Tennessee Golf Association News

Burgan wins Tennessee Senior Amateur as tribute to Patten

Tennessee Golf Association — Wed, 26 Aug 2026 17:15:00 GMT

After spending the last three days trying to solve the grueling test presented by the Lookout Mountain Club’s demanding layout, Todd Burgan knew that he had not taken on that challenge alone after winning the 56th Tennessee Senior Amateur Championship on Friday.

In fact, Burgan planned to make one detour stop on his trip home to Powell to celebrate with the man who made his victory possible, Zeb Patten.

Patten was unable to attend the tournament being played on his home course while recuperating in a local hospital from injuries incurred two weeks ago when the airplane he was piloting crashed in the north Georgia mountains due to engine failure.

Patten was considered a favorite to compete for the title given his understanding of the intricacies that make LMC a mystery to those unfamiliar with its puzzling greens. Two days prior to his accident, Patten had given Burgan a quick study of the various nuances of the golf course during a practice round, and he took copious notes that came in handy this week.

“I wanted to win this for Zeb with everything that happened,” Burgan said. “Last night, I couldn’t put it out of my mind when things like that normally don’t bother me. So, there were a lot of emotions out there today.”

Wearing a “ZP” pin on his hat that many competitors adorned as a salute to Patten, Burgan was able to win by four shots with a final score of 6-over par. After signing his scorecard, he was thrilled to make a beeline to Siskin Hospital to thank Patten for his guidance and to present numerous cards from his fellow competitors wishing their comrade a speedy recovery.

“This is such a local knowledge golf course, more than any golf course I've ever played in my life,” Burgan said. “When I came up and rode in the cart with him all the way around, he just coached me and gave me tips the whole way. I probably would not have won this thing if it hadn’t been for that day with Zeb. If you don't know how to play the holes, this golf course keeps you doubting and you never can feel comfortable.”

Burgan opened with a four-shot lead that he maintained through seven holes despite carding three bogeys. But a birdie at No. 8 followed by a challenging up-and-down for par at No. 9 after finding a fairway bunker with his drive steadied his round.

“Those two holes righted the ship,” Burgan said. “It was like, ‘OK, I'm back. I can play my game.’ I was just kind of playing very conservative coming in, hitting it to the fat parts of the green.”

Burgan credits his ability to remain undistracted by the potential carnage at every hole as a key to his victory.

“I showed some perseverance out there,” Burgan said. “I just tried to put my head down and play one hole at a time. I know it sounds like a cliché, but every single hole out here is a possible double bogey at any particular time, even if you hit good shots.”

Burgan posted five pars to open his final nine before alternating bogeys and pars over his last four holes to close with a 74 that led to a total score of 6 over for the week.

Franklin’s Steven Mann picked up a pair of late birdies to finish second at 10 over after shooting a final round 71. Kenny Wilson of Murfreesboro was third with a three-day aggregate of 12 over.

Williston’s Mike Albonetti and Pat Chisholm of Franklin tied for fourth at 13 over, one shot clear of Charles May of Nashville at 14 over. A trio of golfers tied for seventh that included Lookout Mountain’s Steve Johnson, defending champion Bradford Kuester of Knoxville, and Alan Jones of Tullahoma.

Burgan’s victory comes on the heels of winning the Tennessee Senior Match Play for the second time earlier in the year. He has accumulated nine TGA titles in his career, moving closer to a personal goal he set for himself after moving up to Senior competition two years ago.

“My goal was to win 10 state championships when I turned Senior,” Burgan said. “I had six at the time, and that’s a tall order to win four more state championships. I figured it would take at least five years, but I’m up to nine now and I’ve got one more chance to do it this year at the Four-Ball in October.”

Burgan’s feat is even more remarkable considering he missed most of 2025 while recovering from a medical procedure. He will head to Baltimore next week to play in the U.S. Senior Amateur, which will be his 15th USGA event.

“It’s been a great year,” Burgan said. “I couldn’t have drawn it up any better.”

A year made even better thanks to Zeb Patten and his wise counsel in sharing Lookout Mountain’s cheat codes.

Fly makes history with 6th straight title at Tennessee Super Senior Amateur

Tennessee Golf Association — Wed, 26 Aug 2026 17:11:00 GMT

Buzz Fly chose to spend his birthday at Lookout Mountain Club on Friday, five hours away from the rest of his family in Memphis. But he picked out the perfect gift for himself to celebrate the occasion, one that has become all too familiar.

The Midgett Family Trophy is awarded to the champion of the Tennessee Super Senior Amateur, and for the sixth consecutive year the hardware will find itself in Fly’s possession after his three-shot win. In doing so, the 71-year-old Fly ushered in his new year by also adding his name to the Tennessee Golf Association record book in becoming the first golfer to win the same event six straight years.

Fly eclipsed a mark shared by a pair of Tennessee Golf Hall of Fame members – Lew Oehmig and Judy Eller Street – and it’s only a matter of time before he finds himself joining them with his own enshrinement.

