April 30, 2013
GREENSBORO, Ga. – Georgia Tech’s Paul Johnson and Jon Barry were unable to capture their third-consecutive Chick-fil-A Bowl Challenge title, as the Miami Hurricanes team of Al Golden and Gino Torretta claimed the 2013 title by one stroke.
Miami held off a back-nine charge from South Carolina’s Steve Spurrier and Sterling Sharpe to win title with a score of 11-under par. Tech’s Johnson and Berry posted a score of 9-under par and finished in a third-place tie with Clemson’s Dabo Swinney and Steve Fuller.
The victory in the 14-team field earned Miami the first-place scholarship prize of $125,000. South Carolina earned $65,000 in scholarship money, while the two-time defending championship Yellow Jackets and the Tigers each earned $50,000.
In the skills competition that took place on Monday, Barry ripped a drive of 319 yards to win the longest drive for the third-straight year and earn another $5,000 in scholarship money for the Jackets.
Team Miami finished the front nine with five straight birdies to make the turn at 8-under, one shot ahead of Georgia Tech and two shots clear of South Carolina.
The Hurricanes and Yellow Jackets played stroke-for-stroke on the back nine until Miami pulled ahead with birdies on 16 and 17. The Gamecocks went birdie-eagle-birdie over the final three holes to make a run at Miami, but fell just short when Al Golden holed a five-foot putt for par on 18.
“South Carolina and Georgia Tech are really good teams. We had a lot of fun down the stretch and Gino hit some big putts to keep us in it,” Miami head coach Al Golden said. “We scrambled and got lucky down the stretch.”
The Chick-fil-A Bowl Challenge is the country’s premier head coach and celebrity charity golf event featuring NCAA head coaches and former athletes and celebrities from the same school competing against their rivals for a share of a $520,000 scholarship purse.
In addition to the $520,000 scholarship purse, another $144,000 was generated for charitable organizations including Chick-fil-A’s WinShape Homes foster care program. Over the last seven years, the event has contributed a total of $3.8 million in scholarship and charity, helping make the Chick-fil-A Bowl college football’s most charitable bowl game.
Top five results from the 2013 Chick-fil-A Bowl Challenge including scholarship winnings:
1st — Miami (Al Golden, Gino Torretta) — Score: -11 — $125,000
2nd — South Carolina (Steve Spurrier, Sterling Sharpe) — Score: -10 — $65,000
T-3rd — Georgia Tech (Paul Johnson, Jon Barry) — Score: -9 — $50,000
T-3rd — Clemson (Dabo Swinney, Steve Fuller) — Score: -9 — $50,000
5th — Virginia Tech (Frank Beamer, Dell Curry) — Score: -8 — $35,000
