Northern Texas PGA Junior Golf Foundation Awards A Record $265,000 in Scholarships

NTPGA • May 26, 2017

DALLAS, TX – The Northern Texas PGA Junior Golf Foundation is pleased to continue its charitable commitment to educational services by announcing its 2017 scholarship recipients. 33 recipients have earned scholarships totaling $265,000, the most ever given in a single year by the Foundation.

This year, of the scholarships awarded, 62% were based on financial need, academic performance, extracurricular activities and community involvement, while 38% were awarded based on academic performance, extracurricular activities and community involvement.

NTPGA Junior Golf Foundation Scholarship Recipients
The Northern Texas PGA Junior Golf Foundation is pleased to announce its 2017 scholarship recipients.

AT&T Byron Nelson Scholarship

o Charlee Cockrell – Oakwood, Texas – Texas A&M University

Ben Hogan Foundation / Denny and Carol Alexander Scholarship

o William Warner – Granbury, Texas – University of Arkansas

Ben Hogan Foundation / Alan and Wendy Barron Scholarship

o Spencer Bindel – Mansfield, Texas – University of Notre Dame

Ben Hogan Foundation / Jeff and Kelly Dillard Scholarship

o Sarah McClain – Euless, Texas – Dallas Baptist University

Birdies For Kids Scholarship

o Justin Thompson – Dallas, Texas – Southern Methodist University

Briggs Berry Heart of a Lion Scholarship

o Brannon McCabe – Granbury, Texas – West Texas A&M University

Cameron McCormick Golf Scholarship

o Riley McFarlane – McKinney, Texas – Missouri University of Science and Technology

Cameron McCormick Golf Scholarship

o Bryce Parker – Pampa, Texas – University of Mary-Hardin Baylor

Cameron McCormick Golf Scholarship

o Ava Castillo – Dallas, Texas – University of Texas at Dallas

Colonial Country Club Scholarship

o Kate Brickner – Southlake, Texas – Washington University in St. Louis

Donald E. Steen Golf Scholarship

o Parker Smith – Frisco, Texas – University of North Texas

EPEC Golf Scholarship

o Kimberly Flack – Double Oak, Texas – University of Texas at Austin

Ewing Automotive College Scholarship

o Sydney McClinton – Frisco, Texas – Texas Women’s University

Holly & Doug Brooks Family Foundation Scholarship

o Caitlin Coverstone – Longview, Texas – Rose-Hulman Institute of Technology

Holly & Doug Brooks Family Foundation Scholarship

o Casey Washmon – Carrollton, Texas – University of Mary-Hardin Baylor

Holly & Doug Brooks Family Foundation Scholarship

o Austin Evans – Farmersville, Texas – Sam Houston State University

I AM Scholarship

o Tameria Macon – Dallas, Texas – Undecided

I AM Scholarship

o Kimberly Whittenburg – Dallas, Texas – Texas A&M University - Commerce

Jerry J. Ransom Scholarship

o Alex Motes – Sulphur Springs, Texas – LeTourneau University

Jordan Spieth Family Foundation Scholarship

o Jessica Carbajal – Dallas, Texas – El Centro College

Jordan Spieth Family Foundation Scholarship

o Bryan Piña – Dallas, Texas – Texas A&M University

Jordan Spieth Family Foundation Scholarship

o Elliot Valencia – Dallas, Texas – University of Chicago

Lindy Miller Dallas Golf Association Scholarship

o Jared Imber – Fort Worth, Texas – Tulane University

Mac Spikes PGA Member Scholarship*

o Michael Hanson – Longview, Texas – University of Arkansas

Randy Smith Award

o Logan Willeford – Canton, Texas – Texas A&M University

Royal Oaks Country Club / Nicholas Stafford Scholarship

o Alex Smith – Dallas, Texas – Washington University in St. Louis

West Texas Legends Scholarship honoring S.A. Smith, Hart Warren and Jay McClure

o Tailar Anthony – Levelland, Texas – Lubbock Christian University



*Denotes - Annually awarded to a child or grandchild of a Northern Texas PGA Member


Fairway to Success Deloitte / Northern Texas PGA Scholarship Recipients
The Deloitte Fairway to Success After School Program completed its tenth year of outreach at three DISD high schools – W.W. Samuell, Thomas Jefferson and Lincoln. These schools were selected by DISD for their level of need, lack of outside resources and commitment of staff leadership to this project. Fairway to Success is a collaborative effort between Deloitte, Northern Texas PGA and United Way of Metropolitan Dallas, which provides scholarships to at-risk students who are learning to play golf.

Fairway to Success is helping to impact and change the lives of children in our community. The five-week, after school program boasted record participation numbers, with 137 DISD high school students learning the basics of golf from PGA professionals over the course of the academic year. Students also went on a field trip to a local golf course and graduating seniors were given the opportunity to apply for a $20,000 college scholarship.