Oehmig’s streak of Tennessee Senior Amateurs won from 1969-73 could have possibly been extended had the tournament not undergone a seven-year hiatus before resuming in 1980. Street began her run of Tennessee Women’s Amateur titles as a 15-year-old in 1956 that concluded in 1960.

“I'm just grateful to be able to still play good and play solid at this age,” Fly said. “I qualified for the U.S. Senior Amateur a few weeks ago, and I'm going to get to go next week for the seventh time. I'll be the second oldest guy in the field, so it’s just a privilege to be able to continue to play golf at this level.”

When confronted by the fact that his win usurps Oehmig’s deeds in TGA annals, Fly was quick to downplay the comparison to the legend.

“I don't put myself in the same category with Lew Oehmig,” Fly said. “I don't know that Super Senior stuff stacks up to all the things he accomplished.”

Fly has now accumulated 17 statewide victories, with 15 of those coming in the last 13 years when he found time to compete regularly after focusing on his family and business career previously. In addition to his six Super Senior Amateurs, he won a Super Senior Match Play title in 2025 to go with three Senior Four-Ball victories (2016, 2019, 2020) and a Senior Match Play crown (2013) to bring his TGA total to 11.

Fly also has won six Tennessee PGA events, including two Tennessee Assistant PGA Professional championships (1979, 1980), two Tennessee Super Senior State Opens (2022, 2024) and a pair of Tennessee PGA Senior Players Championships (2013, 2017).

After entering Friday’s round deadlocked with Brentwood’s Hubie Smith at 4-over, Fly recorded a 2-over 72 to win by three shots over Smith with a final total of 6-over par.

Fly trailed by one shot after three holes before virtually sealing the outcome at the turn. He claimed birdies at holes 4 and 6 along with four pars to improve to 3-over, while Smith encountered three bogeys and a double bogey to fall to 9-over during that same stretch. In the span of six holes, Fly went from one down to leading by six.

But Smith refused to go down without a fight. He bagged a trio of birdies over the first four holes of the back nine, drawing to within three shots after Fly double-bogeyed the par-3 13th.

“I was playing great until that point, and I’ll admit I felt some pressure after that double,” Fly said. “I was aware that I was only three-up after that three-shot swing with five difficult holes left. I felt the pressure for sure from that point on.”

But Smith could claw no closer as the golfers traded bogeys at 14 and 15 and ended the round with three straight pars.

Smith finished second in his first year as a Super Senior, having placed second two years ago at Memphis Country Club in the Senior Amateur. He closed with a final round 75 to post a total of 9 over.

Knoxville’s John Thomas - one of three golfers along with Nashville’s Stuart Smith and Rob Kremer to shoot 71 as Friday’s low score – finished third at 14 over. Clarksville’s Greg Guinn and Brentwood’s Greg Wilder tied for fourth at 15 over.

Stuart Smith, David Apperson of Memphis and French Bolen of Knoxville finished at 16 over, good for a sixth-place tie, one shot ahead of Wes Payne of Knoxville in ninth at 17 over.

Golf community embraces Zeb Patten after plane crash

Tennessee Golf Association — Wed, 26 Aug 2026 16:32:40 GMT

This was a week that Zeb Patten had been looking forward to since last December when the Tennessee Golf Association announced their Senior and Super Senior State Amateur championships would be coming to Lookout Mountain Club in 2026.

Patten has been a long-time member at Lookout Mountain, proudly representing the club at competitions throughout Tennessee and beyond. He also makes his home on the mountain, and he was thrilled to be able to host some of his closest peers as they experienced life for the week in his close-knit community.

Overcoming language barrier no problem for longtime honors caddie

Tennessee Golf Association — Wed, 26 Aug 2026 16:25:35 GMT

After 26 years of caddying at The Honors Course, there are very few situations that Cortney Brazier has not encountered on the golf course.

But all of that changed at this week’s U.S. Women’s Amateur.

The veteran caddie was assigned to loop for Anna Iwanaga, a 17-year-old rising star from Amagasaki, Japan, one of five Japanese players in the field. With a distinct language barrier between Brazier’s southern drawl and Iwanaga’s limited English, the duo has relied upon technology to help bridge the gap.

Mitchell Claims First Title at Tennessee match play

Tennessee Golf Association — Wed, 26 Aug 2026 16:21:11 GMT

Matt Mitchell has always dreamed of having his name added to a state championship trophy. He has some impressive wins on his resume’ including a Memphis Amateur title and a victory at the prestigious Tillinghast Invitational, but a Tennessee Golf Association crown seemed to always escape his grasp.

That is, until Friday at Chickasaw Country Club.

The 51-year-old Mitchell finally achieved that elusive goal at the 27th Tennessee Match Play Championship, defeating Nashville's Tucker Jenkins in the finals by a 2 and 1 margin for his first TGA title. And after draining the decisive putt for par on the 17th hole, Mitchell was overcome with equal parts jubilation and relief.

