Wilkinson named Nicklaus Award finalist
PERKINSTON — Mississippi Gulf Coast's Brice Wilkinson has been named a finalist for the Jack Nicklaus Award presented by Barbasol.
He is one of six finalists for the NJCAA award. The freshman from Madison Central won medalist at the NJCAA District D Championship by five shots. He also had five other top-five finishes and has made the All-Tournament team in his last three outings.
Wilkinson has only placed outside the top 10 once in 11 tournaments. His stroke average is 72.44.
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.
The five recipients will compete in the Barbasol Shootout for an exemption into the PGA Tour's Barbasol Championship, held July 16-22, at the Champions at Keene Trace in Lexington, Ky. The Barbasol Shootout will be held Saturday, June 2 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.
The other finalists are Midland College's Callum Bruce and Michael Salazar, South Mountain's Leon D'Souza, Meridian's Isaiah Jackson, and Indian Hills' Julien Sale.
The winner will be announced May 31, with the award presented by Nicklaus at the Muirfield Village Golf Club in Dublin, Ohio, during the final round of the Memorial Tournament, presented by Nationwide.
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