Boise, ID – On Tuesday afternoon of last week, 2010 and 2011 eGolf Tour leading money winner Jason Kokrak learned that he had earned a spot in the Nationwide Tour’s Albertsons Boise Open presented by Kraft. One of only two players on the alternate list to get into the field, Kokrak took full advantage of his opportunity with rounds of 68-68-63-67—266 to collect his first career Nationwide Tour title and the $130,500 first-place check.

Kokrak, who broke through in 2010 on the eGolf Tour with two wins and over $115,000 in earnings, entered the 2011 season with conditional Nationwide Tour status and splitting time between the Nationwide and eGolf Tours.

Early in the year, the former Xavier University star picked up where he left off in 2010 with two wins and a runner-up to seize the early lead on the eGolf Tour money title with $85,460 in earnings in just three starts. With just one made cut in his first four starts on the Nationwide Tour, Kokrak finally boosted his status number with a T9 at the Utah Championship in July to earn more starts during the Tour’s Midwest stretch.

Five made cuts in a row from the Cox Classic to the Mylan Classic moved Kokrak up to No. 70 on the money list, but with the PGA and Nationwide Tours taking the week of September 5^th off, the field for the Boise Open was stacked with players from both tours looking for somewhere to play. As of Tuesday morning during tournament week, Kokrak was the event’s first alternate and was already making plans to spend the week elsewhere.

"I was in Denver and on my way from North Carolina when I got the call," said Kokrak, 26. "I was going to come out here either way. If I didn't get in I probably would have just gone to San Diego to visit a friend and get ready for next week."

When he got the call, Kokrak made his way from Denver to Boise and immediately began putting his stamp on the tournament. Opening rounds of 68-68-63 pushed the Warren, OH native to the top of the leaderboard and in a tie for the 54-hole lead with India’s Rahil Gangjee at 14-under.

Early on in Sunday’s final round, it became apparent that the tournament was going to be Kokrak’s to lose. Early birdies on Nos. 2 and 3 moved Kokrak to 16-under for the week and one shot clear of Gangjee, who had birdied No. 2 to keep pace.

Gangjee, however, bogeyed Nos. 5 and 6 to fall back to 13-under and three behind Kokrak’s pace.

At the par-3 eighth, Kokrak added yet another birdie to move to 17-under for the tournament and in clear control. Pars from Nos. 9 through 15 gave way to a birdie at the par-5 16^th, and closing pars on 17 and 18 gave the current Charlotte, NC resident his first Nationwide Tour title.

"It hasn't really set in yet, maybe it will on the plane tomorrow," said Kokrak after the round. "I have no words to explain it. I honestly have no idea what was going through my mind out there. I just tried to stay calm and keep my heart from racing."

Arguably the longest hitter in all of golf, Kokrak knew there were multiple opportunities at host Hillcrest Country Club where his length would come in handy. The key for him this week was to know when to use that length and when to back off.

"I tried to pick and choose where my length was most advantageous," he said. "The key was picking the right time to be aggressive and the right time to play away from the pins. It was important to leave yourself a lot of uphill putts and also yourself plenty of opportunities."

On the back nine, Kokrak was nothing short of clutch with a 10-foot par save on the 14^th and a wise 8-iron off the tee on the drive-able par-4 15^th. A two-putt par at 15 led to the birdie at 16 (courtesy of a 9-iron approach), and Kokrak’s veteran-like approach was rewarded with the win.

"The greens are so firm and quick that if you're not careful you can suddenly have a lot of 10-20 footers," said Kokrak. "I hit a lot of quality golf shots even though I didn't hit it too close. I kept it in front of me, kept it in the fairways and got a couple of breaks."

With the win, Kokrak moved from No. 70 to No. 13 on the Nationwide Tour money list with earnings of $187,442. With just five events remaining on the 2011 Nationwide Tour schedule, Kokrak is in good position to earn his PGA TOUR card for 2012 (the top 25 players on the season-ending Nationwide Tour money list earn their TOUR cards for the following year).

The win in Boise brings Kokrak’s torrid two-year stretch full circle, as he has earned nearly $390,000 between the Nationwide and eGolf Tours in 2010 and 2011 alone. During that period, in just 14 starts, Kokrak earned over $200,000 on the eGolf Tour with 2010 wins at the Cabarrus Classic and Bushnell Championship, as well as 2011 titles at The Championship at St. James Plantation and the Donald Ross Championship.

