Feb. 18, 2005
ATLANTA – Georgia Tech senior Nicholas Thompson is one of 20 collegiate players named to the watch list for the 2005 Ben Hogan Award.
Bank of America, in cooperation with Colonial Country Club, The Friends of Golf (FOG) and the Golf Coaches Association of America (GCAA), announced the list Thursday for the award, which is presented annually to the top men’s NCAA Division I, II or III, NAIA or junior college golfer taking into account all collegiate and amateur competitions during the last 12 months.
One of the nation’s top-ranked amateur players, Thompson is tied for fifth in the nation in the latest Golfweek amateur rankings. The two-time All-Atlantic Coast Conference player from Coral Springs, Fla., enters his senior year with the fifth-best career stroke average in Tech history (72.04), and he has 13 career top-10 finishes and 22 top-20s. His first career victory came in the Western Refining Collegiate All-America Classic in November.
Thompson finished the fall season ranked No. 8 in the country among collegiate players according to the Golfweek/Sagarin Performance Index, joining teammate Roberto Castro in the top 10. He finished the fall with a team-best stroke average of 70.93, best on the team and best in the ACC.
NCAA, U.S. Amateur and Public Links Champion Ryan Moore of UNLV, U.S. Open Championship low amateur Spencer Levin of New Mexico as well as 2004 PING All-America First-Team selections Matt Every of Florida, Kentucky’s John Holmes and Shane Prante of St. Martin’s, are also on the watch list.
The Hogan Award selection committee will announce 10 semi-finalists on March 24 and name three finalists on April 20. The three finalists will attend The Hogan Award banquet on Saturday, May 14 at Colonial Country Club – the Saturday prior to the Bank of America Colonial – with the recipient announced that evening.
2005 The Ben Hogan Award Watch List(in alphabetical order)Travis Bertoni, Cal PolyRyan Blaum, DukeRhys Davies, East Tennessee StateMatt Every, FloridaJack Ferguson, ClemsonJohn Holmes, KentuckyAnthony Kim, OklahomaSpencer Levin, New MexicoLuke List, VanderbiltPablo Martin, Oklahoma StateRyan Moore, UNLVJeff Overton, IndianaShane Prante, St. Martin'sAron Price, Georgia SouthernMichael Putnam, PepperdineMatthew Rosenfeld, TexasWebb Simpson, Wake ForestNicholas Thompson, Georgia TechMartin Ureta, North CarolinaLee Williams, Auburn
