A LEGEND IS MADE IN THE SOUTHEAST OPEN

Protected within the cool walls of the Westin, players awoke Saturday morning knowing that $25,000 was on the line and a large chunk of it could be their's.

The format consisted of a five-course qualifier where scores were tallied to generate a leaderboard ranked best to worst. The player with the best overall score would be crowned "King of the Hill" and receive a bye to the final. Those finishing 2-9 played off in an 8-man, single-elimination tournament to face the King and play for $5,000 and the Regional Championship trophy. In the five prior Regional Championships only two Kings of the Hill had gone on to win the title.

Besides the prize money at stake, players also had chances to win bonus prizes throughout the day. The player with the best score on each course received a $100 GT gift card, and any player who hit a hole-in-one or double eagle received their choice of prizes from the sponsor table, which included Golden Tee LIVE sunglasses from PRATO and Golden Tee LIVE golf balls from Top Flite®.

And it didn't take long before prizes were given away. Even before a single round was played tournament emcee and IT Marketing Director, Gary Colabuono, announced that all 126 players would win at least $25. Andy Haas was awarded a set of Ben Hogan irons for the second consecutive year for being the 2007 Southeast Open top online qualifier. But he wouldn't win the Golden Tee Proshop.com golf bag to put them in. Evan Buchanon from Nashville, TN was the lucky winner whose name was drawn.

As music from TouchTunes' Lance Armstrong LIVESTRONG charity jukebox filled the room, the players stepped up to their trackballs and started shooting their way towards $5,000.

It all started, and ended, with Haas. After being awarded his set of Ben Hogan irons, the 2006 Eastern Open Champion continued his quest to be the first Regionals repeat champion. Haas posted three -27's including one on Moose Landing, which was the top score for that course, to shoot -129 and take King of the Hill.

The other Regional Champion in the field had a much tougher time. Sean Gervais from Tampa, FL slipped up on Rustic Bridge to put himself in an early hole. But the former Team USA member scrapped his way to a -121 and the last spot in the finals.

Finishing third through eighth were a list of former and current Team USA members including Chris Litzinger, former Player of the Year Charles David Long from McDonough, GA, Ryan McCook, Steven Tirey, Tobin Carter from Orlando, FL, Chris Eversole, and 5-time Player of the Year Dean Liakakos from Dayton, OH.

CLICK HERE FOR THE COMPLETE 5-COURSE QUALIFIER LEADERBOARD!

Sure Andy Haas was the King of the Hill, but it wasn’t like the other qualifiers were simply going to roll over. While Haas got to sit back and relax, eight men battled fiercely for the chance at taking him down.

But three of the four top seeds failed to make it out of round one. Litzinger, Long and McCook exited early along with Tobin Carter. The four each won $600 for their efforts.

Both matches in round two came down to one make-or-break hole. Chris Eversole took down Dean Liakakos after Liakakos posted a 9 on Glacier Ranch #4. And hole #10 did in Sean Gervais against Steven Tirey when he put his second shot in the water. Their 4th-5th place efforts earned Gervais and Liakakos a $900 payday.

With Haas warming up a few machines away, Eversole and Tirey knew that any mistake could cost them a chance at $5,000. Those mistakes piled up quickly for Tirey as he fell behind early. But come hole #18 Tirey had battled back to hold a 1-stroke lead. Facing a 60-foot uphill putt with an 8-degree break for the win, Tirey dried his hands on his towel and sunk Eversole's chances of being a hometown hero. Eversole pocketed $1,500 for third place.

"Probably something with his knee," Tirey said of his strategy to take down Haas. "Maybe a thumb."

It was going to take everything Tirey had to cool off the hot hand of Haas.

The King of the Hill held the lead for most of the match and headed into Moose Landing hole #18 cool and confident. But facing a brutal setup featuring 16 mph winds in their face, Haas elected to play conservatively. Tirey had no choice - he had to go for it. Against the winds and odds, Tirey hit a strong curving 3-wood with backspin that looked miraculous when it hit the green. But the backspin rolled his ball to a spot on the green where a rock prevented him from having a direct putt to the pin. Haas made it up and down and became the first ever back-to-back Regional Champion!

Tirey pocketed $2,000 for second place while Haas took home his second Regionals trophy and $5,000.

"I lost to the best in the game," Tirey commented after the loss. "What's new?"

Honestly, it's nothing new. In the illustrious history of Golden Tee few players have had the skill to dominate. The legends all had their runs of greatness. And after Atlanta, one could make the argument that Andy Haas is one of them now.

"I've been playing well and I've caught some lucky breaks," Haas said while holding the Regional Championships trophy. "I don't know if I belong up there with those guys yet. But it's nice to be considered."

Congratulations to Andy Haas and Steven Tirey on an Outstanding Performance!

And Thank You to ALL of the Southeast Open Competitors!

The Golden Tee LIVE Regional Championships

Every Player. Every Game. Every Location.