Golf notebook

Talbert wins top junior player award

McKenzie Talbert has won the Beth Daniel Player of the Year Award, given to the top female player by the South Carolina Junior Golf Association.

Talbert automatically earned the award by finishing first in the Heritage Classic Foundation rankings.

At 14, Talbert, who plays out of Mount Vintage Golf Club in North Augusta, is the youngest golfer to receive the award.

The rankings are based on overall finishes in tournaments over the past 12 months.

She will be honored at a news conference on Dec. 22 at Wild Dunes Resort on Isle of Palms. The Heritage Classic Foundation, general sponsor of the Verizon Heritage, is a not-for-profit organization.

Williams renews professional certification

Damon Williams, director of golf course/common areas maintenance at Okatie Creek Golf Club and Hidden Cypress Golf Club in Bluffton, has completed the renewal process for maintaining his status as a Certified Golf Course Superintendent with the Golf Course Superintendents Association of America.

Williams has been at Okatie Creek and Hidden Cypress since 2002. Approximately 1,800 golf course superintendents worldwide currently hold CGCS status.

Maintaining certified status requires renewal every five years after the initial date of certification. To fulfill certification renewal requirements, a candidate must participate in 150 hours of continuing education and professional development.

Dataw raises money for Wounded Warrior program

Representatives from Dataw Island Club announced Wednesday that the Purple Heart Wounded Warrior Benefit Golf Tournament raised more than $22,000 for the national organization that assists the men and women of the armed forces and their families who were severely injured in combat.

Held Nov. 15 on Dataw's Morgan River and the Cotton Dike courses, the Purple Heart Wounded Warrior Benefit Golf Tournament hosted 200 Dataw Island residents in an 18-hole scramble with separate divisions for men and women. In addition, 300 residents also contributed to the cause by purchasing hole sponsorships and donating prizes. The 2009 tournament doubled the proceeds from the first year.