2007 Player of the Year Geoff Sisk accepts his POY trophy from NAPGT tour president Brian Hebb.
Photo by Kyle Coburn/NAPGT :: Story by Stacia Golem/NAPGT
Fitchburg, MA (September 28, 2007)—After a summer of grueling golf rounds, all-day travel, week-long hotel stays, beneficial pro-ams, and even some midnight putting at the Fox Inn, another NAPGT season has gone by. But before everyone heads down to Florida to continue their development throughout the winter, a moment of reflection upon the past four months is due.
Of course, no article on this past season would be complete without a mention of the 2007 Player of the Year, Geoff Sisk. Just take a quick glance at our website’s stats page, his name is all over it. He had three first place finishes, winning the Atlantic, Crosswinds and Captains Opens, eight top ten finishes, and was the leading money winner, bringing in a little over $40,000.
“I think it was one of my better years for the fact that we had smaller fields, and that doesn’t always equate to better golf or finishing high,” said Sisk. “A lot of our really strong players came back to play so it’s quite rewarding to play well, as I did this year, and get the job done and win some tournaments.”
One such of these standout players that made Sisk work for his results was Dustin Cone. From Bennington, VT, Cone had nearly as impressive of a season as Sisk. He had seven top five finishes, winning at Crumpin-Fox, and having two second place finishes and two fourth place finishes. He was also the number two money leader, making almost $30,000.
This was only Cone’s second year playing as a professional, but his consistency on the course would make you think otherwise. “I just had more of a comfortable feel this year,” he said. “I think being down [in Florida last winter] and being able to play all year built my confidence and my game and I think that carried over.”
Matt Donovan, a tournament regular for seven years, also had one of his best season’s ever. Not only was he the number three money leader, he also had some great finishes, including a win at Pinehills, which was his first NAPGT victory ever.
“Something about this tour in the past, I just couldn’t get over the hump, I don’t know what it was,” he said. “But it seems like this year I kind of found a good rhythm and was able to ride it for the most part week after week.”
Donovan said that no different practicing or preparation was put into the win at Pinehills, it was just a matter of timing. “I found something on the range like ten minutes before my practice round,” he said. “Something clicked with my swing and my rhythm was good.”
Seven also seemed to be the lucky number for veteran player, Billy Downes. He grabbed a win at the Shaker Hills Open for his first trophy after seven seasons as well.
“It’s always important to win, just more so for feeling good about yourself,” said Downes. “It was kinda different for me because I kinda cut back my playing schedule this year.”
There’s no doubt that everyone was happy for Donovan and Downes’ firsts. But this season was also full of other new experiences as well as some records. In nearly half of the nine events played this summer, some sort of record was tied or broken.
Starting with the first tournament of the season, Mark DiGiacomo tied the course record at Atkinson, shooting an eight under, 64 in the second round. At Blackstone, our second event, Kyle Gallo won with a bogie-free 19 under, 197, which was the lowest three-round score in tour history. Dustin Cone established a course record at Atlantic after shooting a 66 in the first round, and two events later, Rob Oppenheim shot a 66 at Crosswinds, setting the course record there.
But perhaps the most thrilling first came at Atlantic when Anna Grzebien became the first woman to play on the NAPGT. Although she never made a cut in the four events that she played, Grzebien showed that she was able to stand amongst the men and be seen as equal when she oftentimes bested some of the player’s scores. At both Shaker Hills and Pinehills she shot a one under, 71in her second rounds, scoring lower that day than some of the guys who did make the cut.
I think everyone would agree that this NAPGT season was a good one, especially when it came to helping the players stay on their game, and preparing them for the next level.
“The good thing is we’re all pushing each other,” said Sisk. “If you have a lead going into the final round, you wanna keep working on it, keep playing well, keep hitting good golf shots, keep making birdies, and try to win the golf tournament. We have better players now so if you don’t play well in the final round, you’re not gonna win,” he said.
This level of competition is why Donovan comes back to the NAPGT year after year.
“It’s helped me mentally really. It’s been a good learning ground,” he said. “The courses are good, and playing against the competition has been the real key out there, you look at these names and we’re as good as anybody.”
The NAPGT congratulates everyone on a job well done this year. We wish everybody luck this winter and wait enthusiastically for their return next season.
