Jan. 6, 2003

Not content with a top-10 finish in his last tournament of 2002, UK sophomore John Holmes won his first tournament of 2003, taking the title at the 77th New Year’s Invitational at the St. Petersburg Country Club in St. Petersburg, Fla.

After three rounds, Holmes trailed leader Brandt Snedeker of Vanderbilt by three strokes. But in the fourth and final round, no one in the field, let alone Snedeker, could match Holmes’ excellence. After an eagle at the par-5 second hole, Holmes went on to birdie the final four holes of the tournament en route to a final-round 66, the next closest score was a 71. The 6-under par round gave Holmes a four-day total of 279 (-9). Snedeker’s final-round 73 left him in second place, four strokes behind Holmes.

The victory was Holmes’ fourth in 10 months and was a sign of the great things he has yet to accomplish at UK.

“What John has accomplished this past year is impressive,” Coach Brian Craig said. “John is one of those guys who can never play enough golf and I’m looking forward to going into our spring season with him leading the way.”

Holmes and his Wildcat team mates swing back into intercollegiate action when they travel to Gainesville, Fla., for the Gator Invitational on Feb. 8.