The Corebridge Financial PGA Team—which is comprised of 36 top-playing PGA Club Professionals over the age of 50—will compete in the most prestigious senior major championship in golf at the 2023 KitchenAid Senior PGA Championship.
It's the first major championship that will be contested on the Gil Hanse-designed Fields Ranch East course at PGA Frisco.
The PGA Members that comprise the Corebridge PGA Team advanced to the KitchenAid Senior PGA Championship as the top finishers at the Senior PGA Professional PGA Championship at Twin Warriors and Santa Ana Golf Clubs in Santa Ana Pueblo, New Mexico, last October.
Matt Schalk, PGA, General Manager and PGA Director of Golf at Colorado National Golf Club, won the 2022 Senior PGA Professional Championship in October 2022 to earn a spot in the KitchenAid Senior PGA Championship. He will lead the 36 PGA Members of the Corebridge PGA Team, who will compete alongside Defending Champion Steven Alker, Bernard Langer, Padraig Harrington and some of the most decorated senior golfers in the game.
Corebridge Financial has broadened its partnership with the PGA of America to include the title sponsorship of the PGA Professional Member teams formerly known as the Team of 20 (PGA Championship); Team of 36 (KitchenAid Senior PGA Championship); and Team of 9 (KPMG Women’s PGA Championship). Each will now be recognized as the Corebridge PGA Financial Team. The Team consists of talented PGA Professionals from across the country who earned a spot to compete in the PGA’s most prestigious Championships.
“The PGA of America is excited for the 36 PGA Members who will be playing alongside some of the biggest names in golf at Fields Ranch East in the KitchenAid Senior PGA Championship,” said PGA President John Lindert, PGA Director of Golf at The Country Club of Lansing in Lansing, Michigan. “We wish all our Club Professionals good luck this week and hope they can keep the momentum Michael Block created in the PGA Championship for our Corebridge PGA Team, who represent the nearly 28,000 PGA Professionals who dedicate their lives each day to bettering the game of golf.”
Paul Claxton, PGA, Richmond Hill Golf Club Head Professional in Georgia finished 34th in the Senior PGA Professional Championship and will make his 5th KitchenAid Senior PGA Championship appearance. Claxton was a member of the PGA Tour in 1997, 2002, 2005 and 2008.
Cameron Doan, PGA, the PGA Director of Golf at Preston Trail Golf Club in Dallas and the Northern Texas Section PGA Vice President, will compete in his first KitchenAid Senior PGA Championship after finishing tied for third in the Senior PGA Professional Championship. He will hit the first tee shot of the championship at Fields Ranch East on Thursday.
Alan Morin, PGA, the PGA Assistant Professional at The Club at Ibis in South Florida is making his third appearance in the KitchenAid Senior PGA Championship to go along with the other eight major championships he’s played in, including six PGA Championships.
Tracy Phillips, PGA, overcame trouble hitting his driver with an action plan & hard work — and now he's defending his Low PGA Professional Title at the @SeniorPGAChamp with the @CorebridgeFin PGA Team.#CorebridgexPGA #ActionIsEverything pic.twitter.com/Runm8585Ph
— PGA of America (@PGA) May 22, 2023
Steve Schneiter, PGA, the PGA Assistant Professional at Schneiter’s Pebblebrook in Utah is the first PGA Member to win both the PGA Professional Championship (1995) and the Senior PGA Professional Championship (2016). He finished runner-up in the 2022 Senior PGA Professional Championship. He has earned spots in 12 PGA Championships, the most among those qualifying as PGA Professionals.
Bob Sowards, PGA, the PGA Director of Instruction at Kinsale Golf & Fitness Club in Ohio, is the 2022 PGA of America Senior PGA Professional of the Year, an award he’s won four times to add to his four PGA of America Professional of the Year awards. His eight national PGA awards are the most in the history of the Association. Sowards finished tied for 5th at the 2021 KitchenAid Senior PGA Championship at Southern Hills after leading for portions of the second round.
A total of 13 of the 36 PGA Club Professionals at Fields Ranch East at PGA Frisco will be making their KitchenAid Senior PGA Championship debuts.
