Toni Hakula captures New Year's Invitational

January 6, 2013 | by Benjamin Larsen of AmateurGolf.com

Toni Hakula

The Texas Longhorns junior fired a final-round 68 to put the finishing touches on an impressive win

ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. (Jan. 6, 2013) -- Toni Hakula fired a final-round 68 and took home the top prize at the 2013 New Year's Invitational at St. Petersburg Country Club by four shots. Hakula, a junior at the University of Texas and a native of Espoo, Finland, took the lead on Friday with a second-round 65 and never looked back. Joshua White rallied with a final-round 67, which was good enough to propel him into second place. But in the end, it wasn't enough to upend the winner, Hakula. Michael Miller and David Lee were tied for third place while first-round co-leader Lee McCoy finished fifth. McCoy was in the lead after first-round play alongside Blake Morris, who tied for sixth with Michael McGowan and Shotaro Ban. The event featured many of the country's top NCAA and upcoming elite amateur golfers. Joe Alfieri prevalied in a two-horse race to win the Mid-Am division. Alfieri entered the final round tied with Matt Giovanelli but shot a final-round 72 to win by four shots. Kenny Cook was third. In the Senior division, Tom Hyland shot a final-round 68 to win by an impressive 10 shots. Stuart Sierra was second.

Results: New Years Invitational

Place	Player	Location	Pts	Scores
1	Toni Hakula	, Finland	700	73-65-70-68--276
2	Joshua White	, England	500	70-73-70-67--280
T3	Mike Miller	Brewster, NY	400	73-69-70-70--282
T3	David Lee	Houston, TX	400	73-69-69-71--282
5	Lee McCoy	Clarkesville, GA	400	69-70-71-73--283

View full results for New Years Invitational

About the New Years Invitational

Toni Hakula captures New Year's Invitational

The New Year's Invitational is one of the oldest and most respected amateur invitationals in the United States, held annually at St. Petersburg Country Club in Saint Petersburg, Florida. First contested in 1927, the championship has been played every...