Deloitte, the Northern Texas PGA and United Way are proud to announce the 2017 scholarship recipients:

· Maritza Aguilar – W.W. Samuell High School – University of North Texas

· Craig Jackson – Lincoln High School – University of North Texas

· Keja Johnson – Lincoln High School – Texas Christian University

· Adriana Lopez – Thomas Jefferson High School – University of Texas at Dallas

· Tahania Sierra – Thomas Jefferson High School – University of Texas at Dallas

· Stephanie Vargas – Thomas Jefferson High School – Texas A&M University


Established in 2007, the Fairway to Success Program has annually awarded scholarships to deserving students based on academic performance, extracurricular activities, community involvement and financial need. Since its inception, the program has awarded $880,000 to 44 deserving students in our community. Funding is entirely through the individual contributions of Deloitte personnel in North Texas and the endowment recently surpassed the $1.7 million mark. One hundred percent of the contributions made are designated to fund scholarships.



About the Northern Texas PGA Junior Golf Foundation:
The Northern Texas PGA Junior Golf Foundation is committed to introducing, promoting and growing the game of golf to a diverse group of kids in North Texas and instilling in them the positive, character-developing traits for which the game is so well known. Each year close to 10,000 children and their families are impacted by the game that lasts a lifetime through a full circle of programs and services including:

Introduction – Golf in Schools, Fairway to Success After School Program, Drive, Chip and Putt and Summer Golf Camps
Playing – Team and PGA Junior League Golf, Prep and Medalist Levels and All American Tour – 400+ tournaments per year
Education – College Scholarships – $2.06M distributed including $265,000 awarded in 2017
Employment – Internship Program, Fairway to Success After School Program and Summer Golf Camps
Philanthropy – Kids Play FORE Kids, Ewing Charity Classic, Birdies for Kids, the Jerry J. Ransom Pro-Junior-Am and the Royal Oaks’ Great 108

For more information about the Northern Texas PGA Junior Golf Foundation Scholarship Program or for additional information about our 2017 recipients, please contact Alyssa Richardson at arichardson@ntpga.com or (214) 420-7421 or visit www.ntpgajuniorgolf.com/scholarships .