Corebridge Financial PGA Team:
David Arbuckle, PGA - Colorado Springs, Colo., PGA Life Member, Colorado Section
Todd Bailey, PGA - Daphne, Ala., Lake Forest Yacht & Country Club, Alabama-NW Florida Section
Roy Biancalana, PGA - St. Charles, Ill., Blackberry Oaks Golf Course, Illinois Section
Eric Bogar, PGA - Houston, Texas, Golfcrest Country Club, Southern Texas Section
Craig Bowden, PGA - Bloomington, Ind., Life Member Indiana PGA, Indiana Section
Jeff Brehaut, PGA - Park City, Utah, Life Member Utah PGA, Utah Section
Mark Brown, PGA - Hobe Sound, Fla., Tam O'Shanter Golf Club, Metropolitan Section
Paul Claxton, PGA - Claxton, Ga., Richmond Hill Golf Club, Georgia Section
Cameron Doan, PGA - Dallas, Texas, Preston Trail Golf Club, Northern Texas Section
Tim Fleming, PGA - Oklahoma City, Okla., Oklahoma City Golf & Country Club, South Central Section
Brian Gaffney, PGA - Essex Fells, N.J., Essex Fells Country Club, New Jersey Section
Jeff Gove, PGA - Sandpoint, Idaho, PGA Life Member,Pacific Northwest Section
David Hronek, PGA - Port Charlotte, Fla., GOLFTEC - Sarasota, North Florida Section
Brad Lardon, PGA - Santa Fe, N.M., Club at Las Campanas, Sun Country Section
Dave McNabb, PGA - Malvern, Pa., Applebrook Golf Club, Philadelphia Section
Mark Mielke, PGA - Atlantis, Fla., High Ridge Country Club, South Florida Section
Kelly Mitchum, PGA - Southern Pines, N.C., Pinehurst CC No. 1-5, Carolinas Section
Alan Morin, PGA - West Palm Beach, Fla., The Club at Ibis, South Florida Section
Tracy Phillips, PGA - Tulsa, Okla., Cedar Ridge Country Club, South Central Section
Chad Proehl, PGA - Urbandale, Iowa, Sugar Creek Golf Course, Iowa Section
Doug Rohrbaugh, PGA - Carbondale, Colo., Golf At River Valley Ranch, Colorado Section
Todd Sapere, PGA - Cobbtown, Ga., Ohoopee Match Club, Georgia Section
Matt Schalk, PGA - Erie, Colo., Colorado National Golf Club, Colorado Section
Jeffrey Schmid, PGA - Iowa City, Iowa, Brown Deer Golf Club, Iowa Section
Jason Schmuhl, PGA - Windsor, Calif., Windsor Golf Club, Northern California Section
Steve Schneiter, PGA - Sandy, Utah, Schneiter’s Pebblebrook, Utah Section
Kevin Shields, PGA - Pittsburgh, Pa., The Club at Nevillewood, Tri-State Section
Alan Sorensen, PGA - Taft, Calif., Buena Vista Golf Course, Southern California Section
Bob Sowards, PGA- Dublin, Ohio, Kinsale Golf and Fitness Club, Southern Ohio Section
Rich Steinmetz, PGA - Gilbertsville, Pa., Spring Ford Country Club, Philadelphia Section
Derek Stendahl, PGA - Maple Grove, Minn., Rush Creek Golf Club, Minnesota Sectio
Craig Thomas, PGA - Port Chester, N.Y., Metropolis Country Club, Metropolitan Section
Neil Thompson, PGA - Hoover, Ala., Thompson Golf Academy, Alabama - NW Florida Section
Micah Rudosky, PGA - Cortez, Colo., Conquistador Golf Course, Colorado Section
Jeff Roth, PGA - Farmington, N.M., BOYNE Golf Academy, Michigan Section
Tim Weinhart, PGA - Canton, Ga., Heritage Golf Links, Georgia Section*
Having played in the @PGAChampionship 5 times, PGA Coach Brian Gaffney from the @NJPGA is ready to make a move at the @SeniorPGAChamp!#CorebridgexPGA #SrPGAChamphttps://t.co/vN0ZlhT2im
— PGA of America (@PGA) May 24, 2023
