Blanks Cashes in at B of A Championship,
Several Qualify for US Open

Glenview, Ill.- 2007 Tarheel Tour Player Kris Blanks shot a final round 4-under-par 68 to hold off a furious charge by 2000 PGA Championship runner-up Bob May and win the Nationwide Tour’s Bank of America Championship in Glenview, Ill by one shot. The 35 year old from Warner Robbins, GA took the lead over clubhouse leader Bob May with a birdie on the difficult par-three 17th, enabling himself to par the par-five 18th and clinch the championship at 16-under. Blanks win was worth $135,000, one of the largest first place checks in Nationwide Tour history, and moved from 31st to 5th on the money list. Beyond winning the event, Blanks should take heart in knowing that all six former winners of the Bank of America Championship have gone on to earn their PGA Tour card via finishing in the Top 25 on the year end money list.

Former Tarheel Tour competitors and current Nationwide Tour members Casey Wittenberg and Brendon de Jonge finished in a tie for third at 13-under-par earning $43,500 each. Tommy Tolles and Kyle Reifers, who each won on the Tarheel Tour in the past two seasons, tied for fifth earning $26,344 each. 2007 River Run Classic Champion David Mathis maintained his position at the top of the money list with a 13th place finish this week earning $12,084. Finishing in a tie with Mathis for 13th was Tarheel Tour regular Rob Bradley. Bradley has split his time this season between the Tarheel Tour and the Nationwide Tour, but has recently played well enough to guarantee his weekly spot on the PGA Tour’s second circuit.

Notes:

• Sectional Qualifying for the 108th U.S. Open Championship at Torrey Pines was conducted at 13 sites on Monday, with several current and former Tarheel Tour players advancing to play in the Championship beginning on June 12th. Current PGA Tour member and former Tarheel Tour player Jason Bohn shot a blistering 129 over the 36-hole qualifier to co-medal in his qualifier in Roswell, GA. A pair of current Tarheel Tour members and former University of North Carolina golfers also qualified on Monday. New Bedford, MA native Kevin Silva fired a 36-hole total of 139 to take medalist honors at Old Oaks Country Club in Purchase, NY. Fernando Figueroa, a former teammate of Silva’s in Chapel Hill, carded a pair of 67’s at the overflow site in Columbus, OH to also comfortably qualify. Other former Tarheel Tour players who qualified for the season’s second major include 2007 Sapona Open Champion Justin Hicks, former U.S. Amateur runner-up Casey Wittenberg, and Yohan Benson, as well as current PGA Tour members John Mallinger and Steve Marino. For complete sectional qualifying results please go to http://usga.usopen.com/qualifying/sectional-results.html

• 2006 River Run Classic runner-up John Mallinger fired a 3-under-par 69 in the final round of the Memorial Tournament to finish in a tie for tenth. Mallinger earned $120,667 for his efforts and moved up to 64th on the current money list with $828,733 in total earnings. Mallinger is currently 69th in the season long FedEx Cup Points race. This week the Nationwide Tour is in nearby Raleigh, NC for the Rex Hospital Open at TPC Wakefield. The Monday qualifier took place at Keith Hills in Buies Creek, NC on the Creek and River Courses where nine of the fourteen qualifiers are either current or former Tarheel Tour Competitors. Tarheel Tour member Michael Henderson fired a blistering 10-under-par 62 to lead the field of 91 competitors on the River Course. Other players who successfully qualified on the River Course include current Tarheel Tour players, Elliot Gealy, Josh Coley, Bryant MacKellar and Kevin Larsen. Gealy and Larsen finished 7th and 8th place respectively last week at the Tarheel Tour's Bermuda Run Open. At the Creek Course qualifier four Tarheel Tour players qualified led by 2006 Raintree Classic Champion Stephen Poole. The former Clemson standout fired a 7-under-par 65 to place second out of 94 competitors. Other Tarheel Tour members who qualified include 2006 Tarheel Tour Money leader Dustin Bray, TPGG Classic runner-up Fernando Mechereffe and Tarheel Tour regular Duncan Stewart. All three men fired 6-under-par 66. The Rex Hosptial Open begins on Thursday June 4th and finishes on Sunday June 7th.