Rodgers to turn pro after NCAA season
04 Mar 2014
by Benjamin Larsen of AmateurGolf.com
see also: Patrick Rodgers Rankings
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Patrick Rodgers
Stanford's
Patrick Rodgers, a two-time
U.S. Walker Cup team
member, announced Monday that he'll turn
professional following the
spring NCAA season.
Rodgers, who recently ascended to No. 1 in
the World Amateur Golf
Rankings, is ranked No. 12 in the
Golfweek/amateurgolf.co
m U.S. Player Rankings.
The Avon, Ind. native most recently won the
Prestige at PGA West
but is coming off a stellar 2013 season in
which he finished third at
the Northeast Amateur and reached the final
16 in match play at
the U.S. Amateur and Western Amateur,
where
he finished as the
stroke-play medalist.
In 2011, he won the Porter Cup and had Top
5s at the Northeast
Amateur, The Players, Terra Cotta and Azalea
Amateur. In 2012, he
was third at the Porter Cup and was in the Top
10 in NCAA regional
and championship play.
Via a
stat
ement on
Stanford's official athletics website,
GoStanford.co
m, Rodgers said:
“I came to this decision with a clear
understanding of the impact it
might have and had countless conversations
with my parents and
coach weighing the options and ensuring I
made the best decision.
“The reason for coming out with this
announcement now is over the
past year, there has been growing speculation
of what my plans
would be. I thought I owed it to the team, to
Coach (Conrad) Ray,
and Stanford University to get ahead of the
situation and come out
with it now in order for it to not become a
distraction for myself or
the team.
“I think we have an amazing team – the best
that we’ve had in my
three years here – and we have an
opportunity
to do something
special. I want to put all of the focus on trying
to win a national
championship for the team.”
Rodgers is a two-time first team All-American
and ranks as
Stanford's all-time career scoring leader,
nearly
half a stroke better
than Tiger Woods.
Rodgers has already experienced a
professional
event, playing in a
number of PGA Tour and Web.com Tour
events. His best finish came
at the 2013 John Deere Classic where he
finished 15th after holding
the lead.
“I do intend to come back at some point and
finish my education,”
Rodgers said to GoStanford.com. “In the very
near future, I will be
shifting my sole focus on starting my
professional golf career. After
navigating through the terrain and difficulties
that process presents,
I intend to complete work towards my
Stanford
degree.
“I’ve put a priority both on golf and in the
classroom. I’m really
proud of the work that I’ve done in the
classroom and the
experiences that I’ve gained. I think it’s a
unique university, with
the brilliant minds and professors, guest
lecturers and all the
students who bring so much to the table
academically and
athletically.”