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HBF13th Annual Celebrity Golf Classic Recap

By HBF Staff, 08/29/19, 12:45PM CDT

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Gophers. Huskies. Badgers. Bulldogs. Wild. Whitecaps. Islanders. Coyotes. Penguins. Sharks. Golden Knights. Caps. Canadiens. Pioneers. Fighting Saints. Team USA.  What do they all have in common?

They all had representation at the 13th Annual Herb Brooks Celebrity Golf Classic on Monday, August 12 at Victory Links Golf Club in Blaine, MN.

It was a tremendous day of golf and friendship among so many current and former players, corporate partners, media members and everyone who considers themselves to be a “Friend of Herbie”.

Although the skies were a touch on the gray side and it rained ever so slightly, the golf went on as scheduled and there was a great time had by all with some fine play indeed among the players.

At the end of the competition, with 174 golfers strong, the winning fivesome was the group headed by this year’s Herb Brooks/NCHC Coach-of-the-Year Brett Larson of the St. Cloud State Huskies.  The team of Coach Larson, Jake Taylor, Joe Motzko, Dave Iannazzo and recently retired Minnesota Wild player Matt Hendricks took honors with a score of 56 or 15-under par.  For added measure, Dave Iannazzo also won the closest-to-the-pin contest on the 7th hole.

The competition was bound to be fierce and the score tightly bunched, so it was randomly decided that the next three winning fivesomes were going to be determined by the scores from the 5th place, 16th place and 25th place teams.  These were all in honor of the jersey numbers of select members of the 1980 “Miracle on Ice” Team.

With a score of 58, or 13-under par, the team captained by John Regal of Securian Financial took 5th Place (Team USA Jersey #5 Mike Ramsey).  The other key players on the team were Bruce Shay, Adam Johnson, Mike Brodzinski, Sr. and Jake Guentzel of the Pittsburgh Penguins. Jake also holed in a 192-yard shot for a team “skin” on the 15th hole.

Coming in next with a score of 61, or 10-under par, was the University of Minnesota Golden Gopher Hockey group led by Coach Bob Motzko.  Pat Micheletti, Tom Chorske, Mike Reilly of the Montreal Canadiens and Nate Schmidt of the Vegas Golden Knights rounded out the squad.

The final winning team was led by Bob Jossart of RJM Construction and they carded an 8-under 63.  Also on Team RJM were Joe Maddy, Eric Kobeska, Ross Babcock and 1980 “Miracle on Ice” Olympic Gold Medalist Buzz Schneider (Team USA Jersey #25).

Other golf award winners from the day:

  • Second Team “Skin” – Greg Borgen, Brent Borgen, Bob Stoker, Scott Berg and Easton Brodzinski of St. Cloud State Huskies
  • Women’s Long Drive on 5th Hole:  Winny Brodt Brown – HBF Board Member, inaugural Ms. Minnesota Hockey Award Winner and current captain of the Minnesota Whitecaps
  • Men’s Long Drive on 16th Hole:  P.J. Martin
  • Closest-to-the-Pin on 8th Hole: 1980 Olympian, HBF Board Member and Blake HS Boys Coach Rob McClanahan – Courtesy of Morrie’s Auto – Maserati Weekend
  • Long Putt on the 18th Hole:  Michael Brodzinski
  • RBC $10,000 Hole-in-One on the 17th Hole:  No Winner

The day and evening culminated at the awards dinner where Matt Olson was recognized and honored with the Herb Brooks Youth Hall of Fame Award joining an illustrious list of people who have contributed to the game.  Matt’s dedication, inspiration, high-moral character and perseverance to the game of hockey makes him a worthy choice for this year’s award. 

Congratulations, Matt, thanks for your tireless efforts in passing on Herb’s legacy to the next generation.    

In addition to recognizing Matt Olson as the 2019 Herb Brooks Youth Hall of Fame winner, Dan Brooks introduced the Herb Brooks Award Winners from this year’s state tournament.  The winners were:  Girls A Katherine Solohub - Breck; Girls AA Jenna Gerold - Farmington; Boys A Donte Lawson – Greenway; Boys AA Jack Jensen – Eden Prairie. 

The HBF wants to thank everyone for making this year’s celebrity golf classic one for the books.  Keep an eye out for an announcement of when next year’s Herb Brooks Celebrity Golf Classic will take place.  Next year’s event will be extra special as it will also celebrate the 40th Anniversary of “Miracle on Ice”.  This will be an event all golf and hockey enthusiasts won’t want to miss! 

To view photos, video and the awards program – see below.   

 

 

Click below to see the live stream by Prep Spotlight

Click Below to View the Awards Program