McMillan Clinches National Car Rental Northern Texas Assistant PGA Professional Championship After Playoff
Four Qualify for 48th National Car Rental Assistant PGA Professional Championship
LEWISVILLE, Texas (August 19) – Stetson McMillan, associate at John Sikes Golf Academy, bested Matt Ryba, PGA assistant professional at Preston Trail Golf Club, after a one hole playoff. McMillan made a par on the par-4, 10th hole to claim the Championship title. Both players finished at 8-under-par.
In the day’s 36-hole marathon at The Lakes at Castle Hills, McMillan carded rounds of 69-67–136. His final round included a closing birdie on the 18th to force the playoff. “I’m a leaderboard watcher. I knew Ryba was up there and I was up there, we were kind of battling it out, but it turned out I birdied the last hole to get into the playoff,” said McMillan.
McMillan’s drive found the fairway, with Ryba’s finding the right rough. Both players missed the green, with Ryba just off the front right and McMillan missing the green short left, leaving him a testy pitch shot over the bunker to a back left hole location. He hit a towering flop shot to inside of 3-feet and made the putt for the win after Ryba’s par putt narrowly missed.
Talking about his first individual NTPGA win McMillan said, “It’s just awesome! I was really excited at the start of the year whenI found out we were playing at Castle Hills. I’ve played here quite a bit over the years and was excited to come back. Course was in great shape.”
This Championship served as a qualifier into the 48th National Car Rental Assistant PGA Professional Championship, set to be held November 14-17, 2024 at PGA Golf Club in Port St. Lucie, Florida. As a B-6 PGA associate and instructor, McMillan was not eligible to qualify for the Championship. Only A-8 PGA Members and B-8 associates are eligible. The qualifiers and alternates are listed below.
Qualifiers:
- Matt Ryba, PGA assistant professional at Preston Trail Golf Club
- Tristan Cottrell, PGA assistant professional at Bent Tree Country Club
- Spencer Dillard, PGA assistant professional at Preston Trail Golf Club
- Ben Swaffield, associate at Preston Trail Golf Club
Alternates:
- Jarred Jeter, PGA assistant professional at Midland Country Club
- Corbin Renner, PGA assistant professional at Shady Oaks Country Club
- Todd Rossetti, PGA assistant professional at Luna Vista Golf Course
The field was competing for a record overall Championship purse of $13,500. McMillan took home $1,300 for his victory today.
The National Car Rental Northern Texas Assistant PGA Professional Championship was supported by Srixon / Cleveland Golf / Asics and PGA TOUR. The Championship was presented by Veritex Community Bank.
The Lakes at Castle Hills
Par: 36-36–72
Yardage: 7,034 yards
View the Final Championship Results
HERE.
