West Chester, Pa. (August 5, 2024) — PGA of America Golf Professional Michael Little of Clubhouse 54 in North Wales, Pa., turned in rounds of 67-67–134 to finish at 8-under-par and win the 48th Pro-Am for Wishes at Penn Oaks Golf Club, bettering Zac Oakley of Bidermann Golf Club in Wilmington, Del., by two strokes. It marks his first Section win of the season.

The Pro-Am for Wishes first started in 1976 at Whitford Country Club, and has been held annually at Penn Oaks Golf Club since 2008 (the 2020 edition was cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic) to benefit Make-A-Wish Philadelphia, Delaware & Susquehanna Valley. Since the event moved to Penn Oaks, it has raised over $750,000 for the Make-A-Wish foundation.

Little entered the final round one stroke behind Oakley, but took the lead by the sixth hole. Little’s putter was hot, making 14 birdies, including six in today’s final round.

“Playing with Zac today helped me a lot,” Little said after his round. “He is an absolute competitor, and I would not have made as many birdies as I did if he wasn’t in my pairing. It really helped to know where I was, and I like to play golf that way. I think any PGA Professional would want to be in that position.

“It’s a relief [to earn my first victory of the year]; I have had a really good year so far, and today I finally executed for an entire tournament.”

Little commented that his two-day total of 8-under is the lowest he has ever finished in relation to par.

He went on to thank Penn Oaks, their PGA Professionals, the Pro-Am for Wishes Committee, his family, Clubhouse 54, Equity Warehouse, the Philly Foursome, and the Philadelphia PGA staff. He also thanked Taylor from Titleist, as he encouraged Little to change to the ProV1x golf ball for this event.

Billy Stewart, Union League Liberty Hill, finished in a tie for third place with Mark Sheftic, Sunnybrook G.C., at even-par. Four players tied for fifth place at 2-over: Trevor Bensel, Sandy Run C.C.; amateur Jimmy O’Connor; Mike Caldwell, DuPont C.C.; and Dave Quinn, Laurel Creek C.C.

PGA Professionals Zac Oakley, Bidermann G.C., and Frank Palumbo, Rolling Green G.C.., led their team of amateurs, Mike Lee and Mike Dalesio, to a one-stroke victory in the two Better Balls of Four pro-am competition, bettering five teams, including: Whitemarsh Valley C.C.’s Dave Pagett, Talamore C.C.’s Andy Watters, Howard Lebold, Steve Krumenacker; Kings Creek C.C.’s Chris Krueger, Julian Krinsky School of Golf’s Danie Steyn, Rich Weaver, Steve Gehringer; Rolling Green G.C.’s Anthony Sebastianelli, Frog Hollow G.C.’s Kevin Shaw, Dan Giacchino, and Jackson Mohr; Moselem Springs G.C.’s Jeff Fick, PGA Life Member Rob Rohrbach, Jack Impriano, and Brad Impriano; and Cripple Creek G. & C.C.’s Andy Hewitt, Burlington C.C.’s Don Allan, Joe Shirley, and Joey Shirley. The pro-am was cut to nine holes (hole Nos. 1-5 and 10-13) due to severe weather delays on Sunday, August 4. The winning team finished with a score of 6-under-par 66.

In the Senior Division, Dave Quinn took the top prize, finishing two strokes in front of Dave McNabb, Applebrook G.C., and Eric Kenney, Overbrook G.C. Chris Krueger finished in fourth place at 5-over-par, while PGA Life Member George Forster finished in fifth place at 6-over-par.

Jimmy O’Connor was one of two amateurs to play in Monday’s final round based on their opening round performance; he bettered Bruce Longenecker by 22 strokes, finishing with rounds of 72-72–144, claiming Low Amateur honors.

To view the full 2024 Pro-Am for Wishes leaderboard, click here.

The 48th Pro-Am for Wishes is supported by Tamora Group, Todd & Marla Horn, Woodward Properties, Piazza Auto Group, Ambler Surgical, Meridian Bank, Caddick Construction, Aqua America, Connacht Rose LLC, Rich Weaver, Merrill Lynch Wealth Management, HWE, Ducklings Early Learning Franchise, and Akkodis. The Philadelphia PGA Section and its PGA Professionals thank our host, Penn Oaks Golf Club, its members, management, host PGA Professionals, and staff, as well as our partners, as the event would not have been possible without their support.

About the Philadelphia PGA Section
The Philadelphia PGA Section, covering eastern Pennsylvania, southern New Jersey and Delaware, is one of 41 geographical managing entities of the PGA of America. This Section manages nearly 900 PGA of America Members and Associates who are employed at over 590 golf facilities in our region.

Contact: Matt Frey, PGA, Communications Director, mfrey@pgahq.com