The answer my friend is blowing in the Wyndham, field is almost set

WYNDHAM CHAMPIONSHIP EXEMPTIONS ANNOUNCED

Fourteen Major Championship Winners now in Field

GREENSBORO, N.C. – 2008 United States Ryder Captain Paul Azinger will play the Wyndham Championship on a sponsor’s exemption, it was announced today. The Wyndham Championship has eight sponsor’s exemptions, and seven of them have been accepted. The other one will be determined after the Wyndham field is set tomorrow evening.

Azinger will be making his ninth appearance in the Piedmont Triad’s PGA TOUR event, and he has three top-four finishes in this event. The Florida State University alumnus has 12 PGA TOUR victories to his credit including the 1993 PGA Championship, but he is best known for leading the United States team to victory at Valhalla in the Ryder Cup last fall. Azinger is the 14th major-championship winner in the field.

Two-time major championship winner John Daly will use an exemption. Daly has five PGA TOUR wins including the 1991 PGA Championship and the 1995 British Open. Daly will be making his 10th Wyndham Championship appearance.

PGA TOUR newcomer Danny Lee has accepted an exemption and will play in his second consecutive Wyndham Championship. One year ago, the reigning U.S. Amateur champion made his first professional start as an amateur here and finished tied for 20th place. The New Zealand native turned professional after the Masters this year and has played in 10 PGA TOUR tournaments and three Nationwide Tour events. Lee won the European PGA Tour Johnnie Walker Classic in Perth, Australia earlier this year making him the youngest winner in European Tour history.

Justin Thomas earned a Wyndham Championship exemption when he won the AJGA FootJoy Invitational at Sedgefield Country Club in June. Thomas, of Goshen, Ky., used seven final-round birdies to climb the leaderboard and win the tournament, a major on the AJGA Tour. The 16-year-old junior golfer advanced into the Wyndham Championship by shooting three-under-par 67 in the final round for a four-round total of eight-under-par 272.

European PGA Tour player and Greensboro resident Andrew McLardy has accepted an exemption and will make his third Wyndham Championship appearance next week. A native of Triangle, Zimbabwe, McLardy has played in 19 European Tour events this year including the U.S. Open and the British Open.

Kyle Stanley, a Clemson University alumnus from Gig Harbor, Wash., was a three-time, first-team all-ACC and two-time, first-team All-American golfer at Clemson; he will play the Wyndham on an exemption. He had the second-lowest career stroke average in Clemson history at 71.66, just above the 71.49 average PGA TOUR player D.J. Trahan achieved in his four-year Clemson career. Since turning professional earlier this season, Stanley has played in five events and won nearly $106,000.

Billy Andrade will be making his 20th appearance in the Piedmont Triad’s PGA TOUR event when he plays the Wyndham Championship on an exemption. The Wake Forest alumnus has two top- five finishes here, and he has won nearly $321,000 in this event. He has four PGA TOUR victories and has won more than $12.3 million in his career. The Bristol, R.I. native lives in Atlanta.

The 70th Wyndham Championship is set for Aug. 17-23, 2009 at Sedgefield Country Club in Greensboro, N.C. Tickets are available online at www.wyndhamchampionship.com, at Piedmont-Triad area Harris Teeter locations or through the tournament office. The tournament thanks title sponsor Wyndham Worldwide and premier partners, BB&T, Flow Automotive, Harris Teeter and VF Corporation for their continued support. Additional tournament information is available at www.wyndhamchampionship.com or through the tournament office at (336) 379-1570. For more information about Wyndham Worldwide, please visit www.WyndhamWorldwide.com.

from Rob Goodman 3-G Sports