Shephard’s Triumph
by Hayden Lewis, PGA / Tuesday, August 10, 2021
BIRMINGHAM, Ala. (August 10, 2021) – The 2021 National Car Rental Alabama–NW Florida Assistants’ PGA Championship was held on Monday and Tuesday at Pine Tree Country Club in Birmingham. Twenty-three Assistant PGA Professionals and Associates teed it up on the hilly layout to play for two qualifying spots into the National Assistant PGA Professional Championship Presented by National Car Rental.
Monday got started with a shotgun for all players at 10:00 a.m. Jammie Lett began his front nine with eight straight pars and then made a double-bogey on the par-four ninth hole. He was able to get back on track during his back nine and birdie holes 11, 14 and 15 and end his round with a two-under-par 34 on the back nine to turn in an even-par 72. Meanwhile, PGA Associate at Vestavia Country Club, Lindsey Harrison started her front nine with a birdie on the par-three second hole and followed up with two bogies on holes four and five. She was able to remain only one-over-par heading into the back nine. She then made birdies on holes eleven, thirteen, fifteen, and eighteen and card a one-under-par 35 on the back nine and tie with Lett at even-par 72. Lett and Harrison would be tied heading into the Final Round, and with eight players within six shots of their lead, the two had their work cut out for them heading into Tuesday.
After Round One, PGA Career Consultant for the Alabama–NW Florida PGA Section, Kevin Walls, PGA arrived at Pine Tree Country Club with some pizza and beverages and gave a short introduction to some of the new amenities offered by PGA Careers Services. He also showed the importance of taking advantage of those services as one progresses throughout their career as a PGA Professional.
Day two got started with forecasted highs in the low to mid-nineties and a heat index well over one hundred degrees – the hottest temperatures so far for summer in Birmingham. Co-Leader, Jammie Lett made a bogey on the first hole and eight pars on his front nine. He would slowly fall off the lead heading into the back nine making a few more bogies and his lone birdie of the day coming on the par-four eighteenth. Lindsey Harrison also struggled out of the gate when she pulled her tee shot left into the thick rough on hole three. After not being able to find her ball, she settled for a double-bogey and went on to shoot an eight-over par 80 – knocking her out of contention for the title.
Towards the middle of the day, thunderstorms began to pop up around the Birmingham metro area, causing a weather delay for about an hour and thirty minutes. Play began again around 1:00 p.m., and with it came more birdies for players making charges towards the top of the leaderboard. One of those players was PGA Assistant Golf Professional at The Ledges, Jordan Debonis. After an opening round of two-over-par 74, Jordan was able to make the turn in two-under-par 34. On the back nine, he made one bogey on hole ten, a birdie on fourteen and an unlikely birdie on seventeen when he hit his fairway bunker shot from 138 yards to within five feet of the hole. Playing in the same group, Dylan Shephard, PGA Associate from FarmLinks Golf Club also opened with an impressive front-nine of three-under-par 33 with the help – three birdies and no bogies. The weather delay did not phase Shephard as he was able to make two birdies and one bogey coming down the stretch. He matched Debonis with a three-under-par 69 which was enough to take the title. Debonis was able to grab the second qualifying spot for the PGA Assistant Professional Championship presented by National Car Rental this coming November at PGA Golf Club in Port St. Lucie, Fla. Following Shephard and Debonis are Paxton Tidwell, PGA from Willow Point Golf & Country Club, Jake Greer, PGA from Mountain Brook Club and Paul McClure from RTJ Golf Trail at Magnolia Grove who earned the three alternate spots.
The Alabama–NW Florida PGA would like to thank Paul Whitman, PGA Director of Golf and Assistant PGA Professionals, Ron Stromeyer and Jason Polk for their support of the Section and its Assistant Golf Professionals. Additionally, a big thank you to tournament sponsor National Car Rental for its support of the PGA of America and its Member Championship across the country and to Joel Claypool of Srixon, Cleveland and XXIO for his continuous support of the Section.
Media Contact: Hayden Lewis, PGA / hlewis@pgahq.com
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ABOUT THE ALABAMA–NW FLORIDA PGA
The Alabama – NW Florida PGA is one of 41 Sections that make up the PGA of America. Our Section is headquartered in the Birmingham suburb of Pelham, Alabama at Ballantrae Golf Club. Established in 1969, the Section consists of over 400 Members and Associates in the state of Alabama and the Florida Panhandle. The Section exists to support its Members who are the driving force to growing the sport and business of golf.