Columnist Peter Benton: Paiute golf pro wins PGA honor

Peter Benton's golf column appears Wednesday.

ike Starks of the Paiute complex was named Professional of the Year by the Las Vegas chapter of the Southwest Section of the PGA last week at the chapter's annual awards banquet.

Starks' 280 points accumulated during the season edged Canyon Gate's Joe Roth (277) and Spanish Trail's Brian Anderson (268) in the most closely fought race in the history of the local section.

Rounding out the top 10 were: Kim Dolan, Las Vegas Golf Club, 247; Chad Myers, Desert Willow, 231; Mike Gehner, Eagle Crest, 211; Shane Sanchez, Revere Golf Club, 198; Chris Sarrett, Anthem Golf Club, 167; Chris Aune, unattached, 163; and Brad Church, TPC Canyons, 154.

Roth captured the season's low stroke average with a 72.88.

Larry McGovern of the Southern Nevada Golf Association was honored with the prestigious Person of the Year award for his work and untiring efforts on behalf of golf.

After interesting and informative talks from outgoing chapter president Joe Lescenski, Jim VanCleve and Jane Schlosser of the Southern Nevada Junior Golf Association and SNGA president Stu Reed, the results of the election of officers were read: president, Angel Park's Don Kramer; vice president, Paiute's Mike Starks; and treasurer, Angel Park's Eric Clark. Tom Vold of The Legacy was unanimously reelected as the chapter's secretary.

Concluding the evening, incoming president Kramer presented awards to outgoing committee members Lescenski, Sanchez, Vold and treasurer Jon Spatz.

CHARITABLE EFFORTS: PGA Tour tournaments combined to generate almost $40 million for charity in 1998.

That total represents an increase of $6 million over 1997, when $33,995,646 was raised. It also marks the seventh consecutive year, as well as the 20th time in the last 21 years, that PGA Tour tournaments have increased their charity donations.

The first charity donation by a Tour event was $10,000 by the Palm Beach Invitational in 1938. The 1998 charity record lifts the PGA Tour events' all-time total of charitable donations to almost $380 million.

Combine that with more than $63 million raised by Senior PGA Tour events and $13.9 million generated by Nike Tour tournaments, and the charity total for the three tours managed by the PGA Tour is more than $450 million.

Senior Tour and Nike Tour events also established records last year. Senior Tour tournaments generated $10.07 million for charity, while Nike Tour events reached an all-time high of $42.5 million. The three tours amassed more than $52 million for charitable causes last year.

The PGA Tour record also lifts to more than $237 million the amount given to charity by tour events during the 1990s.

The GTE Byron Nelson Classic, traditionally the leader among PGA Tour events, headed the 1998 list with a donation of $4.3 million.

Peter Benton'sgolf column appears Wednesday.

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