2023 Cherokee Hills Golf Tournament Results

The inaugural event for the newly formed APT Tulsa Chapter was held Saturday at one of the most challenging golf courses in the state of Oklahoma, Cherokee Hills Golf Course at the Hard Rock Hotel and Casino.  Greeted by a sold-out field of sixty-four players, ready to kick off the season, Cherokee Hills lived up to the aforementioned reputation.   

Buoyed by a focus that led to a stint with the Philadelphia Phillies, Ryan Nye shot an even par 72 to tame a field of nine Division 1 players looking to take the first step towards the coveted “Player of the Year” crown.  Fort Smith Arkansas’s Rick Coatney overcame an early double bogey with a birdie on 17 and finished in second place with a fine round of 78. 

A field of fifteen Division 2 players made their way to the first tee at Cherokee Hills looking to take home the hardware.  Red River Chapter player Keith Tilghman overcame a difficult front nine and settled down to shoot a back nine 38 and win D2 by three strokes with a fine 82.  Justin Barrett, Jason Tannehill and Josh Linn fired 84’s to tie for second. 

Division 3 saw nineteen players tee it up with Guthrie Oklahoma’s Jaeho Yi shooting an 82 to take the win by two over Owasso’s Keith Clark. (84)  Tommy Scott and Michael Foster shot 87 to tie for third. 

Division 4 went down to a playoff between Sand Spring’s Mike Rugg and Tahlequah’s Norman Springwater who both shot 88.  Springwater fired a dart to 10 feet on the first playoff, then two putted to take the title.  Rugg finished second with Patrick Goodnight and David Eslinger tied for third. 

Division 5 finished up the first ever event for Tulsa APT with Bentonville’s Dylan Wolf shooting a 91 to bring home the title.  Zach Sparkman of Tulsa shot 94 to take home second place. 

Senior Net saw fifteen seniors sign up and take their chances with the “net” scoring portion of the event.  Rick Coatney and Keith Tilghman tied with net 76’s. 

APT Tulsa would like to extend a sincere Thank You to the staff at Cherokee Hills Golf Course and the Hard Rock Hotel and Casino for their support.  

In addition, both my wife Jennifer and I would like to thank David and Lesa Davis, directors of APT Dallas/Ft Worth for their unfaltering support in making this first event for APT Tulsa an overwhelming success.  The “family” culture that Matt Minder, Jody Barrett and the entire APT staff have developed was on display in Tulsa this past Saturday and goes to show why the tour developed “By the Players, for the Players” is the most talked about amateur golf tour in the world.