Bullard Native Blake Elliott Leads After 18 Holes at the 54th M&P Group Texas State Open

The 55th playing of the M&P Group Texas State Open is set to return to Cascades Country Club in Tyler, TX. The tournament will occur July 29 - August 1, 2025, and registration is now open. The 55th M&P Group Texas State Open is a 72-hole stroke play event, and the field will play 36 holes before a cut is made to the low 55 scores and ties. The projected purse is $200,000. The Championship is open to all professionals, competitive amateurs and junior golfers with advanced tournament experience. The Championship field will feature 156 players who will qualify or are exempt. Qualifying for the Championship will be conducted throughout June and July at 17 sites. The deadline to register for qualifying is Thursday, May 29. Exempt players, should they choose to participate, are determined from the following categories: (1) Past Champions, (2) Top 10 professionals and ties from the 2024 Texas State Open, (3) Top 2 amateurs and ties from the 2024 Texas State Open, (4) Low PGA Professional from the 2024 Texas State Open, (5) Top 15 and ties from the 2024 final Northern Texas PGA and Southern Texas PGA Player of the Year Point Standings, (9) Top 10 point earners on the 2025 Northern Texas PGA Players Tour, (10) Top money leader from the All Pro Tour 2024 Fall Series Money List. Sponsors and host facility exemptions will also be reserved for certain players. Congratulations to the players who received exemptions at the beginning of March upon the completion of the NTPGA Players Tour: Matthew Watkins - Rockwall, TX; Philip Barbaree Jr. - Shreveport, LA; Ryan Grider - Lewisville, TX; John Sand - Hoquiam, WA; Garrison Smith - Mansfield, TX; Toni Hakula - Round Rock, TX; Hunter Bott - Montgomery, TX; Michael Sanders - Frisco, TX; Sam Murphy - Ruston, LA; Brian Dwyer - Southlake, TX, have all earned a place in this year’s Championship. This is M&P Group’s third year as the title sponsor after signing a multi-year agreement with the Northern Texas PGA. “We are looking forward to hosting the M&P Group Texas State Open at Cascades Country Club for the 14th time,” said Myoung S. Choi, owner of M&P Group. “The last two years have been great, and we value our partnership with the Northern Texas PGA.” The Championship will be presented by Joyce Crane. Proceeds from the Championship will benefit the Northern Texas PGA Foundation’s scholarship program. The M&P Group Texas State Open scholarship is designated for a Ewing Automotive NTPGA Junior Tour Member high school senior from the Tyler area. This year alone, the Northern Texas PGA Foundation is projected to award more than $700,000 in scholarships to approximately 75 high school seniors from North Texas. Registration is now available at ntpga.com, and again, the entry deadline is Thursday, May 29. For all Championship and qualifying details, please visit https://www.ntpga.com/texas-state-open now. ### ABOUT MYOUNG S. CHOI AND THE M&P GROUP Myoung S. Choi has been in the entrepreneurship industry for over 30 years. In 1986, Mr. Choi came to the United States to pursue his master’s at Texas Christian University. Shortly after in 1998, he opened a Dojo in Dallas, TX, to make his impact in the community by teaching Taekwondo. One of his notable students was former Olympian James Villasana that competed in the 1992 and 1996 Olympic Games. In 1999, Mr. Choi made his first mark on the creation of M&P Investment Group US. The creation of Q Building Maintenance Inc. specialized in janitorial services. After a successful 6 years, Mr. Choi merged Q Building with a new construction company Q Total Building Inc. With all his successes, Mr. Choi always strived for more with the creation of M&P Group US in 2017. Mr. Choi’s vision was always set to more than he could possibly imagine. His goal and dream of coming to the United States were to purchase and run golf courses. He made that dream come true in 2019 purchasing Shady Valley Country Club located in Arlington, TX. After the first Mr. Choi didn’t settle for less, purchasing Coyote Ridge Golf Club and Cascades Country Club in the same year of 2021. It is not a surprise that Mr. Choi has always had a passion for being successful as he has proved himself time and time again. His passion for the game of golf has always been with him playing professional golf from 1994-1996. His goal is to leave his mark on the surrounding community, and it is without saying that Mr. Choi has just begun doing just that. He strives for more and the only question is what is next? ABOUT CASCADES COUNTRY CLUB Cascades Country Club, a Master-Planned 5-Star community, is the most comprehensive community in East Texas. This luxury lakefront golf, tennis, fitness and residential community sits on 386 acres and is located just five miles from downtown Tyler, Texas. Cascades Country Club is also conveniently located midway between Dallas, Texas, and Shreveport, Louisiana. The golf course was re-designed by PGA Tour player Mark Hayes to challenge players at any skill level. Lush, tour-quality greens and broad fairways wind among tall oak and pine trees, with many holes set alongside scenic lakes on the golf course, and a stunning backdrop framed by Lake Bellwood greeting you on your first tee shot of the day. ABOUT THE NORTHERN TEXAS PGA The Northern Texas PGA is one of 41 Sections of the PGA of America. Over 1,000 PGA of America Golf Professionals employed at more than 300 facilities comprise this Section. Its geographic territory includes the State of Texas north of the 31st latitude, or just north of Austin. The Northern Texas PGA headquarters are located on the PGA Frisco campus and feature picturesque office space, a growth of the game pavilion and a golf park designed for junior golfers and families. The Northern Texas PGA staff’s mission is to serve PGA of America golf professionals and grow the game by managing the day-to-day affairs of the Section. The Northern Texas PGA also operates the Northern Texas PGA Foundation and The Ronny Golf Park.

DALLAS, Texas (April 1) – Brian Norman, PGA instructor at Lakewood Country Club, and Bobby Massa (a) fought through a 3-hole playoff to win the 2025 Srixon and Nike Pro-Scratch title. It marks their third victory in four attempts. Starting the final round one-stroke behind the lead, they carded the second lowest round of the day at 8-under-par, 32-32–64. Their five birdies on the back-nine was enough to get them into a playoff. Joining them in the playoff was Peyton Coursey, Associate at Dallas Athletic Club, and David Schultz (a). The pair turned in the lowest round of the day and the Championship at 9-under-par, 31-32–63. Both teams played in the favorable morning conditions, which featured tame winds, compared to the gusty afternoon conditions. This also left them both with lengthy waits to see if their scores would hold up through the afternoon wave. They did. The playoff for the Open Division title began on the par-4, 18th hole. Both teams made par and they proceeded to the par-5, 3rd hole. Two birdies on the par-5, 3rd hole led both teams back to the 18th tee. All four players hit the fairway. Norman was the first to hit his approach and he hit the green. Then the pair from Dallas Athletic Club both missed the green. Finally, Massa (a) hit his approach to 15-feet, just off the green, long left of the hole. Massa (a) was the last to attempt his birdie opportunity and stepped up to the downhill left-to-right putt with a chance to win the Championship. Tracking the whole way, it dropped and the pair had won their third Pro-Scratch title. “We got off to a kind of slow start, but got on the back and got hot and made some birdies,” said Norman about their round this morning. “We were just ham and egging it,” added Massa (a). “We think very similarly about golf so it’s easy to bounce ideas back and forth,” said Massa (a) about the three-time winning duo. The team earned $2,000 ($1,000 each) for the victory today.

Two Teams Tied for Senior Division