Wittenbach Makes a Late Charge to Jump to the Top of the Prize Possessions | E-Z-GO Eastern Championship

Steven Clements • June 13, 2023

ROCKWALL, TX – Kyle Wittenbach, PGA coach at the University of Texas Permian Basin (UTPB) leads the Prize Possessions | E-Z-GO Eastern Championship at Rockwall Golf & Athletic Club. Wittenbach carded a first round 36-33–69, 3-under-par, to hold a one stroke lead heading into the final round tomorrow.


In his second year competing in the Northern Texas Section, after moving from the Michigan Section, Wittenbach holds his first lead in a Section Major Championship. “I thought it was going to be similar here…but competitively these guys [NTPGA members] are stiff competition,” said Wittenbach on the differences in the two Sections. 


Wittenbach had a clean card on the back nine and birdied two of his last three holes to finish his round. “I was steady off the tee and made a couple 15-footers,” he said about his round.


A trio of professionals are trailing Wittenbach by one stroke. Brian Norman, PGA instructor at Lakewood Country Club and PGA associates Justin Benson of Hollytree Country Club and Katelyn Sepmoree of Willowbrook Country Club are all at 2-under-par.


Last year Sepmoree also fired a 2-under-par first round and was in contention, but went on to finish at T15. Looking back on last year she said, “I feel better about my game now and how I'm putting it…just going to go out and have fun and try to win it.”


The Championship also includes a Senior Division that is made up of 36 professionals ages 50 and over, playing for a separate title and purse. Chad Gibson, PGA sales manager for E-Z-GO, leads this division after a round of 38-33–71, 1-under-par. 


This 36-hole Northern Texas PGA major championship is the first of four individual stroke play events that comprise the Yamaha Golf-Car Company | Srixon / Cleveland Golf / Asics Player of the Year Points Challenge presented by Adventures In Golf. The field is competing for a record overall purse of $48,000.


The Prize Possessions | E-Z-GO Eastern Championship is presented by AT&T Byron Nelson, Branded Bills, GT Golf Supplies, Levelwear, Nexbelt, PGA TOUR, and PXG.

Rockwall Golf & Athletic Club

Par 36-36–72

Open Division Yardage: 7,134 yards

Senior Division Yardage: 6,609 yards


View round one results
HERE

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Irving, Texas (August 25) – The Nelson Golf and Sports Club hosted two Northern Texas PGA Major Championships this week, the Club Car | XXIO Northern Texas Senior PGA Professional Championship and the Lajitas Golf Resort Women’s Section Championship. Clayton Friend claimed the Senior title, and Kim Paez claimed the Women’s title. Kim Paez, PGA Member at Ping Inc., claimed the Lajitas Golf Resort Women’s Section Championship title, carding rounds of 70-72–142. Paez finished the Championship at 2-over-par, winning by four strokes. She began the final round one stroke back of Katie Flinn, director of instruction at Topgolf - Fort Worth, and her 2-over-par final round was enough to come from behind and secure the win. This is Paez’s first victory with the Northern Texas PGA since joining the section in 2025. “I stuck to my game plan this week, which was fairways and greens,” Paez said. “I think I missed only one or two fairways yesterday. I played pretty conservatively, but it paid off in the end.” Reflecting on her final round performance, Paez said, "It was a little bit windier today. It made me calculate a lot more on the tee shots.” It was an up-and-down round for Paez, but she hit her approach on hole 18 to two feet and tapped in for birdie. “The last three holes are pretty gettable, so I just had to remind myself that no matter how the round was going, I was going to have opportunities to close it out at the end.” Next week, September 3-5, Paez joins four other PGA female PGA Teaching, Coaching and Club Professionals from across the country to represent the United States in the fourth Women’s PGA Cup. They will take on Australia, Canada, Great Britain & Ireland, South Africa and Sweden in a 54-hole stroke play format at Carden Park Golf Resort in Chester, Cheshire, United Kingdom. “It is the biggest honor. When I first got my PGA Membership, and I found out about the PGA Cup, it became one of my biggest goals,” said Paez about making the team. “I was constantly checking the rankings, and coming into the KPMG [Women’s PGA Championship] and the LPGA Professionals Championship, I knew I had to lock in and give myself the best chance.” “I am so excited and so proud to represent the Northern Texas PGA as well, so hopefully I make everyone proud,” added Paez. This 36-hole Northern Texas PGA major championship is the fourth of five individual stroke play events that comprise the Woman Player of the Year points standings. The 22-player field competed for a purse of $7,500, and Kim Paez took home $1,050. The Lajitas Golf Resort Women’s Section Championship was presented by A.PUTNAM and XXIO. The Nelson Golf and Sports Club Par: 35-35–70 Women’s Championship Yardage: 5,878 yards