McCullough earns two-shot victory at the Georgia-Pacific Grand Champions Championship

 

ATLANTA -- Mike McCullough fired a bogey-free round of 7-under-par 65 on Friday to win the Georgia-Pacific Grand Champions Championship at Hawks Ridge Golf Club in suburban Atlanta.

McCullough’s two-round total of 11-under-par 133 was good for a two-shot victory over Bruce Summerhays. Summerhays had started the day tied for the lead with defending champion Mike Hill.

McCullough began the final round three shots behind the co-leaders but made up ground quickly with a 4-under-par 32 on the front nine, punctuated by his second eagle of the week on No. 4.

The tournament saw three eagles all week over the 6,826-yard, par-72 Hawks Ridge layout, two of them by McCullough.

After the round, the 60-year-old McCullough attributed the victory to perseverance. “I didn’t hit a lot of good shots today, but I continued to persevere and mentally stay in the game,” said McCullough. “I kept everything in control and didn’t get ahead of myself. It’s pretty special to win a tournament like this.”

Three golfers -- Raymond Floyd, John Jacobs and Tom Wargo -- finished tied for third at 8-under par. Wargo’s 9-under-par 63 on Friday was the low round of the tournament.

The Georgia-Pacific Grand Champions Championship featured Champions Tour players age 60 and over competing in a 36-hole, stroke-play event for a $400,000 purse, with $85,000 going to the winner.

This marks the first time the Championship was played as a standalone event. In the past, the Grand Champions finale had been held in conjunction with the Champions Tour’s season-ending Charles Schwab Cup Championship.