Manakin-Sabot, VA – (FCT) Blake Elliott broke through the generation barrier yesterday at the 2015 Frigidaire Classic in grand style, winning the title by 4 strokes over runner-up Todd Elliott, his father. The tournament was held at the prestigious Hermitage Country Club outside of Richmond Virginia. It marked the first time that someone from the third generation of competitors took home the trophy.
From the start, no one would have guessed that Blake would have such an emphatic win. After a less than great practice session, Blake started his round with a frustrating triple bogey. He quickly rebounded though to keep his fellow competitors close. When he followed his birdie on 8 with an incredible birdie from the left rough on 9, he made the turn in an impressive 37 and a 3 stroke lead. He all but put it out of reach when he eagled the 11th to pull 6 strokes ahead of his nearest competitor.
“I’m just thrilled to have my name on the trophy,” said our newest and youngest ever champion. “It’s such a gratifying win. This family tradition goes back for as long as I can remember. And I’ll be ready to defend the title and put my name back on there next year!”
“I kept trying to keep up, but he (Blake) made no mistakes,” said defending champion, Todd Elliott. “The more I pressed, the more I fell behind. He just put a great game together today to take home the trophy. His 5-iron from 175 out on nine to that elevated green was really the difference maker in my opinion.”
Indeed, that birdie on nine broke the tie with Todd. After that, Blake never trailed. He finished with a net 76 for his best round ever in the Classic. Two-time defending champion Todd Elliott came in second, newcomer Clark Elliott finished 3rd in his Frigidaire Classic debut and 6-time winner, Scott Elliott rounded out the foursome.
This was the first Frigidaire Classic played at a course that has also hosted a US Professional Major Championship. Hermitage Country Club hosted the 1949 PGA Championship, won by the Hall of Fame golfer, Sam Snead. The next Frigidaire Classic is tentatively scheduled to be played on the West coast for the first time in its 21 year history. With Blake having tackled the top spot this year, the question arises as to whether or not the old guard can wrestle command of the trophy back from this new generation.
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