Drew Stoltz wins Gateway Pro Tour’s ‘Back Nine’ Sponsorship event

Shoots 8-under in last 13 holes to win by 1 stroke

Drew Stoltz shot 7-under 65 and edged out Jeff Burton by one stroke to win the Gateway Pro Tour’s midseason ‘Back Nine’ Sponsorship event at Vista Verde Golf Club. With the win, Stoltz gets his entry fee paid for the final nine events this season on the GPT’s Arizona Series (valued at $12,375).

Stoltz was the clubhouse leader at 7-under par, but had to wait about another hour for the rest of the golfers to finish. “Before the day started, I thought 7-under might be good enough to win today,” he said. “But, I also knew I left a couple of shots out there, and all it takes is one guy to get on a good run, so I definitely didn’t feel comfortable.”

Jeff Burton made Stoltz sweat it out. Burton also began on the 10th tee and started slow, making the turn at 2-under. He remained 2-under until he got to the 15th hole (the 592-yard, par 5 6th), where he made a birdie, followed by an eagle 2 on the 330-yard par 4 7th to get to 5-under. He closed par-birdie to finish one shot behind Stoltz.

“There is a lot of talent out here, and anyone can win on any given day,” Stoltz said.  “But today was my day, and I hope to continue this.”

Not all is lost for the rest of the field, as the ‘Back Nine’ Sponsorship event will pay out the top 30 percent of the field. Kent Eger and Brian Vranesh finished T3 at 5-under 67, while Tommy Medina, Wade Pettitt, Jordan Krantz, Matthew Melrose, Darren Angel, Jarin Todd and Brian Prouty all finished T5 at 4-under par.

We are at the halfway point of the Arizona Series, with nine events down and nine to go. The second half of the Gateway Pro Tour Arizona Series season got underway at Corte Bella, April 6-8, followed by tournaments at Lone Tree Golf Club (April 13-15) and Vista Verde (April 20-22).

For complete results from the ‘Back Nine’ Sponsorship Event, visit www.gatewaytour.com.