'Big Break VI: Trump National' Winner, Cast
The series was taped at Trump National Golf Club in Los Angeles, California, in June and July of 2006. It premiered on Golf Channel on Sept. 26, 2006, and ran through Dec. 19, 2006. Vince Cellini and Stephanie Sparks were the hosts.
Winners of 'Big Break VI: Trump National'
Big Break VI crowned two winners, a women's champion and a men's champion. And those champions were Denny Hepler for the men and Bri Vega for the women. The champions were crowned in a two-hour conclusion of the match-play title tilts. Both were surprising, although for different reasons.In the women's match, Vega defeated Bridget Dwyer 2-up. This outcome surely surprised a lot of viewers who believed the Golf Channel had mistakenly given away the outcome in a promo spot that aired a couple weeks prior to the championship match.
In the men's match, Denny was 5-up after nine holes and looking in complete control against Jeff Mitchell, then frittered away the entire lead. The end was a bit anticlimatic, however. When someone, like Mitchell, makes a huge comeback, it only matters if they actually go on to win. But Hepler played the extra hole flawlessly to win the match.
Related article: What ever happened to Bri Vega?
What the champs won: Bri Vega received sponsor exemptions into the LPGA Tour's 2007 SBS Open and its 2007 Sybase Classic. Denny Hepler received sponsor exemptions into the Champions Tour's 2007 Turtle Bay Championship and 2007 Bank of America Championship. Both winners also received cash, an endorsement contract with Adams Golf, and waived entry fees to, in Vega's case, Symetra Tour events, and, in Hepler's case, Heartland Players Senior Tour events.
How Vega fared in her exemptions: In the SBS Open, Vega shot 81-80 for 17-over 161 and missed the cut. In the Sybase Classic, Vega shot 74-78 for 8-over 152 and missed the cut.
How Hepler fared in his exemptions: Both of Hepler's tournaments were no-cut events. He shot 77-72-73 in the Turtle Bay Championship, 6-over 222, and tied for 72nd. In the Bank of America Championship, he shot 68-75-76, 3-over 219, and tied for 59th.
Bri vs. Denny
After Bri and Denny were crowned the respective women's and men's champions, one more episode of Big Break VI aired. In that show, Vega and Hepler played a 9-hole skins match, each partnered by different previously eliminated cast members along the way, for cash. Bri was the winner with $21,000 in earnings, while Hepler collected $9,000.
Cast Members of 'Big Break VI: Trump National'
Big Break VI had a cast of 18 golfers, nine men and nine women. The ages and hometowns are listed as they were at the time the series aired on Golf Channel.Women
- Rachel Bailey, 25, Fowlconbridge, NSW, Australia — eliminated in Episode 9
- Bridget Dwyer, 25, Kailua, Hawaii — eliminated in Episode 10
- Ashley Gomes, 23, Pleasanton, Calif. — eliminated in Episode 8
- Sarah Lynn Johnston, 24, St. Charles, Ill. — eliminated in Episode 4
- Laura London, 25, Scottsdale, Ariz. — eliminated in Episode 7
- Annie Mallory, 23, Fredricktown, New Brunswick, Canada — eliminated in Episode 2
- Kristy McPherson, 24, Conway, S.C. — eliminated in Episode 3
- Karyn Stordahl-Utecht, 25, Prior Lake, Minn. — eliminated in Episode 1
- Briana Vega, 23, North Andover, Mass.
- Sid Corliss, 56, Cumming, Ga. — eliminated in Episode 1
- Albert Crews, 54, Homer, La. — eliminated in Episode 6
- Charlie Gibson, 52 , Windsor, Calif. — eliminated in Episode 8
- Denny Hepler, 50, Warsaw, Ind.
- Jeff Mitchell, 51, Frisco, Texas — eliminated in Episode 10
- Kelly Murray, 49, Reston, Va. — eliminated in Episode 7
- Gary Ostrega, 52, Westfield, N.J. — eliminated in Episode 9
- Rocky Rockett, 54, Gastonia, N.C. — eliminated in Episode 4
- Gavin Slabbert, 51, Orange Park, Fla. — eliminated in Episode 2
Where to Watch 'Big Break VI: Trump National'
The Golf Channel will sometimes re-air old Big Break series, so keep an eye out for that. Otherwise, the best option for seeing Big Break VI is Golf Channel's GolfPass streaming service. At the time of this writing, Big Break VI was available and GolfPass was offering a 7-day free trial (both of which might have changed by the time you are reading this). Golf Channel has also released Big Break VI on DVD, although at the time of writing the DVD set was unavailable on Amazon.Related articles:
