PGA Championship doesn’t hold same ‘wow factor’ for Benzel

Published 11:39 pm Wednesday, August 12, 2009

Playing in the PGA Championship can be a knee-knocking experience for any golfer, and particularly for those unaccustomed to the enormity of one of golf’s major championships.

But for Ryan Benzel of Bothell, this week’s 91st PGA at Hazeltine National Golf Club near Minneapolis will be formidable, but hardly unfamiliar.

Benzel, a teaching pro at Marysville’s Battle Creek Golf Course, is making his third straight appearance at the PGA, having qualified with his third straight top-five finish at the annual PGA Professional National Championship in late June and early July. At the 2007 PGA Benzel made the cut at Southern Hills Country Club in Tulsa, Okla., and placed 71st. Last year he missed the cut at Oakland Hills Country Club outside of Detroit.

“Being that this is my third year in a row, I feel like I have a really good idea of what to expect,” said the 30-year-old Benzel. “There shouldn’t be too many surprises.

“When I get there, it’s not like I’ll be freaking out. All those ‘Wow’ factors should be gone. I’ve seen them before, and that’s a good aspect for me.”

Benzel is one of 20 club pros in the field, and the opportunity for those players to face golf’s best and brightest is something that makes this tournament particularly special.

“It’s kind of like being the new guy in their territory,” he said, referring to the PGA Tour regulars. “You get that awkward feeling at times. But all the club pros that’ll be there are good players. Many of them have played in tour events before, so a lot of this will be business as usual.”

This week’s tournament is one of several memorable events coming up for Benzel through the rest of 2009. In September he will be on the United States team at the PGA Cup, an event for club pros that uses a format identical to golf’s Ryder Cup, with the Americans facing counterparts from Great Britain and Ireland. It will be held this year in Loch Lomond, Scotland.

In November, Benzel will attend the second stage of the PGA Tour’s qualifying school, and with a good showing he will advance to the finals in December as he bids for his 2010 PGA Tour card.

“Some of the things I wanted to accomplish this year, I’m doing,” he said. “Making the PGA Cup team is one and getting to the PGA is another. Now I just need to enjoy those opportunities and play the best I can.”