Svensson, Carrigan, Proteau And Ko Win 2014 PNGA Player Of The Year Awards
November 14, 2014
Alfie Lau, Inside Golf
A strong crop of British Columbia nominees resulted in Canadians winning half of the eight Pacific Northwest Golf Association Player of the Year awards for the 2014 championship season.
Adam Svensson of Surrey won the top honour in the Men’s category while Kevin Carrigan of Victoria won for the third consecutive year in the Men’s Mid-Amateur category.
On the women’s side, Christina Proteau of Port Alberni won in the Women’s Mid-Amateur category while Naomi Ko of Victoria triumphed in the Junior Girls’ category.
“British Columbia had a particularly strong crop of nominees this year,” said Tom Cade, the PNGA’s senior director of communications.
Svensson put together an impressive and consistent championship record in 2014. As a junior at Barry University in Florida, Svensson won seven of the 12 NCAA Division II events he competed in, a record that earned him the Jack Nicklaus Award for best Division II golfer in the nation.
He’s added a win during Barry’s autumn season to make it eight college wins. Svensson also finished T8 in the Canadian Amateur Championship, and T4 in the BC Amateur Championship. Svensson competed in the World Amateur Team Championships in Japan, where he took 7th place individually, and 2nd in the team competition with colleagues Corey Conners and Taylor Pendrith.
Carrigan had several top finishes in big events in 2014. He placed T6 in the Canadian Mid-Amateur Championship, T7 in the B.C. Amateur Championship, and T10 in the Sahalee Players Championship. Carrigan also finished T43 in the Canadian Amateur Championship and also competed at the U.S. Mid-Amateur in Pennsylvania. Carrigan also has a successful career as a financial planner and is the club champion at Royal Colwood in Victoria.
Proteau is also receiving her third consecutive PNGA Women’s Mid-Amateur Player of the Year honor. Her year included a third consecutive Canadian Women’s Mid-Amateur, the B.C. Women’s Mid-Amateur championship, T4 in the B.C. Women’s Amateur Championship, and T49 in the Canadian Women’s Amateur Championship. Proteau was also a quarterfinalist in the U.S. Women’s Mid-Amateur Championship, and placed third in the Washington State Women’s Amateur Championship.
Ko won the B.C. Junior Girls’ Amateur Championship and also finished fourth at the B.C. Women’s Amateur Championship, fourth in the Canadian Junior Girls’ Amateur Championship, second in the AJGA St. Louis, and 13th in the AJGA Junior Girls’ Championship. Ko, also a member at Royal Colwood, is also a Team Canada Development Team member.
The other winners were: Gigi Stoll of Beaverton, Ore. in the Women’s category; Tom Brandes of Bellevue, Wash. in the Senior Men’s category; Kareen Markle of Meridian, Idaho in the Senior Women’s category; and Graysen Huff of Eagle, Idaho in the Junior Boys’ category.
The PNGA Player of the Year candidates are nominated by the various state and provincial golf associations that comprise the PNGA (Alaska, Alberta, British Columbia, Idaho, Montana, Oregon and Washington), and are selected by a vote of the PNGA Championship Committee and members of the Northwest Golf Media Association. The awards are officially presented at the PNGA Annual Meeting in the spring.
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