May 10, 2012

Fort Worth, Tex. - UCLA sophomore golfer Patrick Cantlay has been named as one of three finalists for The Hogan Award, given annually to the nation's top collegiate golfer, for the second consecutive year.

Cantlay joins Stanford freshman Patrick Rodgers and Texas freshman Jordan Spieth in the pool of finalists. This is the youngest group of finalists in the award's history and only one freshman (Rickie Fowler in 2008) and no sophomore has ever won the award. Cantlay also becomes just the third player to be nominated in back-to-back years since the finalists were narrowed down to three in 2005, joining Oklahoma State's Rickie Fowler in 2008-09 and Georgia's Chris Kirk in 2006-07.

Cantlay, the world's number one ranked amateur according to the World Amateur Golf Rankings and the Scratch Players World Amateur Rankings, leads the Bruins with four top five finishes, including two runner up finishes, and a 71.0 scoring average. He has shot seven under par in 22 rounds this season and earned first-team All-Pac-12 honors last week. Last month, Cantlay made the cut at the 2012 Masters and won the Silver Cup for finishing as the low amateur (T-47th). He also was the low amateur at the 2011 U.S. Open after tying for 21st place. In addition, Cantlay was the runner up at the 2011 U.S. Amateur Championship at Erin Hills and played on the U.S. Walker Cup team last summer. Finally, he won the Nicklaus Award as the Division I Player of the Year in 2011 and won the Phil Mickelson Award as the GCAA Freshman of the Year the same year. He also was voted the 2011 GolfWeek Player of the Year and was a consensus first-team All-American as a freshman last season.

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 three finalists will attend a black-tie banquet at Colonial Country Club on Monday, May 21, where the winner will be crowned prior to the start of the PGA TOUR's Crowne Plaza Invitational. The awards ceremony will air live on Golfweek TV on Golfweek.com beginning at 7 p.m. (CT).

The winner's university will receive a $20,000 grant to its men's golf scholarship program while the other finalists' schools will each receive $10,000 grants. In addition, the winner receives an exemption into the 2013 Crowne Plaza Invitational at Colonial.