Varner Named To Hogan Award Watch List
February 08, 2012 | Men's Golf
Feb. 8, 2012
Hogan Watch List Award Announcement
GREENVILLE, N.C. - East Carolina University senior Harold Varner was one of 28 collegiate men's golfers named to the watch list for the 2012 Ben Hogan Award. Varner is the only Conference USA golfer to make the list as well as the only player from any North Carolina-based institution.
The most prestigious award in men's college golf, The Ben Hogan Award is presented annually to the top men's NCAA Division I, II or III, NAIA or NJCAA college golfer taking into account all collegiate and amateur competitions during the past 12-month period. The Ben Hogan Award Selection Committee represents leaders in professional, amateur and collegiate golf.
Varner continues to lead the Pirates in his final season. In five events this year, Varner has compiled four top-five finishes, including individual medalist honors at the AutoTrader.com Collegiate Classic. He has shot under par in 12 of 15 rounds this year and is threatening to break his own school record for lowest single-season scoring average. This past summer, Varner won the North Carolina Amateur Stroke and Match Play championships, becoming the first player to hold both titles. He is currently ranked 21st in the World Amateur Golf Rankings, 11th among U.S. players.
A list of 10 semifinalists will be unveiled on Wednesday, April 11, and then will be pared down to three finalists on Thursday, May 10. The winner will be crowned at a banquet at Colonial Country Club on Monday, May 21, prior to the start of the PGA TOUR's Crowne Plaza Invitational.
The 2012 The Ben Hogan Award Watch List includes: Blayne Barber (Auburn, Jr.), Zac Blair (BYU, Jr.), Julien Brun (TCU, Fr.), Patrick Cantlay (UCLA, So.), Sean Dale (North Florida, Jr.), Derek Ernst (UNLV, Sr.), Dylan Frittelli (Texas, Sr.), Luke Guthrie (Illinois, Sr.), Stephan Jaeger (Chattanooga, Sr.), Brooks Koepka (Florida State, Sr.), Jace Long (Missouri, Jr.), Bryden Macpherson (Georgia, Jr.), Daniel Miernicki (Oregon, Sr.), Corbin Mills (Clemson, Jr.), Cheng-Tsung Pan (Washington, Fr.), Thomas Pieters (Illinois, So.), Patrick Rodgers (Stanford, Fr.), Kyle Souza (Chico State, Sr.), Jordan Spieth (Texas, Fr.), Justin Thomas (Alabama, Fr.), Ethan Tracy (Arkansas, Sr.), Harold Varner (East Carolina, Sr.), T.J. Vogel (Florida, Jr.), James White (Georgia Tech, Sr.), Cory Whitsett (Alabama, So.), Chris Williams (Washington, Jr.), Eugene Wong (Oregon, Sr.) and Andrew Yun (Stanford, Jr.).
The award, which was first issued in 1990 and also included academic achievement in its original list of standards, revised its criteria for the 2001-02 collegiate season to its current standard of honoring the outstanding amateur collegiate golfer.
Players Mentioned
