PORT ST. LUCIE, Fla. – Hampton University junior Sydnee Mack was named the recipient of the John Cash/Cliff Wallace Scholarship on Thursday, May 5 during the welcome dinner prior to the 25th annual PGA Minority Collegiate Golf Championship.

Mack (Las Vegas, Nev.) received the $1,000 award, marking the second straight year in which she was awarded with a scholarship at the PGA Minority Collegiate. Last year, Mack was one of 10 golfers to receive a $1,000 scholarship from State Farm Insurance.

"We are proud to present these students with a scholarship for their academic excellence and participation in this great Championship," said Michael Matlock, the Chief Compliance Officer for State Farm Insurance. "We congratulate each of these student-athletes for their effort both on the golf course and in the classroom."

The committee considered the student's GPA and also awarded based on community service and their passion for the game of golf. The scholarship recipients' GPA average was an impressive 3.67.

After her freshman year at Hampton, Mack – along with her sister Mackenzie Mack, who is the head women's golf coach at Indiana State University – founded the non-profit organization Tee It Up, Inc. Tee It Up, Inc. offers free golf clinics and academic mentoring services to underprivileged youth.

Clinics have been hosted at Hampton University, as well as in Terra Haute, Ind. and Mack's hometown of Las Vegas, Nev.

Mack finished 19th in the PGA Minority Collegiate over the weekend, shooting a 36-over 252 (85-90-77) to help the Lady Pirates finish second to Texas-Pan American in the team standings. For the season, Mack averaged 84.6 over 14 rounds of competition, including a season-best 77 in the final round on Sunday.

Mack's best individual finish this season came in the Savannah State Fall Invitational on Nov. 6-7 in Savannah, Ga., where she finished tied for third with a 20-over 162 (78-84).

The PGA Minority Collegiate Golf Championship
Celebrating its 25th year, the PGA Minority Collegiate Golf Championship presented by Brown Capital Management originated in November 1986 following the Jackson State University Golf Tournament and has elevated golf in minority colleges and universities by providing opportunities to more players to compete in a national championship.

The 1986 organizational meeting brought together a significant group of founders: the late Dr. Herschel Cochrane, Dr. Joe D. Saunders of the National Negro Golf Association; Jackson State University Golf Coach Eddie Payton; Rose Harper-Elder of the Sports Management Institute; and William (Bill) Dickey, founder of the Bill Dickey Scholarship Association and recipient of the 1999 PGA Distinguished Service Award. The founders' goal was to provide a national stage for players from minority colleges and universities after being denied opportunities to compete in NCAA Collegiate golf events.

The inaugural Championship was conducted in the spring of 1987 at Highland Park Golf Course in Cleveland, Ohio. Since 1998, PGA Golf Club in Port St. Lucie, Fla., has been host to the Championship, and in 2006, The PGA of America was granted complete ownership and management of the Championship by the National Minority College Golf Scholarship Fund.

About The PGA of America
Celebrating its 95th year, The PGA of America has maintained a twofold mission of its founders: to establish and elevate the standards of the profession and to grow interest and participation in the game of golf.

By establishing and elevating the standards of the golf profession through world-class education, career services, marketing and research programs, The PGA enables its professionals to maximize their performance in their respective career paths and showcases them as experts in the game and in a multi-billion dollar golf industry.

By creating and delivering dramatic world-class championships and exciting and enjoyable promotions that are viewed as the best of their class in the golf industry, The PGA of America elevates the public's interest in the game, the desire to play more golf, and ensures accessibility to the game for everyone, everywhere. The PGA of America brand represents the very best in golf.

For more information on Hampton University golf, please call the Office of Sports Information at (757) 727-5811, or visit the official Pirates website at www.hamptonpirates.com.