14 Collegiate Players Get A Monday One-Spotter At Riviera

This has to be one of the neater ideas and just the kind of thing that needs to happen on Mondays at PGA Tour stops now and then to generate buzz while serving the game at large. Too bad, it'll be behind closed doors.

The inaugural Northern Trust Open Collegiate Showcase features 14 pros with a collegiate player (mostly from their alma mater) and two amateurs raising money for college golf.

The only downside to this Monday pro-am replacement for the usual pro with briefcase event? The course is closed to spectators for Monday and Tuesday practice rounds of the Northern Trust Open to save money. Oh and Monday is a national holiday and the weather forecast is ideal.

With stars like Haas, Spieth, Furyk, English and Holmes playing for the cause, too.

Anyway, here is Brentley Romine's Golfweek.com item on the inaugural event listing the committed players and their collegiate representatives. And the full release below:

First-ever Northern Trust Open Collegiate Showcase kicks off tournament week
Tournament exemption on the line as 14 collegians play alongside top PGA TOUR players
 
LOS ANGELES – Northern Trust Open tournament officials are pleased to unveil the inaugural Northern Trust Open Collegiate Showcase, a first-of-its-kind event that will take place Monday, February 16, and kick off an exciting tournament week at The Riviera Country Club in Pacific Palisades, Calif.  Top PGA TOUR pros will play alongside 14 standout collegiate golfers from across the country and two amateurs, representing their respective universities.  The professional and the two amateurs (not the collegian) will team up in a best-ball competition and compete for the Collegiate Showcase Trophy and a donation of $50,000 to the university’s golf program. Each collegian will play their own ball with the low medalist earning a spot in the Northern Trust Open just three days later.
 
“We are excited to launch the Northern Trust Open Collegiate Showcase and are thrilled with the caliber of players who are giving back to their schools by participating,” said Northern Trust Open Executive Director O.D. Vincent.  “Our goal is to promote growth of the game by bringing more attention, and ultimately funds, to collegiate golf, and to offer another avenue for an up-and-coming collegiate player to experience the best the PGA TOUR has to offer.”
 
“We are extremely proud to add the Collegiate Showcase to Northern Trust Open week,” said Rick Waddell, Chairman and CEO of Northern Trust.  “In addition to being a one-of-a-kind exemption supporting college golf, it also allows us to build on our 125-year-old culture of caring and giving back to the communities we serve.”