From June 25-28, Miramont Country Club in Bryan will host the 2009 Texas Amateur, presented by Guaranty Bank. Conducted by the Texas Golf Association, the championship brings together the most accomplished players in the state to compete for the H.L. Edwards Memorial Trophy.

Designed by Robert Trent Jones, Jr. and opened in 2004, Miramont will
play approximately 7,124 yards with a par of 35-36 - 71. The nines have been reversed for the championship with the 9th hole, normally No.18, a 508-yard par-5, converted to a 485-yard par-4.

Of the nearly 700 entries received this year, 36 players were fully
exempt from qualifying based on past performance. The remaining
hopefuls had to battle it out at 19 qualifying sites across the state
during the months of May and June, trying to earn one of the 108
available spots in the 144-player starting field.

Format for the 2009 Texas Amateur is 72-holes individual stoke play.
All contestants will play 18-holes on both Thursday, June 25, and
Friday, June 26. After 36-holes the field will be cut to the low 54
players and ties heading into the final two rounds on Saturday and
Sunday.

This year marks the 100th playing of the Texas Amateur, making it one of the nation's oldest state championships. It was first held in 1906 and
has been conducted every year since except 1918, when it was temporarily suspended because of World War I, and 1943-45, when it was suspended because of World War II.

In its long and storied history the Texas Amateur has produced a notable ist of winners. Over a dozen current PGA Tour and Champions Tour layers have their names engraved on the H.L. Edwards Memorial Trophy, ncluding Mark Brooks, Charles Coody, Ben Crenshaw, Bob Estes, Marty leckman, Bruce Lietzke, Don Massengale, and Scott Verplank.

2009 TEXAS AMATEUR NOTES

PREVIOUS TGA CHAMPIONSHIPS HELD AT MIRAMONT CC - 2007 State Mid-Amateur, on by Terrence Miskell of New Braunfels.

PAST TEXAS AMATEUR CHAMPIONS IN THE FIELD - 4 (Paul Haley, 2006; Bob Kearney, 2001; Robert McKinney, 1999; and Collin Stoops, 1993)

OTHER INDIVIDUAL STATE CHAMPIONS IN THE FIELD - 7 (Rob Couture, 2008 Mid-Amateur; Guy Goodspeed, 2008 Public Links; Steve Galko, 2005 Public Links; John Pierce, 2004 Public Links; Mike Booker, 2003 Mid-Amateur; Jim Mundell, 1997 Mid-Amateur; and Mike McClung, 1987 Mid-Amateur)

GIG 'EM - Bronson Burgoon and Conrad Schindler, Texas A&M teammates who recently led their school to its first-ever NCAA Men's Golf Championship title are in the starting field. Additionally, Burgoon was one of sixteen amateurs who qualified for the 2009 U.S. Open, played June 18-21 on the Black Course at Bethpage State Park in Farmingdale, New York.

19.4 - Average age of the winner of the past seven Texas Amateurs. The last time a mid-amateur won the championship was in 2001, when
44-year-old Bob Kearney captured the title at Houston CC.

AGE IS JUST A NUMBER THOUGH, RIGHT? San Antonio's Nick Temps, a 15-year-old member of the Southern Texas PGA Junior Tour, is the
youngest player in the field. At the opposite end of the experience
spectrum is Houston's Robert McKinney, a past champion who at age 63 will have the honor of being the oldest player.

HOME COOKIN' - There are 4 players in the starting field from the
Bryan/College Station area: Glynn Johnson, Jordan Russell, Dr. Bill
Wiley and Andy Williams. Johnson, Wiley and Williams are members of the host club.

NO GUARANTEES OF SUCCESS, BUT... Eight past champions of the Texas Amateur have combined for a remarkable 54 wins on the PGA Tour: Ben Crenshaw (1972) - 19; Bruce Lietzke (1971) - 13; Mark Brooks (1979, 1981) - 7; Scott Verplank (1982, 1984-85) - 5; Bob Estes (1988) - 4; Charles Coody (1959) - 3; Don Massengale (1958) - 2; and Marty Fleckman (1964) - 1.

DYNAMIC DUO - The latest AJGA/Polo Golf Junior Rankings have 15-year-old Jordan Spieth and 16-year-old Anthony Paolucci, both of Dallas, as the No.3 and No.7 junior players in the country, respectively. A few of Paolucci's national accomplishments thus far include winning the 2008 PGA Junior Championship and finishing as runner-up in the in the 2007 U.S. Junior. Among much else, Spieth was a semifinalist in the 2008 U.S. Junior, won the 2008 Byron Nelson Junior Championship and is the current 5A State Boys individual champion.

BROTHERS IN ARMS - Brothers Brian and Brad Mason play out of Royal Oaks Country Club in Dallas, site of the 2010 Texas Amateur.
Eighteen-year-old Brad qualified for this year's Texas Amateur at
Waterchase GC in Arlington with a 1-under par 71. Brian, 22, finished T
13th in last year's championship and was exempt from qualifying. A
recent graduate of Lake Highlands HS, this fall Brad will be joining his
older brother on the Men's Golf Team at Mississippi State.

SENIOR MOMENT - In 2006, Montgomery's Tom McGraw, then age 55, made it to the championship match in the U.S. Senior Amateur at Victoria
National Gol Club in Newburg, Indiana, eventually losing 1-down on the
final hole.

SCHEDULE OF PLAY -
Thursday (June 25) - First round, stroke play (18 holes).
Friday (June 26) - Second round, stroke play (18 holes). The field will
be cut to the low 54 players and ties after 36 holes.
Saturday (June 27) - Third round, stroke play (18 holes).
Sunday (June 28) - Final round, stroke play (18 holes). Awards ceremony immediately following the close of competition.

H.L. EDWARDS MEMORIAL TROPHY - The winner of the Texas Amateur receives custody of the H.L. Edwards Memorial Trophy, named in honor of Harry Lee Edwards, the "Father of Golf in Texas." Edwards earned the nickname because he helped to establish the TGA in February of 1906, served as its first president and won the inaugural Amateur Championship. Additionally, Edwards was also a founding member of Dallas CC and Brook Hollow GC.

TEXAS AMATEUR ON THE WEB - Once the action gets underway, log on to the TGA web site (txga.org) for up-to-date Texas Amateur news and information, including parings and live scoring updates.

THE 2008 TEXAS AMATEUR CHAMPIONSHIP - Last year's Texas Amateur was held at Houston CC in celebration of their 100th anniversary. Denton's Kelly Kraft, a 19-year-old freshman from SMU, kept the H.L. Edwards Memorial Trophy in the hands of the young lions. Despite opening with a 3-over 75, Kraft, named Conference USA Freshman of the Year just weeks earlier, roared back with rounds of 69-71-68 to finish at 283. His 5-under total was good for a 2-shot margin of victory over his good friend, John Peterson of Fort Worth.