List Is Money In Georgia
VALDOSTA, GEORGIA | Put the Tour’s longest
hitter on the lengthiest course on its calendar,
and the result is the first title of Luke List’s
Nationwide Tour career.
The 27-year-old from Nashville scored a two-stroke victory at the South Georgia Classic, shooting in the 60s all four rounds at Kinderlou Forest
GC. In winning, he became the sixth first-time
winner out of seven events thus far this season.
His 16-under par final score of 272 topped
Brian Stuard, whose six-birdie, no-bogey 66 on
Sunday boosted him to solo second place. List’s
Saturday co-leader, Woody Austin, was third at
11-under 277.
On a weekend that the former Vanderbilt
University golfer finally put everything together,
it was a dramatic but statistically predictable
turn of events on the back nine that gave him
the final push.
List had headed to the 12th hole with a one-stroke lead on the hard-charging Stuard, but
his only bogey of the day dropped him into at tie
Luke List at the 2011 Albertson’s Boise Open
with Stuard at 13 under.
Stuard was three holes ahead on the course.
And just as his sixth birdie of the day appeared
to give him the lead with two holes remaining, List answered with an eagle at No. 13 that
boosted him to the one-stroke advantage.
It was the second eagle of the weekend for
List, who led the Nationwide Tour in that category in 2011, and averages 320 yards to lead
the Tour this season in driving distance.
A birdie on No. 16 helped put the finishing
touches on the win, which netted him $112,500
and moved him from 13th to second place in
the Nationwide’s money-earning standings.
List already had carded a second-place finish in Panama the second week of the season
and a T9 earlier this month at the Soboba Golf
Classic. At $175,448, he now trails only Andres
Gonzales, who shot 73-74 and missed the cut.
List shot 67-68-69-68 for his 272. He was
one stroke off the lead after day one, led Stuard
by a stroke after Friday, and was tied with
Austin heading into the final day.
Austin, whose course record-tying 64 on
Saturday gave him a share of the third-day lead,
shot 73 Sunday. He fell from contention with
three bogeys on the final seven holes.
Two-time U.S. Open winner Lee Janzen
played in the event and missed the cut after
shooting 74-73. It was his first Nationwide Tour
appearance since 1990.
The tour remains in Georgia this week,
heading to University of Georgia GC in Athens
for the Stadion Classic at UGA.
RESULTS
