ORLANDO, Fla. -- Haymes Snedeker (Fairhope, Ala.) competed in Big Break X: Michigan to earn a chance to play in a PGA TOUR event with his brother Brandt. His partner, Bernadette Luse (Naples, Fla.), competed in the series to earn an opportunity to once again play on the LPGA Tour.
Both will realize their dreams thanks to a 2&1 victory over Hugo Leon (Jupiter, Fla.) and Camila Mori (Jupiter, Fla.) in Tuesday's series finale. The duo won an 18-hole match that featured six holes of best ball, six holes of alternate shot and six holes of team aggregate score. The victory earned, among other things, an exemption for Snedeker to compete in the 2009 Children's Miracle Network Classic presented by WalMart on the PGA TOUR while Luse will play in the 2009 Bell Micro LPGA Classic.
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
Show 11: Hugo Leon/Camila Mori eliminated by Haymes Snedeker/Bernadette Luse
Haymes Snedeker/Bernadette Luse Big Break X: Michigan Champions
The two teams were all square after 13 holes before Snedeker/Luse won the next two holes to gain control of the match. Hugo/Leon were unable to win a hole on the way in and the match ended after 17 holes.
"Any one of the teams could have won," said Snedeker. "It sounds crazy, but it almost doesn't feel right to win. But we did, and now Bernie will have her dream and I'm going to have mine."
Each aspiration has a background. Snedeker and his brother grew up in a family where the game was the common theme in their childhood essay. While Brandt pursued golf professionally with success that earned him 2007 PGA TOUR rookie of the year honors, Haymes' route was practicing law and playing amateur golf. Now, once again, they will share the passion together.
"It will be great to get the family together and that is the most important thing," Snedeker said about competing next October with his brother. "We do it every year when he plays at The Masters and it will be pretty special."
Luse, on the other hand, is not seeking a reunion as much as revitalization. She was the first University of Mississippi 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, winning Big Break X: Michigan is a chance to resurrect her career.
"I've had a taste of competition on the LPGA," said Luse. "I want my big break to get back to that level."
In addition to the tournament exemptions, for winning the series the duos' entry fees to compete in the LPGA and PGA Tour Q-school will be covered by SkyCaddie as well as each receiving a BMW 328i coupe and a trip to the BMW Performance Center in Spartanburg, S.C. They also will receive a Dick's Sporting Goods gift package that includes $10,000 cash ($5,000 each) and $5,000 in gift cards ($2,500 each), and an Adams Golf endorsement contract plus $5,000 in cash each.
The series' 10th season featured 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 on the PGA TOUR in 2009 while four previous female contestants will play on the LPGA Tour.
For the series' anniversary, Big Break X: Michigan returned 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 and 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.
