77th Florida Open Championship

FORT MYERS, Fla. – It’s wasn’t until the 18th tee that Connor Arendell knew where he stood in the championship. After his drive found the center of the fairway, a friend told him he held a two-shot lead over Kevin Aylwin, Andrew Pope and the field.

A few minutes later Arendell tap in a short putt for par to be capture the 77th Florida Open Championship at The Golf Club at Crown Colony and to take home the $20,000 first-place check. Arendell posted a 1-over 72 on Sunday to capture the 77th Florida Open title and secured the two-shot victory with a 13-under 200 for the championship with rounds of 66-62-72.

"It's an honor to win this championship again," Arendell said. "Winning down here two years ago in Fort Myers gave me some extra confidence coming into the week.  

This is the second Florida Open victory for Arendell, who won the 2021 Florida Open at Fiddlesticks Country Club. He becomes just the 11th player to win two Florida Open titles and the first player to win a second title since JC Deacon in 2020 at Pine Tree Golf Club.

After taking the 36-hole lead with a course-record 62 at Cypress Lake Golf Club, Arendell began the final round with a four-shot lead over the field. He started the day with a birdie on the third but ran in to some early trouble, with a double bogey on the fourth and added another bogey on the sixth.

"There a lot of chances out there if you hit the fairways, so I just knew if I could hit some fairways then I would have some looks and go from there," Arendell said. "I had that double early on, but settled in after that."

Arendell birdied back-to-back holes on the ninth and 10th, but his lead was cut to two shots with a bogey-free, 3-under front side for Aylwin. Arendell played steady overt the next eight holes, with his only other hiccup of the day coming with a bogey on the 15th. He secured the victory with a final-round 72 to take home the two-shot win.

This is the second FSGA championship win for Arendell, who is a Florida Junior Tour alum and winner. His second-round 62 at Cypress Lake set the course record and was the low round of the championship.

Aylwin and Pope both took home a share of second place, posting a 11-under 202 and taking home $9,625 each. Aylwin, who had an ace on the fourth hole at Cypress Lake on Saturday, used rounds of 66-68-68 to take a share of second place. Pope, the 2022 champion, made a run in the final round, carding a final-round 66 to move six spots up the leaderboard.

John Houchin earned low-amateur honors and finished the week in a tie for seventh place at 7-under 206, with rounds of 67-67-72. Derek Bard carded a final-round 65, the low round of the day, to move 40 spots up the leaderboard into a tie for 13th at 4-under 209.

*New for 2023*

• $125,000 Purse

• $20,000 First Place Check

• $1,000 minimum for all professionals making the cut

Championship Format

• 54 holes of individual stroke play
• Championship Field - 156 players
• The field will be cut to the low 60 and ties after 36 holes
• The lowest score for 54 holes will be the Champion
• All players will play 18 holes at each course on Friday, July 14th, and Saturday, July 15th
• The final 18 holes will be played at the host club on Sunday, July 16th

Eligibility

• Male amateur and professional golfers
• Florida Resident  (If you have any doubt - please click and review to avoid issues)
• Professionals must have a SSN, EIN, ITIN for tax reporting purposes. This would need to be confirmed before their qualifier, or they will be in-eligible to participate.
• A valid Florida GHIN Handicap Index not exceeding 7.0 at the time of entry (amateurs and amateurs awaiting reinstatement only)
• Entrant is not required to be a member of the FSGA
• PGA class A-3 members are ineligible
• Playing Activity - Players that have competed as a professional in less than (7) "major" tour events or less than (26) "minor tour" events in the 12 months prior to the Championship are eligible
• If you have any questions about your eligibility, it is the player's responsibility to review the guidelines and to contact the FSGA office as needed to ensure eligibility
• Ineligible applicants will not receive refunds  Click here to view FSGA Tournament Policies.

Entry Fees

• Qualifying Fee: Qualifying Fee includes entry fee and course and cart fees, and range balls.
• Championship Fee: Fee paid by those individuals who advance to the Championship through qualifying includes tee gifts, course and cart fees, range balls and lunch for each competitive round.
• Exempt Fee : Exempt Fee includes Championship Fee and Entry Fee for those individuals eligible for exemption.

Entries for qualifying are accepted on a first-come, first-served basis until the site field is full. Entries are then placed on an alternates list in order of receipt and contacted if, and when, a spot becomes available.

Late entries are subject to a $10 late entry fee should the entrant gain acceptance into the field.

Pre-Registration

Those individuals who advance to the Championship through qualifying must pre-register and remit the appropriate Championship Fee (See Above) online at www.fsga.org under the "My Account" section, which can be located in the top right hand corner of the web-page.  Payment must be received by Friday, July 7 at 3:30 pm or the individual will be withdrawn from the Championship.  Championship fee includes competitive round lunches, golf, cart fees and range balls, player's badge, tee gift.

To Pre-Register:

• Log on to the FSGA website at www.fsga.org using your email address and password
• Click on "My Account" in the upper right hand corner of the homepage
• Under "My Tournaments", click on the "Pre-Register" button to the right of the tournament name
• Enter your credit card information and then click the "Charge My Card" button on the bottom right hand corner of the page

Refunds, Notice of Withdrawals

Qualifying Entry Fees - Requests for qualifying entry refunds received prior to entry closing date will be honored (less $20 per entry administrative fee). Requests received after the closing date will be honored (less 50% of entry fee). No requests will be honored within two days of the scheduled start date of the qualifier.

Championship Fees & Exempt Entry Fees - Requests for refunds of Exempt or Championship fees prior to the pre-registration deadline will be honored (less $20 per entry administrative fee). No requests will be honored after the pre-registration deadline (See pre-registration date displayed on this page).

