2017 Division II Jack Nicklaus Award presented by Barbasol Finalists Announced
MOLINE, Ill. – Five finalists have been named for the 2017 Division II Jack Nicklaus National Player of the Year Award presented by Barbasol. Chandler Blanchet from West Florida, Simon Fraser’s Chris Crisologo, BYU-Hawaii’s Nicolas Herrera, Richard Mansell from Nova Southeastern, and Florida Southern’s John VanDerLaan are finalists for award. The winner will be announced June 1. The Award presentation will be held at Muirfield Village Golf Club in Dublin, Ohio, and presented by award namesake Jack Nicklaus during the final round of the Memorial Tournament presented by Nationwide.
In addition to receiving the Jack Nicklaus National Player of the Year Award, the five recipients will compete in the Barbasol Shootout for an exemption into the PGA TOUR’s Barbasol Championship, held July 20-23, at the Robert Trent Jones Golf Trail at Grand National in Opelika, Ala. The Barbasol Shootout will be held Saturday, June 3 at the storied Scioto Country Club in Columbus, Ohio - the same club where Jack Nicklaus first learned the game of golf as a young boy.
Blanchet was a Nicklaus Award finalist for the second-straight year. A junior from Gainesville, Fla., Blanchet has six tournament victories this season. He has three additional top three finishes in his 10 events. He was named Gulf South Conference Golfer of the Year. The current leader in all divisions in the Golfstat Cup, which measures adjusted stroke average at 68.84, Blanchet has posted 19 of his 28 rounds in the 60s and 24 round at par or better.
Crisologo won four tournaments during his junior season. A native of Richmond, B.C., He finished inside the top 13 in nine of 10 events. Crisologo was named Great Northwest Athletic Conference Player of the Year for the second consecutive season. He shot par or better in 19 of 28 rounds.
A native of Cali, Colombia, Herrera won the Hawaii Challenge. The senior has posted five runner-up finishes and has not placed outside the top 10 in nine events. A first-team All-PacWest selection, Herrera currently holds a 69.75 stroke average. He has carded par or better for 17 straight rounds.
A senior from Staffordshire, England, Mansell claimed the Armstrong Pirate Men’s Invitational. It was one of eight top five finishes for Mansell. He was named first-team Sunshine State Conference. Mansell enters the NCAA Championships with a 71.12 stroke average with 20 of 33 rounds at par or better. He will represent Europe in June in the Arnold Palmer Cup.
VanDerLaan was a Nicklaus finalist for the second time after earning his first nod in 2015. He won or tied for medalist honors in three events, including the NCAA South/Southeast Regional. VanDerLaan posted six additional top five finishes and only placed outside the top 10 once in 11 events. He was previously named Sunshine State Conference Golfer of the Year.
Nicklaus, a Big Ten and NCAA Champion at The Ohio State University, helped inspire and create the Jack Nicklaus Award in 1988 and it is now presented to the National Player of the year in NCAA Divisions I, II and III, as well as NAIA and NJCAA.
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