Grand National Lake Golf Course Tournament Results

The Amateur Players Tour hosted a joint event between the Atlanta and Birmingham chapters at the Lake Course of RTJ Grand National in Opelika, AL. The field was treated to perfect playing conditions and some nasty rough. Players competed over five divisions for a piece of the nearly $1500 in total prizes. 

Division 1 was a tight battle all day long between Derek Nicholson and Heath Harrelson. Heath jumped out to a three-stroke lead after an early double bogey by Derek on the second hole. Heath turned with a two-stroke lead and then saw his lead disappear after his own double bogey on the 12th hole. Fast forward to the 18th hole with Derek having a one-shot lead. After a stellar par save from Derek, Heath had to hole is third shot from just off the green and proceeded to lip that chip out. Derek took the victory after a hard-fought battle. 

Division 2 was where the scoring took place with the winner firing a 2 under par round of 70. Stew Kremer made six birdies on the day with four bogies to take victory by three shots over Don Manual. This is Stew’s first victory of the season and his career best round on the APT Tour. Congrats Stew on your stellar play. 

Division 3 was a tightly contested battle between three players. Richard Edwards, Shawn Powers, and Russ Donaldson battled all round long with two of the three being tied after regulation play. Two late birdies were not enough to cover for three bad holes in a row for Russ as he ended up in third place. Richard and Shawn ended tied after regulation and the course did not have any availability on any of the three courses. Per our playoff procedures, Shawn won the scorecard playoff over Richard with a better back nine score. Players split points and purses for first place, but Shawn was awarded the trophy. Congrats to both players. 

Division 4 was the only division that had a first-time winner on the APT Tour. Dennis Antkowiak took the victory over Kenneth Robbins by one shot. A stretch of tough holes from 14-16 by Kenneth was enough for Dennis to grab the trophy and $180 first place prize. Congrats Dennis on your first victory. 

Division 5 was won by a six-time winner on the APT Tour this season. Don Hamblett used a hole out from fifty yards for eagle to take a two-shot victory over Bill Ryan. This victory for Don has helped him secure his spot atop the National Division 5 Player of the Year race. Congrats Don on your great play and finish this out strong.  

Next up for the Atlanta Chapter is Cherokee Run in Conyers, GA on Aug 20th. Tee times begin at 12 ET and spots are filling up fast. The Birmingham Chapter will be at RTJ Silver Lakes on Aug 20th. Registration is open for both events.