NORMAN, Okla. ? Kentucky men?s golf coach Brian Craig was named Eaton Golf Pride Midwest Region Coach of the Year and junior John Holmes was named to the PING All-Midwest Region Team by the Golf Coaches Association of America (GCAA).

Craig received the first Coach of the Year honor of his career after leading Kentucky to the NCAA Central Region title, the first in school history. The Cats finished in the top-10 as a team in all 12 of its tournaments this year, including eight top three finishes and two wins. Kentucky is currently ranked No. 9 in the country and enters the 2004 NCAA Division I Men?s Golf Championships as the No. 2 overall seed.

Holmes added another accolade to his long list of accomplishments. The Campbellsville, Ky., native led Kentucky with nine top-10 individual finishes this year, including two first-place finishes. Holmes rallied from three strokes back on the final day of the NCAA Central Region Championships to claim the individual title and lead UK to its first team title in the event. He is a three-time All-SEC selection and has received PING All-America or honorable mention honors each year at Kentucky.

The Cats will compete in the NCAA Championships at The Homestead Resort?s Cascades Golf Course in Hot Springs, Va., June 1-4.

PING All-Midwest Region Team

Joe Affrunti, Illinois
Brandon Brown, Eastern Kentucky
Kevin Hall, Ohio State
Brad Heaven, Toledo

John Holmes, Kentucky

Tom Johnson, Northwestern
Shiv Kipur, Purdue
Bronson LaCassie, Minnesota
Peter Laws, Kent State
Miles Maillet, Xavier
Jeff Overton, Indiana
Heath Peters, Indiana
Peter Richardson, Purdue
Justin Smith, Minnesota
John Streibich, Xavier

Midwest Coach of the Year

Brian Craig, Kentucky