UAB's McDowell Is Finalist For Ben Hogan Award

Graeme McDowell

UAB men's golfer Graeme McDowell has been named one of 10 finalists for the Ben Hogan Award named by the Friends of Golf and Colonial Country Club, in association with the Golf Coaches Association of America (GCAA).

The Ben Hogan Award will be presented to the outstanding male college golfer over the course of the last 12 months at a black-tie dinner Monday, May 13 at Colonial Country Club in Fort Worth, Texas. The Hogan Award takes into consideration a player's collegiate and amateur record from May 1, 2001 to May 1, 2002.

Over the course of the year, McDowell has won five tournaments out of 10 and has a 60.8 scoring average. He currently ranks first in the Golfstat Cup Standing, which is awarded to the collegiate golfer with the lowest scoring average over the year and second in the latest Golfweek/Sagarin Performance Index Rankings.

"We are very proud that Graeme has been named one of the finalists for the Ben Hogan Award," said head coach Alan Kaufman. "Based on his outstanding play over the last year, we feel he has a real excellent chance to win the award."

The recipient of the award will be announced on Friday, May 3.

The inaugural Ben Hogan Award was presented in 1990 by the Friends of Golf (FOG), to a player exhibiting excellence in academics as well as college golf as selected by the GCAA.

In the summer of 2001, FOG and the GCAA were approached by representatives of Colonial Country Club in Fort Worth, Texas wanting to create an award named for Hogan and make the presentation during the week of the MasterCard Colonial PGA Tour event.

While the three parties collaborated on the award, the decision was made to revise the criteria to more accurately reflect the original idea for the Ben Hogan Award. Although the criteria for selection has changed, the 12 past winners will remain as part of the Hogan Award's history.

Additionally, FOG will continue to present the honoree with a replica of the Waterford crystal trophy displayed permanently at Bel-Air Country Club in Los Angeles, while Colonial Country Club will present the honoree and his school with a replica of the permanent trophy displayed in the Hogan Room at Colonial.

Ben Hogan Award Semifinalists (listed in alphabetical order)
Bill Haas (Soph.) - Wake Forest
Ryan Hybl (Soph.) - Georgia
Hunter Mahan (Soph.) - Oklahoma State
Troy Matteson (Jr.) - Georgia Tech
Graeme McDowell (Jr.) - UAB
Chez Reavie (Soph.) - Arizona State
D.J. Trahan (Jr.) - Clemson
Camilo Villegas (So.) - Florida
Nick Watney (Jr.) - Fresno State
Lee Williamson (Sr.) - Purdue

Ben Hogan Award Recipients (under previous criteria)
1990 - Kevin Wentworth, Oklahoma State
1991 - Brian Bridges, Kent State
1992 - Jon Lindquist, Gustavus Adolphus College
1993 - Marten Olander, Alabama
1994 - William Blackman, Auburn
1995 - Trip Kuehne, Oklahoma State
1996 - Mark Wilson, North Carolina
1997 - Jeff Fahrenbruch, Texas
1998 - Jamie Broce, Ball State
1999 - Steve Friesen, Nebraska
2000 - Chris James, Oklahoma
2001 - Wil Collins, New Mexico