ORLANDO, Fla. -- After breaking glass, hitting over and around walls and pitching to greens for points instead of birdies, it was time for the teams of Bernadette Luse (Naples, Fla.)/Haymes Snedeker (Fairhope, Ala.) and Amber Prange (Noblesville, Ind.)/Robby Shaw (Louisville, Ky.) to play golf in Big Break X: Michigan. It was nothing personal. No hard feelings. Someone had to win and advance to the finale against the Hugo Leon (Jupiter, Fla.)/Camila Mori (Jupiter, Fla.) duo while the other would go home with nothing but memories.
In an episode featuring seven holes of match-play, Luse/Snedeker secured a 4 ½ to 2 ½ victory to advance to the final episode that will air Tuesday at 10 p.m. ET. At stake in the championship match will be the opportunity to compete at the highest level as the winning female will earn an exemption to play in the 2009 Bell Micro LPGA Classic, while the male will compete in the 2009 Children's Miracle Network Classic presented by Wal-Mart.
Elimination by Episode:
Show 1: No Elimination
Show 2: No Elimination
Show 3: Andrea VanderLende/James Vargas eliminated by Sherri McDonald/ Michael Michaelides
Show 4: Rachel Melendez/Otis Smith eliminated by Sally Dee/David Mobley
Show 5: No Elimination
Show 6: Sherri McDonald/ Michael Michaelides eliminated in a three-team Elimination Challenge
Show 7: Casey and Rachel Lubahn eliminated by Amber Prange/Robby Shaw
Show 8: Sally Dee and David Mobley eliminated by Bernadette Luse/Haymes Snedeker
Show 9: No Elimination (Hugo Leon/Camila Mori advanced to finale)
Show 10: Amber Prange/Robby Shaw eliminated by Haymes Snedeker/Bernadette Luse
The two teams in the finale are considered not only to be among the most talented in the series but also the most supportive. While Leon and Mori are dating, Snedeker and Luse draw on a long-standing friendship to thrive in the competition.
"It was a no brainer to play with Bernie," said Snedeker, who was an All-Southeastern Conference golfer at the University of Mississippi and later an assistant coach when Luse was a player on the women's team. "It was a natural fit. You go to the University of Mississippi and that is where you get your degree, but you never really graduate. You are always a part of Ole Miss because it's more of a state of mind than it is a place. So we are able to pick up where we left off when I was coaching and we were practicing everyday on the back of the range. It's like there was never a gap."
For Snedeker, the older brother of 2007 PGA TOUR rookie of the year Brandt Snedeker, golf is more than a game he loves, it's a connection to family. He fondly recalls summers days spent with his father and brother on the golf course discussing life.
"With the three of us, it is an A River Runs Through It kind of a deal," said Snedeker. "They fly fish, we play golf. It is how we communicate. We can sit down at a dinner table, and more than likely we will be in a fight over something. But on a golf course, we have the best time and can talk about anything. I have never had as much fun as when I got to play competitive amateur tournaments with my brother."
As much as he loved golf, though, his future was elsewhere. After a successful playing career at Ole Miss, he went into coaching to bide his time while pursuing a law degree. Upon graduation, he and his college sweetheart, Amy, moved back to her hometown, Fairhope, Ala., where Snedeker began his career as a prosecuting attorney in his attempt to "save the world." He eventually entered private practice and in 2004 became a municipal judge.
He still finds time to compete and win amateur events and looked to Big Break X: Michigan to fulfill several desires. In lawyer speak, and laughing at himself at the same time, Snedeker will tell you in a three-fold answer why he entered the series. In order, he says to fulfill a lifelong dream to play professional golf, to play with his brother at least one more time in a competitive event and to help Luse get an opportunity to return to the LPGA Tour.
Not highly recruited, Luse became the first Ole Miss women's golfer to play on the LPGA Tour when she finished 10th in the qualifying tournament for the 2005 season. Her stay on the tour was short-lived as she finished 152nd on the money list and lost her exempt status. A non-exempt player on the LPGA in 2006, she played on the circuit before her sponsor money ran dry. Now an administrator at a cosmetology school, Luse is saving money for her next shot at stardom.
"The interest came back a few months ago. I was not real happy where I was in my life and it was perfect timing when I got the call from Haymes to play in Big Break X: Michigan," said Luse, who didn't play golf for almost a year after leaving the game in 2006. "I was missing golf and this is a once in a lifetime opportunity."
The series' 10th season features eight two-person teams, comprised of a male and female, facing grueling competition in which they could win a lifelong dream at the risk of losing a lifelong friendship. The Big Break concept showcases highly skilled golfers competing against each other in a variety of challenges that test their physical skills and mental toughness, with the ultimate winner awarded his/her "Big Break," a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to compete in select professional tournaments, and other career-building prizes.
Past Big Break champions have won the opportunity to compete on some of the world's top professional circuits, such as the PGA TOUR, Champions Tour, European Tour, LPGA Tour, Nationwide Tour and Canadian Tour. Former Big Breakers Tommy Gainey and James Nitties will compete PGA TOUR in 2009 while four previous female contestants will play on the LPGA Tour.
For the series' anniversary, Big Break X: Michigan returns to the destination where it all began - northern Michigan. Known as "America's Summer Golf Capital," Michigan boasts some of the nation's most distinguished golf courses, some of which feature dense forests, shifting sand dunes or portions of the longest fresh-water coastline in North America. The series was shot at Boyne Highlands Resort, a member of the Boyne Resorts family of resorts and attractions, located in the community of Harbor Springs.
For more information, please contact Mark Mitchell at 407-355-4063, or mmitchell@golfchannel.com.
