Sept. 1, 2011
BIRMINGHAM, Ala. (SGA/SMU) - After capturing the 111th U.S. Amateur Championship at Erin Hills Country Club last weekend, Kelly Kraft was named the Southern Golf Association's National Amateur of the Month for the month of August.
Since finishing up his eligibility at SMU in the spring, the Denton, Texas native has been on a tear this summer, winning the Texas Amateur Championship, the Trans-Miss Amateur Championship and capping it off with a 2-up victory in the 36-hole final match of the U.S. Amateur Championship over the world's top-ranked amateur, Patrick Cantlay.
Along with earning invites to compete in the 2012 Masters, U.S. Open and British Open, Kraft was also named to the 2011 U.S. Walker Cup team, which will compete against the top amateurs from Ireland and Great Britain on Sept. 10-11 at Royal Aberdeen Golf Club in Aberdeen, Scotland.
Winners of the National Amateur of the Month award, now in its ninth year, are chosen by an elite panel of golf journalists, officials and coaches. The SGA supports amateur golf at the highest level, including staging of the storied Southern Amateur, which will be played for the 106th time next July at Chenault CC in Little Rock, Arkansas.