Troxell, Newman repeat as Tennessee Women's Four-Ball champs

Tennessee Golf Association — Wed, 26 Aug 2026 16:15:00 GMT

Alli Troxell and Addisyn Newman decided to play hooky from their high school studies for a couple of days to defend their title in the 31st Tennessee Women’s Four-Ball Championship. Hopefully, their school administrators will be sympathetic when informed that the junior golfers were able to secure back-to-back championships in this event.

The road trip to Kingsport to compete proved to be a success for Troxell and Newman. They were able to navigate the soggy par-71 Cattails at MeadowView Golf Course, playing at 5,165 yards in a methodical fashion, winning by eight shots with a final score of 12-under-par after posting a final round 67 on Tuesday.

The duo improved on last year’s four-shot victory margin at Hermitage Golf Course, outdistancing Danna Raube and Karen Richards from Franklin as runner-up for the second year in a row in the Championship Division. They are the first repeat champions since Hanley Long and Jenna Burris completed that feat in 2017-18.

Newman and Troxell entered Wednesday’s final round with a three-shot advantage after combining for an 8-under 63 to open the tournament. They quickly extended their margin to six shots through six holes despite making only one birdie as Raube and Richards recorded three bogeys during that stretch.

While maintaining a five-stroke cushion at 9-under through 11 holes, Newman then delivered the knockout blow to essentially seal the title. The Hardin Valley Academy junior birdied the par-3 12th then followed up with an eagle at the 275-yard par-4 13th to again lead by six with five holes remaining before closing with all pars.

Troxell - a Harrison resident who is a sophomore at Ooltewah High School where she plays with her older sister, Charli – was unable to repeat her five-birdie performance from Tuesday but contributed some key pars on holes where Newman struggled.

Raube and Richards shot 1-over 72 on Wednesday to finish tied for second among the eight teams competing with a total of 4-under, joined by Loudon’s Emery Fisher and Parker Miller from Maryville who recorded a final round of even par 71.

Closing in fourth place were 2024 champions Beth Underhill of McMinnville and Kyle Crouch of Cookeville at 1-under, while McMinnville’s Michelle Dodson and Rachel Ellis of College Grove placed fifth at 5-over.

The Senior Division required a tiebreaker to determine a champion, with Karen Williams of Bean Station and partner Rhonda Switzer-Nadasdi of Nashville prevailing in a scorecard playoff over Robin Banner of Knoxville and Susan Miller of Loudon.

The necessity of a playoff seemed unlikely minutes earlier as Switzer-Nadasdi and Williams trailed by five shots with seven holes remaining. However, they cruised home covering those final holes in 1-under while Banner and Miller suffered a pair of bogeys and a double during that same stretch as the sides finished tied at 1-under par.

Nashville’s Erica Chappell and Julie Carlton were one shot back in third at even par. Sandie Ballie of Crossville and Sue Schroer of Loudon tied for fourth at 4-over with the pairing of Bonnie Nestel and Sara Margraf of College Grove.

For complete results, go to TN Women's Four-Ball.

Three Tennesseans set to compete in the U.S. Women’s Amateur Championship at The Honors Course

Tennessee Golf Association — Tue, 28 Jul 2026 05:00:00 GMT

OOLTEWAH, Tenn. — The U.S Women’s Amateur will return to Tennessee for the fourth time in 131 years next month, with the championship set to take place at The Honors Course in Ooltewah from August 4-9. The last iteration of the competition to be hosted in the state was in 2018 at The Golf Club of Tennessee in Kingston Springs. Memphis Country Club has hosted the tournament twice prior to that in 1937 and 1979.

Rawl rallies to win the 28th Tennessee Women’s Open; Johnson wins in playoff for Senior Division title

Tennessee Golf Association — Mon, 27 Jul 2026 05:00:00 GMT

Three weeks ago, Isabella Rawl had no plans to travel to Tennessee this week. But one of her former Clemson teammates, Chloe Holder, had signed up to play in the Tennessee Women’s Open, so Rawl decided to join her at the last minute.

The 28th Tennessee Women’s Open is back at Stonehenge Golf Course

Tennessee Golf Association — Mon, 20 Jul 2026 05:00:00 GMT

CROSSVILLE, Tenn. — The Tennessee Women’s Open is set to tee off on July 15 at Stonehenge Golf Course, with the tournament to last until July 18. In 2025, Jessica Welch was crowned a champion at the same venue, carding a 65-73-71 to win by three strokes. Welch holds the solo record for the lowest Round 1 score on 18 after posting her 65, and shares the record for the lowest score in any round of the competition with Kynadie Adams.

Forgey weathers the storm and playoff to capture Tennessee State Open title

Tennessee Golf Association — Mon, 20 Jul 2026 05:00:00 GMT

It was like the epic closing scene out of the movie “The Natural” late Friday afternoon at the 77th Tennessee State Open.

As raindrops and cascaded down upon Adam Forgey after he emerged victorious from a one-hole playoff at Grassland Club’s Fairvue Course, the memories of near misses accumulated over the years while chasing an elusive dream came rushing back.