Four Golfers Including UNLV Men’s Golf Coach Dwaine Knight to Join Las Vegas Golf Hall of Fame

September 21, 2009--Las Vegas' Dwaine Knight has led his UNLV golf team to a NCAA championship, and now earns a spot in the prestigious Las Vegas Golf Hall of Fame along with Jimmie Bullard, Jack Sheehan, and Edward Fryatt. The Las Vegas Golf Hall of Fame induction ceremony is scheduled to take place October 15 at Las Vegas golf course TPC Summerlin, and is part of the festivies of the PGA Tour's Justin Timberlake Shriners Hospitals for Children Open.

The World’s Number One Golf Instructor, Butch Harmon, is scheduled to be the emcee of the ceremony. Bullard is a longtime Las Vegas PGA of America professional and former Las Vegas lounge performer; Fryatt is a Las Vegas junior, high school, collegiate and international professional champion and Sheehan is a nationally-renowned golf author and personality.

Each inductee is scheduled to attend the ceremony that will coincide with events of Las Vegas’ PGA Tour event, the Justin Timberlake Shriners Hospitals for Children Open which last year was won by Marc Turnesa. The World’s Number One Golf Instructor, Butch Harmon, is scheduled to be the emcee of the ceremony.

The mission of the Las Vegas Golf Hall of Fame is to celebrate and bring awareness to players, administrators, benefactors, groups, instructors, teams, and other worthy golfers who have served the game of golf in Las Vegas in a positive and meaningful way, whether through performance on the course, volunteerism, financial support, promotion, or other dedicated service. A 10-person committee made up of Las Vegas golf professionals, media, amateur association leaders, and Hall of Fame members, oversees the voting process. For more information, please visit lasvegasgolfhof.com. The following is information about each inductee and a quote about the honor:

Dwaine Knight, in his words: “This is a wonderful honor and it’s very rewarding for me to be in the same class as a former player, the very deserving Edward Fryatt,” said Knight, who led UNLV to the 1998 NCAA National Championship. “It’s also great because of the rich and deep history of golf in Las Vegas, and it’s amazing to now be a part of that and to be remembered.”

Biography

Golf Coaches Association of America District VIII Coach of the Year, 2005
Southern Nevada Sports Hall of Fame inductee, 2004
Golf Coaches Association of America Hall of Fame inductee, 2002
Mountain West Conference Coach of the Year, 2002
Golf Coaches Association of America National Coach of the Year, 1998
Golf Coaches Association of America District VIII Coach of the Year, 1998
GolfWeek Magazine’s National Coach of the Year, 1998
Western Athletic Conference Coach of the Year, 1998
Captain, United States Palmer Cup Team, 1997
Golf Coaches Association of America National Coach of the Year, 1991
NCAA District VIII Coach of the Year, 1991
NCAA District VIII Coach of the Year, 1981
Western Athletic Conference Coach of the Year, 1979

Jack Sheehan, in his words: "I've received some nice awards in my life, mostly for writing, but this Hall of Fame recognition tops them all. That's because it combines my two great passions, writing and golf, and isn't given just for a single achievement but for a lifetime of work. It's a bonus to be inducted in the same class with three guys that are good friends of mine, and who have each given so much to the game of golf in Las Vegas. Jimmie Bullard, Dwaine Knight, and Ed Fryatt … that's pretty tall cotton. I'm more than humbled by it."

Biography

VegasGolfer Magazine Lifetime Achievement Award, 2007Emcee, 1990-present, Las Vegas PGA Tour event champion ceremoniesWinner, Lowell Thomas Award for Outstanding Travel Articles, 1991Winner, Nevada Screenwriters Award, 1989Four-time club champion at Las Vegas Desert Inn Country Club, 1981-1984
Four-time winner of Coeur d’ Alene City Amateur
Four-time winner of North Idaho Amateur
Author, Buried Lies with PGA Tour star Peter JacobsenAuthor, Embedded Balls, with PGA Tour star Peter Jacobsen
University of Oregon MVP, 1969
Southern Oregon Amateur champion, 1969
Spokane High School Player of the Year, 1966, 1967
Spokane City Junior champion, 1966-67

Edward Fryatt, in his words: “When I got the call informing me that I had been selected by the committee, it really came out of nowhere but it was a very nice surprise,” said Fryatt. “It took me right down memory lane for about an entire week. I thought about all the great stuff, and even the bad stuff because you can’t have one without the other. But I have no regrets and it was a great ride while I had it going.”

