GRANDVIEW —
People keep coming back to the BNI Memorial golf tournament.
Now in its 30th season, it’s as popular as ever. Apparently, once you play in the BNI, you’re hooked.
“It’s more than a golf tournament. It’s everything,” Alan Wharton said.
He should know. Alan and his brothers Robert and Gary, all Summersville natives, have been playing in the event for “22 or 24 years.”
While Gary still lives in Summersville, Alan and Robert drive in each year from Columbus. In fact, Alan, the 2008 champion, used to make the trip from Atlanta.
“Great golf courses and a great tournament,” he said. “And we make it more of a family reunion. We have a lot of fun every night.”
So much fun, the Whartons said the police showed up Saturday night to see what was going on.
“We had a fireworks party,” Alan explained with a grin.
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While the Whartons have a smooth trip southward on four-lane roads, three other golfers are braving winding mountain roads to come up from Welch.
Former Big Creek High School coach Mike Vallo, now assistant football coach and head baseball coach at the new River View High School in Bradshaw, is a longtime fixture at the BNI.
Vallo plays with former middle school principal and coach Joe Sparks and his son Chris Sparks, a former Bluefield State golfer now living in Myrtle Beach.
“You’ve got good competition and good courses,” Vallo said. “I don’t get to play golf a lot, but it’s nice to come out and play. It’s a challenge to see how you do, and I’ve met so many nice folks in the tournament.”
Joe Sparks likes that the BNI is “so well-run,” and both father and son enjoy the camaraderie with their friend.
“Vallo will ride me if I start hitting bad shots,” Chris said. “If I do something stupid, my dad will get on me.”
But shouldn’t it be Chris who gives out all the grief? After all, he was tied for second after the first day of the BNI and is currently 3-over par.
“It’s a fun tournament,” he said, diplomatically. “I try to stay out of that. I just kind of go my own way.”
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Besides Chris Sparks, the BNI features other talented young golfers, such as defending champion Christian Brand, Bosten Miller and Brandon Reece.
No doubt there are other places they could have played this weekend, but the Young Guns love the BNI.
“I had heard about the BNI and how it’s a good tournament from word of mouth,” said Brand, the defending champion and current tournament leader. “Last year I saw how it was run, and I’ll probably be back every year.”
Miller, like Brand a Charleston native and current Marshall University golfer, echoed Alan Wharton and Chris Sparks.
“It’s just a fun tournament,” he said. “My buddy has a house at Glade and we come up and spend three nights.”
Reece, a two-time champion, came up from Raleigh, N.C., to play in the BNI.
“I played here growing up,” he said. “I’m originally from Beckley, and I come home every three or four months.”
Where else would he be, but at the BNI?
The BNI
Related Photos
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Gary Wharton of Summersville watches his putt during the second round of the 30th annual BNI Memorial Tournament on Sunday at Grandview Country Club. The tournament will conclude today on the Cobb Course at The Resort at Glade Springs. W. Dayton Whittle
BNI is a summer highlight
- The BNI
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In memory of Jimmy Jones — 1988 champion to be honored at 32nd annual Beckley Newspapers Memorial Golf Classic
Linda “Penny” Jones knew how much the game of golf meant to her husband. So when an accident befell his set of clubs, she doesn’t mind telling you she panicked.
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BNI returns to The Brier Patch Golf Links
For it’s 33rd anniversary, the BNI Memorial Golf Classic will have a distinctly local flavor once again.
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Finally, some time to relax
Most of the 154 golfers in the three-day, 54-hole, three-course Beckley Newspapers Memorial Golf Classic described the tournament as “a grind.”
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BNI Scores
Final scores from the 32nd annual Beckley Newspapers Memorial Golf Classic:
Championship Flight -
Down to the wire — Miller beats Reece in playoff to capture BNI
Three courses and 54 holes — 55, in fact — weren’t enough to separate Bosten Miller and Brandon Reece and determine the champion of the 32nd annual Beckley Newspapers Memorial Golf Classic.
But on the second playoff hole — No. 2 at The Resort at Glade Springs’ Cobb Course — Miller, the leader after each of the first two rounds, tapped in for birdie and his first BNI championship. -
Almost 78, Hamrick is still going strong
Jim Hamrick has plenty of excuses for not playing at his best in this week’s Beckley Newspapers Memorial Golf Classic.
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BNI Scores
Here are scores after the second round of the 32nd annual Beckley Newspapers Memorial Golf Classic:
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Miller pads BNI lead
Marshall grad up by 4 going into final round
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CORRECTED: Final-Round Tee Times
Here are Monday’s tee times for the final round of the 32nd annual Beckley Newspapers Memorial Golf Classic. The round will take place on the Cobb Course at The Resort at Glade Springs:
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Home for vacation
It’s no secret that the Beckley Newspapers Memorial Golf Classic — still affectionately known as the BNI — is a focal point for many of its competitors.
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