Stamey to make Nationwide Tour debut on Thursday in Raleigh

RALEIGH, N.C. – UNC Greensboro alumnus Nathan Stamey has qualified for his first Nationwide Tour event and will make his debut at the Rex Hospital Open at TPC Wakefield Plantation beginning Thursday.
 
Stamey made it to the tournament through a qualifying round and will be in the 1:55 p.m. group off of No. 10 on Thursday afternoon. The native of Canton, N.C., is in his first full professional season, playing mostly on the Hooters Tour. He has played in five events this season, making the cut in the last two. He finished tied for ninth at the Savannah Lakes Classic in McCormick, S.C., at the beginning of May, shooting 11-under for the tournament and finishing five shots off the lead. Currently, he is 68th on the tour’s money list.

The Nationwide Tour sanctions 29 events this season. This year’s Rex Open has a 156-player field and a total purse of $525,000. Players will compete on the par-71, 7.257-yard course at TPC Wakefield Plantation that is expected to play tougher this season due to an extension of the rough.

Thursday’s first round begins at 7 a.m. The field features some of the top Nationwide Tour golfers, including current money list leader Michael Sim. A crowd of close to 10,000 is expected for this year’s event.

The Nationwide Tour is considered to be one step below the PGA Tour. If a Nationwide Tour player wins three times on tour, he is automatically called up to the PGA Tour. If Sim wins this week, he would earn just such a promotion having already won twice in seven outings this year.

This time last year, Stamey was UNCG’s first NCAA tournament selection in 21 years when he received a bid to the West Regional. He finished second at the 2008 Southern Conference Championship, one of six top-10 finishes he recorded on the year. Stamey had nine top-20 finishes in 12 events as a senior on his way to a team-best 73.00 scoring average.

In 45 career events at UNCG, Stamey recorded 22 top-20 finishes. He also played in the 2006 United States Amateur Public Links Championship.

- UNCG -