College Hockey Meets Pro Golf As Ferris State's Bob Daniels Competes In Pro-Am Event
Story Courtesy Matt Haas (LPGA Tour Media)
Photo By Andrew Knapik
Big Rapids, Mich. - Ferris State University men's ice hockey head coach Bob Daniels was able to take a break during the middle of the Bulldogs' summer camp season to compete in the Pro-Am at the Symetra Tour's Tullymore Classic on Wednesday (July 1).
The Tullymore Classic event is one of the latest additions to the Symetra Tour, which is the official qualifier for the LPGA. The Pro-Am provided the opportunity for competitors to play golf with an LPGA Symetra Tour professional in an 18-hole scramble format.
"For me, it was a cool experience," Daniels said. "I'd never done this before and it was really eye opening as to how good these golfers really are."
Daniels and his group were paired with Jessica Wallace from Langley, British Columbia, who is one of the biggest hockey fans on Tour.
"It was awesome," Wallace said. "He was a really cool guy to get to know. We got to talk a lot about just hockey in general, players, free agency was happening so he was talking to me about Kevin Beiksa. It was a good time and it was really cool to play with someone who shares a passion that I have."
Daniels echoed Wallace's statements.
"I had just a terrific time," said Daniels. "I played with Jessica and all I can say is 'Wow what a great representative for the Tour.' She was so fun and outgoing."
A two-time NCAA Division I Men's Ice Hockey STX/AHCA National Coach of the Year, Daniels saw many parallels between some of his own players and the players chasing their dreams on the Road to the LPGA.
"It reminds me so much of our players with big hopes and big dreams and the journey of trying to make it to the NHL or LPGA," Daniels said. "It's a different sport but a similar story."
So how did the longest serving coach in FSU history's golf game stack up at Tullymore?
"I'm glad we were in a scramble," Daniels said with a chuckle. "It's a really nice course and you can tell they are very proud of it hosting a Symetra Tour event. They have done an excellent job with the presentation and you can tell that they want this to be a first class event."
Wallace had a kinder assessment of the Daniels' golf game.
"He hit a few good shots out there," Wallace said. "He loosened up and was ready to go so I was impressed. He downplayed his game but he threw in a couple of shots there. He had the little butter cut going and I was like 'ok we can make this work.'"
A total of 144 aspiring LPGA Tour players will descend on Tullymore to compete for a $100,000 tournament purse and LPGA Tour membership for the 2016 season this week. The 54-hole, stroke-play format begins on Friday (July 3) and concludes on Sunday (July 5), but was preceded by practice rounds and Pro-Am competition, including Wednesday's event. All are open to spectators.
More than a one-time event, Tullymore will be hosting the tournament for at least the next three years as some of the top female players contend for a spot on the LPGA Tour.
The Tullymore course is an award-winning James Engh design that is one of two distinct world-class golf courses at Tullymore. Tullymore Golf Club and St. Ives Golf Club, designed by Michigan's own Jerry Matthews, wind amid 800 acres of glacier-carved rolling Michigan woodlands and wetlands in the captivating Canadian Lakes area.
Tullymore has hauled in a page of awards including being named Michigan's No. 1 Golf Resort and one of the Top 50 Golf Resorts in the U.S. in the 2010 Golf World Readers Choice Awards, as well as being named the Silver Medal Winner - Premier Resorts 2010 - The Best Destinations in Golf by Golf Magazine, earning a five-star rating for the Tullymore course by Golf Digest several times since 2007 and being ranked among the top 100 Greatest Courses in America by Golf Digest multiple times.
Visit tullymoreclassic.com for more tournament information on the tournament or visit tullymoregolf.com for resort information.
Daniels was chosen last year as the national runner-up for the American Hockey Coaches Association's (AHCA) prestigious Spencer Penrose Award as the Division I Men's Ice Hockey STX/AHCA Coach of the Year. Daniels, a previous two-time winner of the annual award presented to college hockey's most outstanding coach, led the Bulldogs to the WCHA Regular-Season Championship in the school's debut season in the league in 2013-14 and guided FSU to an NCAA Elite Eight finish.
Over the past four seasons, the Bulldogs have captured two conference championships, made two NCAA Tournament appearances and appeared in the NCAA Frozen Four national title game. FSU also advanced to the Western Collegiate Hockey Association (WCHA) Final Five Championships for the second-straight year this past season.
The longest serving coach in FSU history, Daniels has won 397 games at Ferris State and coached 10 All-Americans, including 2003 Hobey Baker Hat Trick Award Finalist Chris Kunitz, the first ever CCHA Player of the Year to come from Ferris State. Daniels has also been very active with USA Hockey and the American Hockey Coaches Association.
Off the ice, the Bulldogs have also succeeded in Daniels' tenure. FSU has been one of the nation's most successful programs in the classroom, placing among the top ten teams in the country and leading its respective conference each of the last three years in the NCAA Academic Progress Report Listing. In addition, the Bulldogs are often active in the community throughout the year, taking part in a wide variety of community service initiatives.