By Erik Anderson August 10, 2026
PLANO, Texas (August 10) – Seth Murphy, Associate at John Sikes Golf Academy and Thomas Faulk Jr. (a) captured the 1st & 10th Tee Golf Energy Bar Pro-Junior Championship title. The pair carded a 33-31–64, 8-under-par and made birdie on the first playoff hole. The pair began their round on the 8th hole and opened with a par. Six birdies on their next eight holes set them up for success for the first round. Their final nine holes were steady, with 7 pars and two birdies, but the bogey-free round was enough to get them into a two-team playoff against Ryan Grider, Associate at The Lakes at Castle Hills, and Colten Karstendiek (a). After a safe drive on the first playoff hole from Faulk Jr., Murphy was able to attack and had just 135 yards into the par-4 18th hole. He hit a pitching wedge to 10 feet and buried the putt. Murphy said, “He [Thomas] made about a 20-footer on our second hole, and that just put us on the pace we needed to get some momentum going. We gave ourselves lots of opportunities, double opportunities, where we were both putting for birdie, which is always nice. Just overall, we teamed very well today.” Faulk Jr added, “I started off hot and helped him out, and then when I was winding down, he got things going. We just made putts and pars when we needed to. It was just the team working.” Ryan Grider, Associate at The Lakes at Castle Hills, and Colten Karstendiek (a) fired 32-32–64 to finish in second place. Matt Weinberger, PGA senior director of member and amateur championships at PGA of America and Owen Layton (a) shot 31-35–66 to claim third place. The Championship featured 64 teams consisting of one PGA professional and one junior golfer between the ages of 7-19. The teams competed in a Four-Ball Stroke Play format. There was also a second division within the Championship where PGA professionals and their children competed for a separate title. The nine-team division was claimed for the third consecutive year by Jon Antunes, PGA director of instruction at Heart of Texas Golf Academy and his daughter Hannah Antunes (a) with a score of 34-34–68. For the professionals in the field today, there was a skins game with a $4,500 payout. Only one skin was earned today. Hanna Dickens, Associate at The Ronny Golf Park, made a birdie on hole 14 to earn the skin. The 1st & 10th Tee Golf Energy Bar Pro-Junior Championship was presented by CMC Design, PGA TOUR, and THE CJ CUP Byron Nelson.
By Logan Bearden August 3, 2026
$268,000 Donated to Foundation
By Erik Anderson July 31, 2026
Doggett (a) and McIlwain (a) Share Low Amateur Honors Walts Finishes as Top PGA Professional
By Erik Anderson July 30, 2026
TYLER, Texas (July 30) – Matthew Watkins of Rockwall, TX, carded a third-round 35-35–70, even par, and maintains the 54-hole lead at the 56th M&P Group Texas State Open. After a 36-hole score of 61-61–122, Watkins sits at 18-under-par for the championship. “I just kind of hung in there on the front nine, shot even. Then, kind of had it going just a little bit on 10 through 12. It was just an up-and-down day overall,” said Watkins. Watkins held a 6-stroke lead heading into the third round, but the field has cut it to just four. “Definitely going to be a little different than going into today. Probably a lack of concentration problem today, but still hung in there well.” Last year, Watkins held the 54-hole lead and said he was battling some nerves. “I’m definitely more comfortable, but still have to have a good round tomorrow if I want to win. Four [shots] can happen in three holes,” Watkins added. Watkins will look to defend his title beginning at 9:50 tomorrow morning. There is a three-way tie for second at 14-under-par between Cameron Sisk of Scottsdale, AZ, Cooper Schultz of Wichita, KS, and John Sand of Irving, TX. Cameron Sisk is a former Arizona State University standout. He finished his career there as a three-time All-American, two top-ten finishes at the NCAA individual Championships and 14th in the PGA TOUR University rankings. Sisk found himself behind the pack early this week, but with a second round of 64 and a 32-33–65 in today’s third round, Sisk has climbed back into contention. On the 12 par 5s Sisk has played this week, he is 12-under-par and credited his play on those holes as the reason he is tied for second heading into tomorrow’s final round. “You really got to take care of the par 5s out here. There are a few tougher par 3s and par 4s out here, so as long as you birdie the gettable holes, you’ll be in good shape,” said Sisk. After his 63 yesterday, Cooper Schultz shot a bogey-free 33-33–66 to cut his eight-shot deficit in half today. Of the three players tied for second, Schultz will be the first one out tomorrow as he tees off right before the final group. “It’ll be nice, I won’t feel like I have to press or anything. I’m just going to try and take what the course gives me. If I end up shooting 9-under, then great, if I shoot 2-under, that’s fine too, but I’ll just stay within myself and play the game I know I can play,” said Schultz. John Sand fired a bogey-free, 32-32–64, good for the joint low round of the day. He finished strong with birdies on holes 14, 15 and 16. The week has been steady so far for Sand, with rounds of 66, 66, 64, he sits just four back of Watkins. Sand and Sisk will join Watkins at 9:50 a.m. tomorrow, while Schultz precedes them in the 9:40 a.m. grouping. Bret Gray, PGA Member, is in solo fifth after a round of 34-30–64 and is the Low PGA Professional in the championship. Gray graduated from Sam Houston State University’s golf management program last December. He holds a one-stroke lead over Chase Walts, PGA assistant professional at Trinity Forest Golf Club in Dallas, TX in the PGA Member Division. Gray said, “I’ve done a lot of preparation and practice for moments like this, so I’m excited to tee it up tomorrow.” Gray and Walts both tee off at 9:40 a.m. Blake Elliott of Bullard, TX, continues to climb the leaderboard after a third-round 31-34–65, 5-under-par that propelled him 18 spots up the championship leaderboard. His round moved him to 10-under-par and he currently sits tied for eleventh place. Elliott has been battling an injury this week, but continues to fight through it. “It is what it is at this point. My speed’s down right now and kind of flinching at it a couple of times here and there, but it is what it is.” Grant Doggett (a) of Beach City, TX, leads the Amateur Division at 6-under-par. His third round 33-36–69, 1-under-par has him tied for 32nd overall. Doggett (a) is the defending Low Amateur after finishing at 11-under-par and 12th place overall last year. Doggett (a) is a senior at the University of Houston and grew up playing golf on the Southern Texas PGA Junior Tour. He holds a one-stroke lead over the next closest amateur, Kaelen Dulany (a) of Keller, TX. The 56th M&P Group Texas State Open is a 72-hole stroke play event with a field of 156 professionals and amateurs. The 36-hole cut was made to the low 55 players and ties. 66 players (59 professionals and 7 amateurs) made the cut at 2-under-par and are competing for a $203,850 Championship purse. The champion, if a professional, will take home $40,000. The only amateur to win the Texas State Open was Homero Blancas in 1960. The final round starts at 8:00 a.m., and players will begin on the first and tenth holes and play in threesomes. This is the M&P Group’s fourth year as the title sponsor, and the Championship is presented by Joyce Crane and Higginbotham and supported by CHRISTUS Trinity Mother Frances, Holiday Inn - Tyler Conference Center and Patterson Tyler. The championship is being played at Cascades Country Club for a record 15th time. Cascades Country Club Par: 35-35–70 Yardage: 6,882 yards