 2001, when he tied for 35th overall.

RECORDS WERE MADE TO BE BROKEN: The competitive course record at the Crosswater Club, a par-72 layout, was posted by Brad Bryant of Lakeland, Fla., who shot a 62 during the opening round of the 2009 JELD-Wen Tradition, a major championship on the Champions Tour.

The competitive course record at the par-71 Meadows Golf Course was recorded by Bob Sowards of Dublin, Ohio, who shot a 65, during the second round of the 2007 PGA Professional National Championship.

Sowards, a resident of Dublin, Ohio, is a PGA teaching professional at New Albany (Ohio) Country Club.

PAIRINGS, TEE TIMES AND WEB INTERVIEWS:

Click Here to see a full list of pairings and tee times for the first two rounds of play.

Click Here to watch exclusive web interviews from the Championship.