East Tennessee Amateur begins today

BY SPENCER CAMPBELL
BRISTOL HERALD COURIER

ELIZABETHTON, Tenn. – Golfers like to see their putts fall. They like to circle birdies on their scorecards. They like to play well.

And Mike Matheson likes to see top amateurs return, year after year, to play in the East Tennessee Amateur at Elizabethton Golf Course.

That’s why, even though the event’s scoring record was shattered last year by Brad Robinson’s 202, the 150 golfers teeing off today in the 15th annual East Tennessee Amateur will have a chance to push that record even lower.

“I want them to play well, because if they play well they’ll come back,” said Matheson, the tournament’s director. “Records were made to be broken, and amateurs like to make lots of birdies.”

Therefore, course conditions at the 6,339-yard Elizabethton Golf Course will hedge toward fair for the three-day tourney.

Matheson’s logic seems to be paying off. For the second straight year, the East Tennessee Amateur boasts a field of 150 golfers spread through three divisions: championship, senior and match play. The only difference is that this year’s event features more championship competitors than ever: 70.

The field features some of the area’s top amateurs, including former East Tennessee Amateur champions Robinson, Blake Howard and Bryan Sangrid, along with last weekend’s Glenrochie Invitational winner Joe Meade.

Also gunning for the title are 2009 Glenrochie runner-up and Memphis golfer Carlson Cox, 2008 Glenrochie champ Bill Hardin, and former Virginia High and future Tusculum golfer David Talley.

All competitors will be playing for more than $13,000 worth of merchandise, one of the largest purses for an amateur tournament in the Tri-Cities.

“We have 150 golfers playing, consecutively, which we like to see especially in this economy,” Matheson said. “This is as good a tournament as we have in the area, with the course and what we pay out.”

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