Ole Miss’ Freeze, Walls Win Celebrity Golf Challenge

Photo courtesy of Ole Miss Sports

Team Ole Miss went six-under par over the final five holes to win the 2016 Chick-fil-A Peach Bowl Challenge by two strokes Tuesday at the Reynolds Lake Oconee Resort outside Atlanta.

Head coach Hugh Freeze and celebrity partner Wesley Walls, a former All-American tight end and member of the College Football Hall of Fame, carded a score of -11 to win the $100,000 first-place prize. Teams from Georgia, Georgia Tech and NC State finished tied for second at nine-under par.

The winning stretch run started when Freeze holed an 8-iron from 150 yards on the par-four 14th for an eagle. The pair then went on to birdie the final four holes to seal the win.

“The ball was jumping off my irons and I knew I hit it good,” Freeze said of the shot. “Then Wesley said he thought he saw it disappear. I thought it was long but I started walking to the hole pretty fast and found out it went in. That’s when we thought we had a chance.”

“I was just nervous and we both had a lot of adrenaline running through our veins,” Walls added. “The way coach was putting we knew we just had to keep the ball in play.”

Ole Miss went five-under par on the front side before stalling with four straight pars on holes 10-13 leading into the eagle that got them going.

“Congratulations to Ole Miss’ Hugh Freeze and Wesley Walls for an outstanding come-from-behind victory today,” said Gary Stokan, president and CEO of Peach Bowl, Inc. “The Rebels have been a wonderful partner of the Chick-fil-A Peach Bowl, our Chick-fil-A Kickoff Game and now as champions of our Chick-fil-A Peach Bowl Challenge. We are thrilled to donate $100,000 to them for university scholarships and the Hugh and Jill Freeze Foundation.”

The Ole Miss victory ends a two-year run by defending champion Georgia Tech, who had won four of the last five events.

Final official results from the 2016 Chick-fil-A Peach Bowl Challenge including total charity and scholarship winnings:

PLACE:                  TEAM                                                                                    SCORE:                 WINNINGS:

1                          Ole Miss (Hugh Freeze, Wesley Walls)                   -11                          $100,000

2 (T)                   Georgia (Kirby Smart, David Dukes)                         -9                            $  55,000

2 (T)                   Georgia Tech (Paul Johnson, Jon Barry)                 -9                            $  55,000

2 (T)                   NC State (Dave Doeren, Terry Harvey)                   -9                            $  55,000

5                          Auburn (Gus Malzahn, Bo Jackson)                          -8                            $  45,000

6 (T)                   South Carolina (Steve Spurrier, Sterling Sharpe)                -7                            $  35,000

6 (T)                   Mississippi State (Dan Mullen, Fred McCrary)    -7                            $  35,000

8 (T)                   Cincinnati (Tommy Tuberville, JK Schaffer)          -6                            $  30,000

8 (T)                   Virginia Tech (Frank Beamer, Cam Young)            -6                            $  30,000

10                       Clemson (Dabo Swinney, Steve Fuller)                  -5                            $  20,000

11                       Alabama (Nick Saban, Chris Mohr)                           -3                            $  20,000

11                       North Carolina (Larry Fedora, B.J. Surhoff)           -3                            $  20,000

13                       Houston (Tom Herman, Andre Ware)                     -1                            $  20,000

Skills Competition Results:

Long Drive (Coach Div.)                 Dave Doeren, NC State                 261 yards             $5,000

Long Drive (Celeb. Div.)                 Jon Barry, Georgia Tech                                285 yards             $5,000

Closest to the Pin (Coach Div.)   Paul Johnson, Georgia Tech        5’2”                        $5,000

Closest to the Pin (Celeb Div.)    Cam Young, Virginia Tech             12’6”                      $5,000

Team winnings will be split evenly between endowed scholarships at the universities and foundations or charities of the coach’s choice. The Chick-fil-A Peach Bowl Challenge is the country’s premier head coach and celebrity charity golf event featuring NCAA head coaches and former athletes and celebrities from the same school competing against their rivals for a share of a $540,000 scholarship purse.

In addition to the $540,000 charity and scholarship purse, another $124,500 was generated for charitable organizations. Over the last nine years, the event has contributed a total of $6 million in scholarship and charity, helping make the Chick-fil-A Peach Bowl college football’s most charitable bowl game.

Past Champions:

Year:     Team:                                                                                                   Score:   Margin:

2016       Ole Miss (Hugh Freeze, Wesley Walls)                                    -11          2 strokes

2015       Georgia Tech (Paul Johnson, Jon Barry)                                 -9            1 (Playoff)

2014       Georgia Tech (Paul Johnson, Jon Barry)                                 -13          4 strokes

2013       Miami (Al Golden, Gino Torretta)                                             -11          1 stroke

2012       Georgia Tech (Paul Johnson / Jon Barry)                                                -10          1 stroke

2011       Georgia Tech (Paul Johnson / Jon Barry)                                                -11          3 strokes

2010       Florida State (Jimbo Fisher / Terrell Buckley)                       – 7           1 stroke

2009       South Carolina (Steve Spurrier / Sterling Sharpe)                               -12          1 (Playoff)

2008       South Carolina (Steve Spurrier / Sterling Sharpe)                               -12          5 strokes

2007       Virginia Tech (Frank Beamer / Dell Curry)                              -10          1 stroke

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Courtesy of Ole Miss Sports