Since A.T. Cooper won the inaugural New Year's Invitational at Lakewood Country Club in 1927, many well known amateurs and future PGA Tour stars have participated in the South's oldest men's amateur tournament.
The Jan.8-11 tourney at the same site, now St.Petersburg Country Club, will have another rising standout in the field.
Brandt Snedeker is an NCAA All-American at Vanderbilt who received a "Masters" degree by defeating 2,788 players for the U.S. Amateur Public Links Championship in June.
The overwhelming victory against Dayton Rose of Stillwater, Okla., 10 up with nine to go, gave Snedeker an invitation to April's Masters Tournament at Augusta National Golf Club. He will be in the company of Tiger Woods, Vijay Singh, Ernie Els, Mike Weir and Davis Love III.
In an interview with Inside The USGA, a U.S. Golf Association publication, Snedeker, 22, said that while playing the final round in the Public Links Championship he couldn't help but think about a victory and being in the elite Augusta event.
"Walking down the fairways, I'd catch myself thinking about the Masters," said Snedeker, a resident of Nashville, Tenn. "Then I'd use that as motivation, bearing down on every shot."
Snedeker will try to have the same approach-shot accuracy in the 2004 New Year's Invitational. In the Public Links tournament at Blue Heron Pines in Galloway, N.J., Snedeker's opponents consistently outdrove him by 20, 30 and even 50 yards.
At the New Year's tourney last January, he had a three-stroke lead over the University of Kentucky's John Holmes after 54 holes. Holmes crafted a final-round 6-under 66, one stroke off the record, to defeat Snedeker by four shots.
The runner-up finish was the second straight for Snedeker in the St.Petersburg event. In 2001, he had to settle for second after John Corzilius of Englewood fired a final-round 71 to overcome Snedeker's 54-hole lead.
Corzilius is a three-time winner in the tournament. However, he's not expected to be in the 90-player open division this year. Holmes, a junior for the Wildcats, has committed to defend his title.
The senior division, for individuals 55-and-over, also should be highly competitive.
Last season, Brian Jeffery of Ontario, Canada, rode an opening 71 to a winning 301 total against Spencer Gaylord of the host club. The year before, Gaylord overcame Jeffery's four-stroke advantage to capture the title by a shot. There will be a new senior winner this time since neither golfer is in the field.
Two fresh faces in the open championship are high school seniors who were 2003 Times all-county first-team selections. They are player of the year Jason Elliott of Palm Harbor and Mike Bezanson of Northeast.
THE COUNTY: In last week's CGA match at East Lake Woodlands, Bill Pawlecki shot 79 for a two-stroke victory over Matt Schaeffer. There was a tie at 70 in the net division among Decker Todd, Joe Cilluffo and Steve Slasinski. In the senior division, the winning score of 75 was shared by Jim Hunter, Mike Wiegand and Bill Crisafulli. In North course net competition, Gerhard Wolf prevailed with a 5-under 67.
INNISBROOK JUNIOR CLASSIC: Sam Rosati of Oldsmar and Berkeley Prep was the top Pinellas finisher in last week's 54-hole tournament on the South Highland course. He posted 78-82-79-239 to tie for 13th. Parkland's Jeff Dennis won with a 4-over 217.
Delores White of Lakeland captured the girls crown with a 78-77-75-230 performance. Clearwater's Courtney Harter finished fifth (237), and Lara Smilnak of Dunedin placed sixth (241).
COLLEGE SIGNINGS: Former St.Petersburg resident and Wharton High senior David Tiffenberg has signed with the University of New Mexico.
Jennifer Pandolfi, an AJGA circuit standout from Navarre, will be playing for top-ranked Duke.
The USF Bulls have signed Christina Jones of Jensen Beach and Miami's Marco Morales.
Lara Smilnak, a three-time first-team member of the All-Pinellas squad while playing for Clearwater Central Catholic, has been accepted to Florida State and Central Florida. The student with a 4.26 GPA and pre-med plans has kept her options open. She also applied to Boston College, Mt.Holyoke (Mass.), the University of Massachusetts, Columbia and Vassar in New York and William and Mary in Virginia.
