Score another one for the Home Team.
Two weeks after Ryan Moore’s win at the PGA TOUR’s CIMB Classic in Malaysia, and one week after Fred Couples got back into the winners’ circle with a victory on the PGA Champions Tour at San Francisco’s Harding Park, it was Michael Putnam’s turn to take the spotlight Saturday, when he was named the 2013 Web.com Tour Player of the Year in a vote of his fellow competitors.
“I am honored to be voted Player of the Year by my fellow players,” said Putnam, who receives the Jack Nicklaus Award. “I truly believe this past season on the Web.com Tour has prepared me for success on the PGA TOUR. The Web.com Tour is an excellent tour that has incredibly talented golfers who are also really good guys. It features great tournaments, sponsors, volunteers and Tour staff, all of whom I’d like to thank for what they did to help me and the rest of the players week-in and week-out this year.”
The Tacoma native was the Web.com Tour’s regular season leading money winner with $450,184 in earnings and won two tournaments, the Mexico Championship and Mid-Atlantic Championship. His wins came in back-to-back events in late May and early June, making him only the eighth player in Tour history to win on consecutive calendar weeks.
Putnam, 30, held the top spot for 15 consecutive weeks (after Mexico Championship, through Nationwide Children’s Hospital Championship), which was the sixth longest stretch in Tour history.
In addition to his two wins, the former Pepperdine University standout tied for second at the South Georgia Classic in April and tied for third at the Albertsons Boise Open in July. Putnam had a total of nine top-10s on the year and 14 top-25s, first in both categories. He made the cut in 19 of 23 starts, and was a cumulative 166-under par for the year.
“On behalf of the PGA TOUR, I would like to congratulate Michael on an outstanding year on the Web.com Tour,” said PGA TOUR commissioner Tim Finchem. “He excelled throughout the season and is a deserving honoree. We wish him all the best on the PGA TOUR.”
Putnam’s outstanding season earned him promotion to the PGA TOUR in 2014, where he last competed on a full-time basis in 2011. With the PGA TOUR’s new wrap-around schedule, he has already made his 2014 season debut, making two cuts in his first three events.
“Michael Putnam has been a wonderful representative for the Web.com Tour, not only with his golf clubs but with the media, tournament sponsors, the fans and everyone else he came in touch with,” said Calfee. “Michael returns to the PGA TOUR following a season on the Web.com Tour that not only included a pair of wins and 15 weeks atop the money list but highly consistent play virtually every week he competed. We wish him well on the PGA TOUR and look forward to following his progress.”
As the Web.com Tour’s 2013 Regular Season leading money winner, Putnam is fully exempt in 2013-14 and receives an invitation to THE PLAYERS Championship at TPC Sawgrass in Ponte Vedra Beach, Fla. next May.
In the Tour statistical categories, Putnam finished second in Greens In Regulation Percentage (74.31), T3 in Scoring Average (69.22) and sixth in All-Around Ranking (226). Of his 83 rounds, 60 were par or better (72.3%) and 53 were under par (63.8%). Putnam’s low round of the year was 63, which he posted three times.
Congrats, Michael!