Former eGolf Tour player John Mallinger of Long Beach, CA eagled the 16^th in the final round to post a final-round 67 and notch runner-up honors, finishing two shots shy of Kokrak at 16-under for the week.

For Mallinger, the runner-up finish provided somewhat of a conundrum. A conditional member of the 2011 PGA TOUR, Mallinger only began to focus on the Nationwide Tour when he failed to qualify for the FedExCup. Following a T12 finish at the TOUR’s Wyndham Championship, Mallinger notched a T3 at the Nationwide Tour’s News Sentinel Open and a runner-up the following week at the Mylan Classic. Tack on the runner-up in Boise, and the former Long Beach State star has collected $172,100 in a three-week Nationwide Tour stretch to vault up to No. 12 on the money list. Currently No. 187 on the PGA TOUR money list, Mallinger will likely have to opt out of his starts in the TOUR’s Fall Series to focus instead on the Nationwide Tour and solidifying his TOUR card for 2012.

Former eGolf Tour player Camilo Benedetti of Colombia posted a final-round 66 – the day’s second-lowest score – to finish at 15-under 269 and in a tie for third.

Billy Horschel, winner of the eGolf Tour’s $300,000 Columbia Open in 2009, carded rounds of 67-65-68-70—270 to finish T6 in his first Nationwide Tour start since the 2010 Winn-Dixie Jacksonville Open.

A four-time “All American” at the University of Florida, Horschel finished T27 at PGA TOUR Q-School to earn his TOUR card for 2011. So far on the season, Horschel has earned $297,562 in 21 starts and is No. 166 on the money list. The T6 finish was the best of Horschel’s Nationwide Tour career, and was just the second top-10 earned on the Nationwide Tour (T9, 2009 Cox Classic).

Current eGolf Tour members Chris Baker and Billy Hurley posted matching totals of 13-under 271 to finish tied for 11^th in Boise.

Baker, a winner at the eGolf Tour’s 2010 River Hills Classic, posted his second top-15 finish in just his eighth start of the year on the Nationwide Tour. Baker entered 2011 with low conditional status, and did not get into an event on his number until the Mexico Open in June. That week, the Indiana native finished T4 to vault inside the top 100 on the Nationwide Tour money list and into seven more starts thus far on the year.

Hurley, a former Byron Nelson Award winner from the Naval Academy, continued his stellar 2011 form in Boise with rounds of 67-64-71-69—271 to complete his ninth made cut in a row. During that stretch, Hurley has collected seven top-25 finishes and has amassed $146,774 of his $149,058 in earnings this year – a number which has him at No. 19 on the money list.

Other eGolf Tour players to advance in the Albertsons Boise Open include James Sacheck (T21), Daniel Summerhays (T21), Scott Brown (T21), Luke List (T21), Rob Oppenheim (T25), Casey Wittenberg (T25), Aaron Goldberg (T33), Roberto Castro (T33), Mark Anderson (T33), Jason Schultz (T33), Matt Hendrix (T33), Martin Flores (T33), William McGirt (T42), Garth Mulroy (T42), Gary Christian (T46), Russell Knox (T51), Elliot Gealy (T57), Chris Epperson (T67) and Darron Stiles (T70). For complete results from Boise, Idaho on pgatour.com, please click here.

·         At the PGA TOUR’s BMW Championship, 2011 PGA Championship winner Keegan Bradley led all eGolf Tour players with rounds of 71-66-70-76—283 and a T16 finish. Bradley’s final-round 76 dropped the former St. John’s golfer down 10 spots in the final round, but nevertheless allowed him to advance in the TOUR’s Playoffs for the FedExCup at No. 20 on the points list. eGolf alums Chris Kirk, Brendon de Jonge and Cameron Tringale rounded out the tour’s representation inside the top 40 with matching T31 finishes. Other eGolf Tour players to make the cut in Chicago include Steve Marino (T59), Blake Adams (61), Scott Stallings (62) and Tommy Gainey (69). For complete results from the BMW Championship, please click here.