Bo Hoag takes the clubhouse lead in the Spring Hill Classic

Tifton, Ga. March 1, 2013 – Former Ohio State standout Bo Hoag posted a 5-under 65 in the second round of the Spring Hill Classic on Friday afternoon to earn the clubhouse lead of the $200,000 NGA TOUR event.

Bo Hoag

Hoag of Columbus, Ohio, recorded five birdies, one bogey and an eagle in the second round to move from T17 into the outright lead. Hoag, who posted a 1-under 70 in the first round, is looking for his first win on the NGA TOUR and was one shot clear of the field when play was halted on Friday evening.

Multi-time NGA TOUR winner Nick Rousey also posted one of the lowest rounds of the day, shooting a 4-under 67 to move into a tie for second at 6-under par. Rousey, a former University of Alabama All-American from Pensacola, Fla., posted five birdies and one bogey in the second round.

“I played solid today,” said Rousey. “It wasn’t as cold and windy today. I hit the ball in play and managed my game. I love this type of course. You have to place your ball and you just can’t get up there and bomb it. This course suits my game and I’m putting a little better this week.”

Fellow NGA TOUR winner Erik Barnes, a former Austin Peay golfer from Cape Coral, Fla., posted his second 68 in as many days to join Rousey in a tie for second. Barnes carded five birdies and two bogeys on Friday.

Peter Malnati, a former University of Missouri golfer from Dandridge, Tenn., kept up his solid play in his NGA TOUR debut, shooting his second 68 of the week to join Rousey and Barnes in a tie for second.

Last week’s winner Clayton Rask of Otsego, Minn., stayed hot in the second round at Spring Hill, posting a 4-under 67 to join Marc-Etienne Bussieres and Brian Maurer in a tie for fifth at 5-under par for the event. Maurer, the first round leader, was still on the course when play was suspended, while Bussieres carded a 5-under 66 in the second round.

Justin Lower (68), Zack Fischer (68), Seth Fair (72), Sam Ryder (72), Hernan Piri Borja (68) and Hunter Hamrick are 3-under and tied for eighth. Hamrick, a former University of Alabama All-American from Montgomery, Ala., was still on the course when play was suspended, but the 2012 U.S. Open competitor’s 68 on Thursday kept him on the first page of the leaderboard.

The second round of the Spring Hill Classic will restart at 8 a.m. and the third round is scheduled to start at 11 a.m. As always, admission is free to the public.

The NGA Pro Golf Tour is the No. 3 Men’s Professional Golf Tour in the United States after the PGA and Web.com Tours and is the No. 1 recommended developmental tour by more PGA and Web.com Tour Professionals.

The NGA has helped hundreds of professionals acquire their PGA TOUR, Euro, Web.com, and Champions Tour cards. In fact, NGA alumni have won an incredible Fifteen (15) “Major” Championships.

NGA alumni include: 2012 Masters champion Bubba Watson; 2011 PGA Championship winner Keegan Bradley; 2010 PGA TOUR Player of the Year and 2003 US Open Champion Jim Furyk; 2009 British Open Champion Stewart Cink; 2009 U.S. Open Champion Lucas Glover; 2007 Masters Champion Zach Johnson; 2003 PGA Champion Shaun Micheel; 2003 British Open Champion Ben Curtis; two-time U.S. Open Champion Lee Janzen; British Open and PGA Champion John Daly; British Open Champion Tom Lehman; PGA Champion David Toms; 2003 Tour Championship Winner Chad Campbell; 2010 NGA Player of the Year Michael Thompson; 2012 PGA TOUR winners Mark Wilson, George McNeill, Ted Potter Jr., Scott Stallings and Scott Piercy.

The NGA Pro Golf Tour, established in 1988, predates the Web.com Tour as the longest running developmental tour in golf. In 2012, the NGA TOUR became the “Official Partner of the 2012 Reno-Tahoe Open” and secured one PGA TOUR and six Web.com Tour event exemptions for its members, the most in developmental golf.

For more information on the NGA or the NGA Pro Golf Tour, please visit our website at www.NGATOUR.com or contact our Tour Office at (800) 992-8748.