Omaha, NE – Presented by Mizuno Golf, Oak Hills Country Club hosted the 2023 Nebraska PGA Pro/Assistant Championship. The tournament was the Nebraska Section PGA’s first major of the season with 74 Nebraska PGA Professionals in the field. The format was 36-hole best-ball which began with a shotgun start at 9:30am.
Teams were formed from members of the same facility and Professionals could be on multiple teams based on their job title and how many other Professionals from their facility played. Defending champions Steve Friesen, PGA and Mike Coatman of Firethorn Golf Club headlined a loaded field from across the Section.
The greens at Oak Hills Country Club are some of the truest in the state and combining that with near perfect scoring conditions, the event was set up for a shootout. In the opening round, Friesen and Coatman began their title defense with a bogey-free 61 (ten-under) to set the pace for the rest of the field. Friesen was also paired up with Brady Schnell of Firethorn Golf Club and they turned in their own 62 (nine-under). Greg Neujahr, PGA and Mitch Klooz of Champions Run Omaha fired a 30 (six-under) in their first nine holes in route to an opening 63 (eight-under). In the first 18-holes, 17 groups shot 67 (four-under) or better setting up for an exciting final round in the afternoon.
In the past three years, Friesen has been a part of the winning duo twice (2020 & 2022) and that trend continued today. On his own ball, Friesen shot 67 and 68 for a two-round total of seven-under which featured 14 birdies in 36 holes. Schnell was just three strokes off him with a two-round total of four-under and made eight birdies and an eagle of his own.
“I guess you could say we ham and egged it really well today. When one of us had a bad hole, the other would respond,” said Friesen.
The Firethorn GC duo brings the trophy back to their club for the third time in four years. In addition to taking home first, Friesen also finished runner-up with Mike Coatman after a two-round total of 15-under par. Seven teams shot in double-digit red figures, and many were in the mix for most of the day. Finishing in third, Neujahr and Klooz shot a two-round total of 15-under par.
We would like to thank Director of Golf Bobby O’Keefe, PGA, General Manager Mike Zadalis, PGA, Director of Grounds Dan Maddox and the entire staff at Oak Hills Country Club for hosting us. We would also like to thank our presenting sponsor Mizuno Golf as well as our supporting sponsors All Star Pro Golf, Bushnell Golf, Coors Light, White Claw Hard Seltzer, Rolex & PGA Tour for supporting this event and our Nebraska PGA Professionals.
The Nebraska Section PGA heads West next week for their second annual 308 Cup Pro-Am at Wild Horse Golf Club bringing together the Nebraska PGA Professionals and their teams of amateurs that represent the 308-area code.
2023 Nebraska Section PGA Pro-Assistant Championship Results
