Las Vegas, Nevada (November 29, 2012)–There are no fewer than seven pro golfers with strong ties to Las Vegas golf courses currently trying to earn status on the either the LPGA Tour or PGA Tour via the prospective Q Schools. We say no fewer than seven because, it seems, on a daily basis pros move to the city and fly under the radar. These Las Vegas golfers are former UNLV Rebels Skip Kendall, Bill Lunde, Derek Ernst, Therese Koelbaek, and Seema Sadekar, and residents Alex Cejka and Dean Wilson.
Ernst, who was an honorable mention All-American during his senior year in 2011-12 at UNLV, opened with the best first round, firing a 68 at the Stadium course at PGA West. He was a third-team All-American as a sophomore. Ernst was fourth in the Mountain West in scoring average as a senior and the led the Rebels with 71.39 over 36 rounds. He recorded nine top-20 finishes, including five top-fives and another top-10. He shot 16 rounds under par and four more at even par. He won the individual title at the ASU Thunderbird Invitational and was named to the All-MW team.
Koelbaek opened with a 73 at LPGA International in Daytona Beach, Florida. She is considered to be the best female golfer in the history of the Rebel program, and collected numerous conference and national accolades during her career. She was the first women’s golfer in UNLV history and fourth in MW history to earn All-Mountain West honors four times. She was also named the Mountain West Scholar Athlete of the Year in 2011 and she was named to the CoSIDA Capital One Academic All-America First Team listing.
Sadekar, who played at UNLV from 2003-07, was also an outstanding player during her days as a Rebel. Originally from Toronto, Sadekar moved to Las Vegas to attend school at the University of Nevada-Las Vegas (UNLV). Sadekar was an all-conference selection at UNLV in 2006 and was the team captain in 2007, when she earned the team's Most Valuable Player award. She also appeared on The Golf Channel's Big Break in 2010, and works with her sister, Nisha, in a company called Play Golf Designs and other ventures.
Kendall, Lunde, Cejka, and Wilson already have had successful PGA Tour careers and are at Q School seeking to earn back status or to improve status for 2013. Lunde and Wilson are former PGA Tour champions while Kendall and Cejka have earned millions over their long careers.