April 19, 2002
NORMAN, Okla. - Arizona State and Mesa (Ariz.) native Chez Reavie, who won the 2001 U.S. Public Links Championship, is one ten finalists for the Ben Hogan Award, named by the Friends of Golf and Colonial Country Club in association with the Golf Coaches Association of America (GCAA).
Reavie played in the Masters April 11-12 and has a 72.67 stroke average in four events this year. He has three top-10 finishes this year including a tie for fourth at the Taylor Made Intercollegiate and a fifth-place finish at the Las Vegas Collegiate.
The Ben Hogan Award will be presented to the outstanding male college golfer over the course of the last 12 months at a black-tie dinner Monday, May 13 at Colonial Country Club in Fort Worth, Texas. The Hogan Award takes into consideration a player's collegiate and amateur record from May 1, 2001 to May 1, 2002. The recipient of the award will be announced on Friday, May 3.
The inaugural Ben Hogan Award was presented in 1990 by the Friends of Golf (FOG), to a player exhibiting excellence in academics as well as college golf as selected by the GCAA. In the summer of 2001, FOG and the GCAA were approached by representatives of Colonial Country Club in Fort Worth, Texas wanting to create an award named for Hogan and make the presentation during the week of the MasterCard Colonial PGA Tour event.
While the three parties collaborated on the award, the decision was made to revise the criteria to more accurately reflect the original idea for the Ben Hogan Award.
Although the criteria for selection has changed, the 12 past winners will remain as part of the Hogan Award's history.
"I think that Colonial joining FOG and the golf coaches association in the Ben Hogan Award has been very positive," said FOG executive director, Merrins. "The award is now truly the Heisman of college golf."
"Colonial Country Club is proud to be the venue for the award presentation this year, especially because it is named in honor of Mr. Hogan, whose historic relationship with Colonial is renown," said Elliott Garsek, president of Colonial Country Club.
Additionally, FOG will continue to present the honoree with a replica of the Waterford crystal trophy displayed permanently at Bel-Air Country Club in Los Angeles, while Colonial Country Club will present the honoree and his school with a replica of the permanent trophy displayed in the Hogan Room at Colonial.
CHEZ REAVIE Taylor Made Intercollegiate, 73-68-73=214 (-2), T4 USC Cleveland Classic, 79-75-71=225 (+12), T33 Las Vegas Collegiate, 76-67-72=215 (-1), T5 U.S. Collegiate, 71-74-73=218 (+2), T10 4 appearances, 12 rounds, 872 strokes, 72.67 average Top Five Finishes: Two Top Ten Finishes: ThreeBen Hogan Award Semifinalists (listed in alphabetical order) Bill Haas Soph. Wake Forest Ryan Hybl Soph. Georgia Hunter Mahan Soph. Oklahoma State Troy Matteson Jr. Georgia Tech Graeme McDowell Jr. Alabama-Birmingham Chez Reavie Soph. Arizona State D.J. Trahan Jr. Clemson Camilo Villegas So. Florida Nick Watney Jr. Fresno State Lee Williamson Sr. Purdue
Ben Hogan Award Recipients (under previous criteria) 1990 Kevin Wentworth Oklahoma State 1991 Brian Bridges Kent State 1992 Jon Lindquist Gustavus Adolphus College 1993 Marten Olander Alabama 1994 William Blackman Auburn 1995 Trip Kuehne Oklahoma State 1996 Mark Wilson North Carolina 1997 Jeff Fahrenbruch Texas 1998 Jamie Broce Ball State 1999 Steve Friesen Nebraska 2000 Chris James Oklahoma 2001 Wil Collins New Mexico