July 18, 2009
FRESNO, Calif. - Fresno State Athletics has had many memorable moments during its history. Each day during the month of July, Gobulldogs.com will highlight a great moment from Fresno State Athletics history.
July 18: Nick Watney wins the Kearney Award as the WAC's top athlete
In four years, Nick Watney became one of the greatest golfers at Fresno State. He strung together low rounds, birdies and heroic finishes to accomplish the feats he had in his college career.
During his time as a Bulldog, he received a number of impressive accolades that contributed in him being known as one of the best golfers on the west coast. One of which was the Joe Kearney Award.
The Kearney Award is annually given to the top male and female athletes in the Western Athletic Conference since 1992. Watney earned this honor in 2003 and has been the only male golfer in history to receive the accolade. The Kearney Award has been awarded to nine other Fresno State athletes.
During his freshman campaign, Watney earned WAC Freshman of the Year honors and followed it up by earning WAC Player of the Year for three-consecutive seasons.
Watney owns the fifth-lowest NCAA Division-I season stroke average of 69.93, which made him the sixth golfer in Division-I history to post sub-70 season stroke average.
He was the only Bulldog golfer to be honored as the Southwest Region Player of the Year in 2002.
Watney was also a Ben Hogan Award finalist, which is an honor that is considered the most prominent 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. Most recipients are represented on the PGA Tour, Nationwide and European Tours, as well as the Ryder and Presidents Cup Teams.
In 2003, Watney was named as a nominee for the Jack Nicklaus Award. The Jack Nicklaus Award is presented annually to a player who excels throughout the course of the entire season.
Watney led the Bulldogs as they finished the 2003 season with a WAC Championship. Fresno State then went on to compete in regionals for the 15th straight year and finished in 18th of the Western Regional.
Following the 2003 season, Watney earned Fresno State Athlete of the Year honors after compiling a detailed awards list throughout his senior year.
Watney didn't waste time taking his professional career by storm. In 2004 he won the Tour Championship on the Nationwide Tour. Watney later competed in several other tournaments racking up 13 Top 10 finishes.
In 2007 Watney won his very first PGA title at the Zurich Classic held in New Orleans, LA. Just recently, Watney added another title to his resume by winning the Buick Invitational held in San Diego, Calif.
Continuing to grow and be consistent, Watney tied for fourth in the Arnold Palmer Invitational. He is ranked in the top 10 on the tour standings with a fifth overall driving distance of 302.5 yards. Watney, so far, has compiled 218 birdies and 10 eagles and boasts a 70.22 stroke average. He is also ranked No. 10 in FedEx Cup Standings.
Watney has becoming more of a household name and a force to be reckoned with across the golf world. He has competed in two Master's, the first one in 2008 where he tied for 11th and shot even par. Watney has also competed in three U.S Open tournaments. His first came in 2007 at Oakmont.
Most of Watney's best finishes have come in 2009 thus showing how much more of a steady golfer he has grown to be. Throughout his career he has competed in 137 tournaments and made 86 cuts. Watney has earned two first place finishes and one second, compiled a total of 16 top 10 finishes and 25 top 25 finishes.
Watney joins the long list of prestigious athletes to win the Kearney Award, including: Courtney Alexander, Colt Brennan, David Carr, Jaycee Carroll, Nick Fazekas Marshal Faulk, Melanie Gloria, Justin Hawkins, Keith Van Horn, Nina Lindenberg, Andre Miller, Amanda Scott, Jamie Southern, Steve Susdorf, and LaDainian Tomlinson
Coming tomorrow: Men's and women's basketball begins play in the Save Mart Center.
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