Finalists Named for 2023 Byron Nelson Award
NORMAN, Okla. - The GCAA, in cooperation with the Salesmanship Club of Dallas, announced that Anton Albers (Little Rock), Beck Burnette (Lee), Palmer Jackson (Notre Dame), David Nyfjäll (Northwestern), and Matthew Reidel (Vanderbilt) are the finalists for the 2023 Byron Nelson Award. The winner will be announced on May 10 at the AT&T Byron Nelson Luncheon at TPC Craig Ranch in McKinney, Texas.
Albers will graduate in May with a bachelor’s degree in Business Finance and an astonishing 3.97 GPA. Outside of office hours, the three-time Srixon/Cleveland Golf All-America Scholar from Buchholz, Germany has networked with finance students, professors, and alumni, along with being a member of business leader community luncheons throughout his five years in Little Rock, interacting with police, firefighters, and city council members about how to become better involved in the community. Albers also spent four years volunteering at Pleasant Valley Country Club and three years at First Tee of Central Arkansas, helping with skilled instruction and both caddying and playing with juniors in the programs. The defending Sun Belt Conference Golfer of the Year tied a school record for career victories with his fourth win at the Louisiana Classics in March.
Burnette graduates next month with a bachelor's degree in Communications and minors in Public Relations and Business. He has been widely involved in multiple communities on and off the course, including instructing summer golf clinics for elementary and middle school-aged children at Cleveland Country Club in Cleveland, Tn., and a Make-A-Wish Christmas Event in Orlando, Fl., where he dressed as one of Santa’s elves and operated carnival rides. The Blairsville, Ga., native has spent significant time with Samaritan’s Purse, assisting in aspects of disaster relief, full home rebuild, and Operation Christmas Child, where he helped package donations for a distribution center in Marietta, Ga. On the course, the three-time PING All-American and two-time Srixon/Cleveland Golf All-America Scholar has an NCAA Division II-best 69.03 adjusted scoring average as of April 16.
Jackson will graduate in May with a bachelor’s degree in Data Analytics. The two-time Srixon/Cleveland Golf All-America Scholar from Murrysville, Pa., has contributed to “A Brighter Christmas”, an initiative to provide families in need with a holiday they wouldn’t forget, each of the last four years. He also spent much time reading to students at elementary schools in South Bend, Granger, and Mishawaka, along with volunteering multiple nights at “The Links at Four Winds Field” for First Tee - Indiana and providing breakfast to those in need at Our Lady of the Road - South Bend. Jackson is a three-time PING All-Midwest Region golfer who led the ACC and set the Notre Dame single-season record for scoring average (70.50) in 2021-22. He received PING and Golfweek All-American honors for the first time en route to playing for Team USA at the 2022 Arnold Palmer Cup.
Nyfjäll graduates in June with a bachelor’s degree in Statistics and minors in Business Institutions, Psychology, and Data Science. The 3.776 GPA student from Uppsala, Sweden has been involved with Northwestern’s Student-Athlete Advisory Council (SAAC) since he stepped foot in Evanston, volunteering his time for canned food drives and a lip sync battle to benefit the university’s Dance Marathon. Through Northwestern Golf, Nyfjäll has been a Team Impact role model to Luke Rowen since August 2020, a connection that has soared with each meeting. Team Impact is an organization that matches kids with special needs or chronic illnesses with collegiate sports teams across America. On the course, Nyfjäll has collected three First-Team All-Big Ten honors, the 2022 Big Ten Individual Championship, and the 2019 Big Ten Freshman of the Year award among other accolades.
Riedel will graduate in May with a bachelor’s degree in Economics and a minor in Business. The three-time SEC Academic Honor Roll student from Houston, Texas, has been a leader in his community over the last four years. He has raised money, bought gifts and organized a field day during gym class for first graders at Jones Paideia Elementary School in Nashville, collected and bagged groceries for underprivileged residents in West Nashville, and served food and cleaned dishes at the Ronald McDonald Community Food Kitchen in Nashville. Riedel is undefeated in match play and has recorded five top-10 and four top-five finishes so far this season, including earning medalist honors at the 2022 SEC Match Play presented by Jerry Pate with a 54-hole total of 197 (-13). He carded six top-20 results en route to receiving PING All-Southeast Region honors in 2021.
About the Byron Nelson Award
The purpose of the Byron Nelson Award is to select annually the outstanding Division I, II, III, or NAIA scholar-athlete of the year. The recipient, a graduating senior, is recognized for his achievement in the classroom, on the course, and in his community. Past winners include William Knauth (Carnegie Mellon), McClure Meissner (SMU), John Murphy (Louisville), Ryan Lumsden (Northwestern), Matthew Perrine (Baylor), Maverick McNealy (Stanford), Stephen Behr (Clemson), Anders Albertson (Georgia Tech), Brandon Hagy (Cal), Brinson Paolini (Duke), Dylan Frittelli (Texas), Cyril Bouniol (Abilene Christian), Brendan Gielow (Wake Forest), James White (Georgia Tech), Mike Van Sickle (Marquette), Nathaniel James (Washington & Lee), Sam Korbe (Tulsa), Roberto Castro (Georgia Tech), Zack Robinson (Oklahoma State), Michael Putnam (Pepperdine), Billy Hurley (Navy), Troy Matteson (Georgia Tech), and Jason Allred (Pepperdine).