Local Qualifying 

18 holes of stroke play at 16 local qualifying sites. Cart fees are included in your qualifying fee. The number of qualifying spots will be posted at the host site and will be proportionate to other qualifying sites based on the size of the field. Ties for the last qualifying spot will also qualify (there are no playoffs). Alternates will be determined by ordering the players that just missed qualifying, and ties for alternate spots will be broken by the USGA suggested method (last 9, last 6, last 3, etc.).

Local Qualifying Purses 

A purse for professionals is being introduced at the local qualifiers. The average approximate purse is $1,000 and is determined by the amount of professionals who begin (tee off) at each qualifier. Click here to view the payout schedule.

A player exempt from local qualifying, at the time of entry, may elect to forego the exemption, pay the qualifying fee, and compete in a local qualifier. The election to waive the exemption is irreversible.

Transferring Qualifying Sites

Players may submit one entry for the Florida Open and choose the site at which they will attempt to qualify.  However, if any site requires adjustment (including, but not limited to, the receipt of more entries than can be accommodated), players will be transferred to another site based on their preference listed on the entry application and date of receipt of entry application (i.e. later applicants will be subject to transfer)

Schedule of Events 

Friday, July 14th

• 7:30 AM - 9:30 AM - Round one tee times off of #1 and #10 on both courses
• Complimentary players' lunch 

Saturday, July 15th

• 7:30 AM - 9:30 AM - Round two tee times off of #1 and #10 on both courses
• Complimentary players' lunch 
• The field will be cut to low 60 players and ties after the completion of play

Sunday, July 16th

• 7:30 AM - 9:20 AM Final round tee times begin off of #1 and #10 at The Golf Club at Crown Colony
• Complimentary players' lunch 
• Awards ceremony immediately following the completion of play 

Course Set-Up

The golf course will be set-up at approximately 7,000 yards.

Purse

$125,000 - 1st Place $20,000 - (Estimated Purse)

Defending Champion

It’s been almost a year since Andy Pope teed it up in a professional event, but he ended the week raising the trophy at the Florida Open Championship taking home the $15,000 first-place check. Pope fired a 3-under 68 on Sunday to capture the 76th Florida Open title and secured the three-shot victory with a 15-under 199 for the championship with rounds of 68-63-68. Click here for the previous year's results.

Cart and Caddie Policy

During qualifying and the Championship proper, each player must use a golf cart which is included in the qualifying and Championship entry fees. 

Championship Information

Play-Off

If necessary, there will be a hole-by-hole "sudden death" play-off for Champion. It is the player’s responsibility to be present for any playoff.

Practice Round Information

• Practice Rounds will be available at both facilitites on Tuesday - Thursday prior to the Championship at a discounted rate of $35 per round and will be booked through a Golf Genius link sent out at the completion of qualifying.
• You may not make your practice round tee time before qualifying is completed. A list of players will be sent to the club following the conclusion of qualifying and a link will be sent out. 

Practice Before & Between Rounds

A player may not practice on the competition course before or between rounds. Penalty for first breach: General Penalty. Penalty for second breach: Disqualification.

Exemptions Earned from this Tournament

Winner

• Next five Florida Opens

Players finishing in the top ten and tied

• Next year's Florida Open

Low Amateur

• Next year's Mid-Amateur Championship
• Next year's Amateur Championship
• Next year's Amateur Match Play Championship

Amateurs finishing in the top five and tied

• Next year's Amateur Championship

Other Policies

• Spectators and spectator cart policy - Click here
• Caddies - Caddies are allowed in the Florida Open. The caddie MUST walk and the player MUST ride, with the player's clubs remaining on the golf cart. - Click here
• Championship Pace of Play Policy - Click here.
• Local Rules and Terms of the Competition - Click here.
• Championship Policies - Click here to read the withdrawal, dress code, and other policies.
• Procedures for Alternates - Click here for information on how alternates may gain entry into this Championship.
• Conditions/ Schedule - The FSGA Championships Committee/on-site Rules Committee reserves the right to alter any of the conditions, provisions and/or schedules. The decision of the Championships Committee/on-site Rules Committee in any matter will be final.

  

Host Hotel and Accommodations

Courtyard by Marriott Gulf Coast Town Center
10050 Gulf Center Dr.
Fort Myers, FL 33913
239-332-4747

• 77th Florida Open Championship - $139 +tax per night
  Click here to book online
  Must reserve by June 19th
  

Click here to learn more about the Gulf Coast Town Center!

The Luminary Hotel, Autograph Collection - Fort Myers
2200 Edwards Drive
Fort Myers, FL

• 77th Florida Open Championship - $179 + tax per night
  On-site Self or Valet Parking not included
  Click here to book online
  Must reserve by June 22nd

Homewood Suites by Hilton Fort Myers
5255 Big Pine Way
Fort Myers, FL 33907

• 77th Florida Open Championship - $139 + tax per night
  Click here to book online

Publicity and Promotion; Broadcasting

By participating in FSGA Events you grant the FSGA and those acting with the FSGA, permission, authority and the permanent rights to use your name or likeness for publicity and promotional purposes. Participants understand that all Media, including film, photographic prints, audio or digital files are the exclusive property of the FSGA. Participants in FSGA events waive their rights to inspect or approve all media produced by the FSGA and those acting on the FSGA's behalf. Participants waive their permanent rights to compensation for use of their name and likeness by the FSGA.

Payment 

The Golf Club at Crown Colony and Cypress Lake Golf Club accept all major credit cards as forms of payment.

Directions

The Golf Club at Crown Colony
8851 Crown Colony Boulevard
Fort Myers, FL 33908
239-590-9860

Click here for directions

Cypress Lake Golf Club
6767 Winkler Road
Fort Myers, FL 33919
239-481-3222

Click here for directions