Contact: Kenneth Billings
STARKVILLE, Miss.--Mississippi State is well-represented this week at the PGA Viking Classic at Madison's Annandale Golf Club.
Though it is unlikely their names ever will be mentioned alongside John Daly, Zack Johnson or any of the other professionals on hand to play, 13 sports communications and administration majors from the university's kinesiology department are working alongside tournament coordinators to ensure all aspects of the week-long tournament runs smoothly.
"Annandale has six people who are responsible for pulling off this major event," said assistant professor Robert Zullo, who arranged the students' activities there. "We are going to be an extension of that team working to ensure it is a success."
Zullo said the students traveled to Madison Sunday [Sept. 23] and will be there through the conclusion Sunday [the 30th].
It may seem like great fun to be an "insider" at a Professional Golfers' Association event, but Zullo said the students will have little down-time to be spectators.
"We are going to be working essentially from sun-up to sun-down" he said. "Some will be working the Pro-Am, the practice rounds and the hospitality tent, while others will be with media relations; there is always going to be something to do."
While Annandale will be getting needed manpower to help host the event, the MSU students will come away with huge benefits as well, Zullo observed. "This is going to provide them great real-world experience in their chosen field," he added.
"When it's over they are going to take two things from it," he said. "First, they are going to be able to take what they've learned in the classroom and apply it in a practical setting. Secondly, it will also give them an understanding of what it means to administer a pressure-filled event where you have to get it right the first time."
The Greenwood-based Viking Range Corp. is sponsoring the tournament for the first time in its 39-year history. Launched in 1968 as the Magnolia Classic, it became the Deposit Guaranty Classic in 1986. In 1999, Southern Farm Bureau picked up the sponsorship.
The MSU team includes:
COLUMBUS, Ga.--Graduate student Bradley A. Horton, the son of Antone and Debra Horton;
EDWARDS--Junior Jamila M. Thompson, the daughter of Charlene Thompson;
GREENWOOD SPRINGS--Senior Kimberly R. Wardlaw, the daughter of Robert and Rebecca Wardlaw;
HATTIESBURG--Senior Barbara J. Wilson, the daughter of Glenn and Darree Wilson;
MERIDIAN--Junior Semmes Ford, the daughter of Kinsman and Amy Ford, and senior Phatema A. Sillimon, the daughter of Elizabeth Sillimon;
MONROE, LA.--Graduate student Ryan Trichel [parents not listed];
OXFORD, Ohio--Graduate student Erin L. Mullen, the daughter of Dr. Paul and Sharlene Mullen;
STARKVILLE--Sophomore Haley R. Haynes, the daughter of Robert and Tammye Haynes; graduate student Daniel C. Morgan (parents not listed); and senior Jeremiah L. Short, the son of Jerry Smith of Macon and Jeanette Short of Columbus;
TORONTO, Canada--Graduate student Ashleigh Korzack (parents not listed); and
TUPELO--Senior Kirk Gatlin, the son of James and Kathryn Gatlin.
NEWS EDITORS/DIRECTORS: For additional information, Dr. Zullo can be reached at 662-325-9281 or zullo@colled.msstate.edu.
For more information about Mississippi State University, see http://www.msstate.edu/.