Biography

Nike Hershey Open Champion, 1999

Malaysian Open Champion, 1998

Indonesian Open Champion, 1996

China Open

Earned more than $1 million during PGA Tour careerOnce recorded 8-straight birdies on the PGA TourWinner of 1994 West Regional Tournament, 66-73-68—207
All-Conference at UNLV, 1992 (2nd team), 1993 (1st team), 1994 (1st team)
Tie for 13th, 1993 West Regional Tournament, 76-70-72—218
Tie for 33rd, 1992 West Regional Tournament, 77-68-72—217
Tie for 10th, 1992 NCAA Championships, 70-74-68-73—285
Clark County Amateur Champion, 1992, 1993
Nevada State Amateur champion, 1992
Southern Nevada Golf Association Player of the Year, 1991, 1992, 1993
Las Vegas City Amateur winner, 1989, 1990, 1991, 1992, 1993
Southern Nevada Amateur champion, 1989

Jimmie Bullard, in his words: “It is the greatest honor that can be bestowed upon someone who has given a lifetime to the game of golf,” said Bullard.

Biography

More than 100 former students have received college golf scholarshipsSouth Central Sectional Champion in Kansas/Oklahoma/Arkansas with a 69.0 average, 1976
Fourth place in Oklahoma City Open, 1976
Third place in Magnolia Classic in Mississippi, 1969
Kansas Amateur Stroke Play champion, 1964
High school state champion, Kansas, 1962 (with a stroke average of 70.2)Singer/performer, Las Vegas hotels.

The home of the Las Vegas Golf Hall of Fame is located in the clubhouse of the historic Las Vegas National Golf Club. A museum-quality exhibit features an extensive timeline of Las Vegas golf, a detailed listing of the more than 100 tour events played in the Las Vegas area, a display honoring Tiger Woods’ first win on the PGA Tour at the 1996 Las Vegas Invitational, and plaques of each of the inductees. The exhibit is open to the public during regular hours of operation of Las Vegas National Golf Club. 702.734.1796.

Current members of the Las Vegas Golf Hall of Fame and class in which each was inducted are:  Tommy Armour III, 2009; Jerry Belt, 1991; Helen Cannon, 2004; James Cashman, Jr., 1998; Clyde Cobb, 1991; James Colbert, 2002; Eddie Draper, 2004; Eric Dutt, 2009; Brady Exber, 2006; Las Vegas Founders, 2004; Robert Gamez, 2002; Butch Harmon, 2006; Ernest Haupt, 1998; Richard Huff, 2004; Louis Redden, 2009; Stuart Reid, 1991; Chris Riley, 2004; Jerry Roberts, 2009; Tom Storey, 2006; Charlie Teel, 1991; 1997-98 UNLV Golf Team, 2002; C. Pat Walker, 1998.

Golf in Las Vegas has a rich heritage. Currently, there are more than 60 golf courses in the greater Las Vegas area that are designed by some of the biggest names in golf including Jack Nicklaus, Arnold Palmer, Pete Dye, Tom Fazio, Rees Jones and others. In addition, Las Vegas is now the home of nearly two dozen touring professionals on the LPGA, PGA Tour, Champions Tour, and Nationwide Tour. And several tour professionals grew up in Las Vegas including 2008 inductee Tommy Armour III and 2002 inductee Robert Gamez, in addition to Craig Barlow, Stephanie Louden and others. Las Vegas is currently the site of an official PGA Tour event, the Justin Timberlake Shriners Hospitals for Children Open, and events on the Champions Tour and LPGA Tour have been played here. In addition, Butch Harmon, voted the World’s Number One Golf Instructor five-straight times by his peers in a Golf Digest poll, operates his golf school, where many of the world’s best players train.

Tiger Woods captured the 1996 Las Vegas Invitational, his first PGA Tour win, and his charity event, Tiger Jam, is one of many star-studded celebrity golf events that are held annually in Las Vegas. In addition, the Las Vegas area is home to several high-end, made-for-television events including the Wendy’s Three-Tour Challenge, the World Series of Golf, and the Re-Max World Long Drive Championship. And the UNLV men’s and women’s golf teams are now annually ranked in the top 25. The 1998 men’s team captured the NCAA title, and currently there are several former UNLV golfers playing on the PGA Tour including Charley Hoffman and Adam Scott, former Ryder Cup members Chad Campbell and Chris Riley, and 2004 NCAA Champion Ryan Moore.