Mitchell, Knievel, Boudreaux, Purdy, Koch and Yocum Win 2023 SNGA Winter Classic Titles
Matt Mitchell (Championship), Kelly Knievel (Senior) and Barry Boudreaux (Silver) won gross titles at the 2023 SNGA Winter Classic. Ryan Purdy (Net), David Koch (Senior) and George Yocum (Silver) captured net titles in the tournament held Dec. 16-17, 2023, at Cascata.–by Bill Bowman, Las Vegas Golf Insider
The tournament used a modified Stableford scoring system with a double eagle worth seven points, an eagle worth five points, a birdie worth three points, a par worth two points, a bogey worth one point and a double bogey or worse worth zero points.
Championship
Matt Mitchell saved the best for last as he birdied his final hole to pick up three points in winning the Championship Division.
It was Mitchell’s first individual title since he won the Tournament of Champions to start off the year. He did win medalist honors with Scott Lytle in the U.S. Amateur Four-Ball Sectional Qualifier in August.
“It feels good,” Mitchell said. “Winning is hard to do and it’s nice when you can finish well.”
He did just that with his final-hole birdie.
“I knew where I stood,” he said. “I knew we were tied and I would lose the tiebreaker. I knew I had to make the putt. It was about an 18-footer and I gave it enough speed and it went in.”
He said the key to the win was his play off the tee.
“Cascata is a course I’ve struggled with in the past,” he said. “I’m happy to overcome that. I hit a lot of straight drives and putted pretty well on these greens that were really, really fast. I was happy to keep it in play and play solid golf.”
Championship
Matt Mitchell, 35-36—71 points
Andrew Chu, 35-35—70
Garret Kieffer, 29-30—59
Net
Ryan Purdy had a net eagle and a natural birdie in back-to-back holes to pick up eight points en route a five-point victory in the Net Division.
It was Purdy’s second SNGA title and both came in this event as he also won the Net title at Cascata in 2022.
“I’ll try to win a tournament at a different course soon,” he said with a laugh. “It’s weird the only two SNGA wins I have are in this tournament.”
He said his play was solid but his attitude carried him.
“I played OK all around but nothing great,” he said. “On the other hand, I didn’t do anything catastrophic and get in trouble. I played out of the fairways most of the time and was on the greens in regulation most of the time. It was just solid golf.”
He said playing SNGA events is a great test of golf.
“I’ve lived in a lot of places around the U.S. and the golfers here are really good,” he said. “It’s always a great challenge to go up against these golfers and to win is special. If you’re going to win an SNGA event, you’ve got to play about as well as you can.”
Net
Ryan Purdy, 37-38—75 points
Robert Golden, 38-32—70
Robert Taylor, 37-33—70
Senior
Kelly Knievel picked up points on 35 of his 36 holes and posted a four-point victory in the Senior Division.
It was Knievel’s third win of 2023 to go along with five runnerup finishes.
“This is the first tournament that counts for points next year so it’s certainly nice to get a win,” Knievel said.
He said his overall play was solid…with one exception.
“I’m upset with my putting,” he said. “I had five three-putts and that’s just not good. Three-putts are the scourge of golf.”
He added that Cascata’s greens are a challenge.
“If you’re not used to the greens, you won’t be aware of the severity of the breaks,” he said. “The lack of knowledge leads to more three putts than normal.”
But in the end, it was a solid two days.
“I kept it in play,” he said. “And any time you win it’s a confidence builder. Winning begets winning…that’s all there is to it.”
Senior
Kelly Knievel, 36-33—69 points
Rick Sepp, 33-32—65
Todd Roberts, 31-28—59
Senior Net
David Koch won for the second time in 2023, racking up 35 points in Day 2 with four birdies helping the cause.
An equipment chang helped him get back in the winner’s circle.
“I changed putters before the last one-day tournament,” he said. “I putted pretty well this week and I didn’t have any three-putts today so that’s a good thing.”
He said the win is nice, especially on a course like Cascata.
“This course sets up well for me,” he said. “I hit a lot of three-woods off the tee and hit a lot of fairways. If you do hit the fairway it tends to run out well.”
He said the final day was the perfect day.
“It’s days like this when you wonder why we can’t play like this all the time,” he said with a laugh. “(Saturday), I was ready for the season to be over. Now, I can’t wait to play again.”
Senior Net
David Koch, 29-35—64 points
Michael Andrews, 34-28—62
Scott Wandro, 30-32—62
Silver
Barry Boudreaux had an eagle and four birdies in the first round and won for the first time in SNGA play.
It was his third SNGA event.
“I played in a very good group,” he said. “It was light-hearted and there was no pressure. Then, all of a sudden, I looked up and I’m doing pretty well. It was a great feeling.”
He said his work on the greens helped his cause.
“I’m putting a lot better than normal,” he said. “That will definitely set the tone for next year.”
He also had a chat with his putter.
“I had what I call a performance review conversation with my putter,” he said. “I threatened to put it back in the bag if it didn’t improve. It must have worked because my putting, especially on Day 1, was the overall reason I won.”
He said one putt in particular stands out.
“The biggest surprise came on the first hole the first day,” he said. “We played the first hole pretty late in the round and I drilled about a 60-foot downhill putt. It went straight in the middle of hole. If it wouldn’t have hit the hole, it probably would have gone off the green. It certainly came at a very good time.”
Silver
Barry Boudreaux, 38-24—62 points
Kent Samuel, 31-26—57
Jeffrey English, 26-24—50
Silver Net
George Yocum is back in the winner’s circle, one year later.
Yocum won the 2022 Winter Classic last December and follows that up a year later with another win at Cascata.
“I love Cascata,” Yocum said. “It can be a very intimidating course if you don’t hit it straight and I drove it well.”
But then there’s the putting aspect to deal with.
“Those greens are fast,” Yocum said. “And they were scary…that’s the correct word. But if you hit the fairway and you hit the green, or get close, you’re going to give yourself a chance on the greens. I was in pretty good shape most of the time.”
He added the SNGA deserves credit for players getting the chance to play the course.
“It’s a treat to be able to play one of the best courses in the state of Nevada,” Yocum said. “It says so much about the SNGA that they are able to get us out there.”
Silver Net
George Yocum, 33-35—68 points
Ernie Alaan, 32-33—65
Jimmy Bradley, 31-26—57
