U.S. AMATEUR CHAMPION KNOST DEFEATS BRITISH AMATEUR CHAMPION WEAVER BY 2 & 1 MARGIN IN 11TH GEORGIA CUP MATCH AT GOLF CLUB OF GEORGIA

ALPHARETTA, Ga. – Colt Knost, 22, the reigning United States Amateur Champion from Pilot Point, Tex., defeated British Amateur champion Drew Weaver, 20, of High Point, N.C., 2 and 1, April 1 in the 11th annual Georgia Cup Match, sponsored by SunTrust.

Knost, who turned pro last fall and forfeited his invitation to the Masters, closed out his “amateur” career on the 17th hole of The Golf Club of Georgia's award-winning Lakeside Course.

“Last amateur event I'll ever play,” Knost said, “so it was good to go out on a win.”

With Knost's win, the United States took a 6-5 lead in the event, which started in 1998.

To make a flight to San Francisco to compete April 2 in the pro-am of a Nationwide Tour event in Livermore, Calif., the morning after the Georgia Cup Match, tournament officials flew Knost to the Atlanta airport via helicopter immediately after his victory. Knost had conditional status on the Nationwide Tour and was playing on a sponsor's exemption.

Brian Whitcomb, president of the PGA of America, served as Honorary Captain for the 2008 Georgia Cup, presided over the match on the course as it ended on the 17th green. According to tradition, the competitors played the final hole, though the outcome was decided. In 11 Georgia Cups, the match has never made it to the 18th hole officially.

Drew's father John, an orthopedic surgeon, caddied for him in The Georgia Cup, as he did in the British Amateur last June, when enjoying a dream week by becoming the first American winner of the tournament since Jay Sigel in 1979.

Being close to the one-year anniversary of the horrific shootings at Virginia Tech, it was an emotional time for Weaver. On April 16, 2007, Drew literally ran for his life when the tragedy began at Virginia Tech, taking shelter in a library 100 yards away, where he waited for 3 ½ hours.

Drew dedicated his British Amateur win to the 32 who were killed on the Blacksburg, Va., campus, and wore a patch on his VT golf bag that said, “Virginia Tech remembers 4:16:07.”

Knost's caddie for The Georgia Cup was Peter Kelly, a three-time men's club champion at The Golf Club of Georgia and former collegiate star at Ole Miss.

Weaver rallied in the match after being two-down after three holes, but lost both the 12th and 13th holes to go from 1-up to 1-down. He hit long into the downslope of the back greenside bunker at the 183-yard, par-3 13th, and then struck his second shot a bit strongly, scooting across the slick green and into the water. Weaver's reload brought the same result and he conceded the hole.

With Knost out of the Masters, Weaver was one of only three amateurs competing this year.

Both players were given standing ovations in the post-round press conference off The Golf Club of Georgia's 18th green and were given high praise by Honorary Captain Brian Whitcomb, who did a masterful job overseeing the event.

“I can't thank all of you enough for how great you've been to me,” said Weaver. “This is such a great event and I am so proud to be a part of it.”

Knost, who has met limited success on the Nationwide Tour thus far, began to find his game in the Georgia Cup Match, which benefits the scholarship programs of the Georgia State Golf Foundation.

The match was attended by about 500 fans, despite an ominous morning forecast that improved to bring sunny skies and mild spring temperatures.

The Georgia Cup Match was televised by Comcast Sports Southeast, which serves 12 states and 5.8 million households throughout the Southeast. Coverage also came from the Atlanta Journal-Constitution, Bloomberg News Service, the Dallas Morning News, newspapers in the Virginia Tech circulation area, CNN, the Golf Channel and all of the Atlanta local TV affiliates.

Knost, who was without regret for his decision to turn pro last fall, erasing invitations to the Masters, U.S. Open and British Open, said he “had a blast” playing in The Georgia Cup, despite his tight schedule. He was looking forward to returning to the Club and enjoying both courses under a non-competitive situation. Obviously, the GCOG brought out the best in Knost in The Georgia Cup.

“This is what I needed, to get out and relax,” Knost said afterward. “Since last summer, I've been under so much pressure to compete and play at the highest level. Today I was relaxed and having fun. I hope I can carry that over.”

Knost, Weaver and Honorary Captain Whitcomb become honorary lifetime members of The Golf Club of Georgia.

Cadillac is also a sponsor of the Georgia Cup Match, supplying Escalades for the competing players, as it does for The Golf Club of Georgia's other major event, the United States Collegiate Championship, won March 26 by the University of Southern California.

The Golf Club of Georgia is a member-owned private club north of Atlanta featuring two Arthur Hills-designed courses, Lakeside and Creekside. Lakeside was named Golf Digest's “Best New Private Course” in 1991.

Georgia Cup Results

1998 (Lakeside) - Matt Kuchar (U.S.) def. Craig Watson (Brit.), 3 & 1.

1999 (Lakeside) - Sergio Garcia (Brit.) def. Hank Kuehne (U.S.), 5 & 4.

2000 (Lakeside) - David Gossett (U.S.) def. Graeme Storm (Brit.), 3 & 2.

2001 (Creekside) - Mikko Ilonen (Brit.) def. Jeff Quinney (U.S.), 6 & 4.

2002 (Creekside) - Michael Hoey (Brit.) def. Bubba Dickerson (U.S.), 4 & 2.

2003 (Lakeside) - Ricky Barnes (U.S.) def. Alejandro Larrazabal (Brit.), 4 & 2.

2004 (Creekside) - Gary Wolstenholme (Brit.) def. Nick Flanagan (U.S.), 4 & 2.

2005 (Creekside) - Ryan Moore (U.S.) def. Stuart Wilson (Brit.), 2 & 1.

2006 (Lakeside) - Brian McElhinney (Brit.) def. Edoardo Molinari (U.S.), 3 & 2.

2007 (Lakeside) – Richie Ramsay (U.S.) def. Julien Guerrier (Brit.), 2 & 1.

2008 (Lakeside) - Colt Knost (U.S.) def. Drew Weaver (Brit.), 2 & 1.