McCoy, 7 Other Bulldogs In Valspar

Lee McCoy will be one of the eight Bulldogs in the field this week for the PGA Tour's Valspar Championship.

McCoy, a senior for the Bulldogs, gained one of the eight sponsor's exemptions for the event by virtue of his win last season in the 3M Augusta Invitational.

McCoy grew up in the Palm Harbor, Fla., area and estimated he has played Innisbrook's Copperhead Course nearly 1,000 times.

"This one is extraordinarily special just because of where it is," McCoy said, "I'll have a lot of family and friends out this week. Before I turned 15, I couldn't drive a cart, so I would come out here on weekend mornings or in the afternoon during the week and find groups that didn't have a fourth," McCoy said. "I'd ask if they'd mind if I played with them because I can't drive a cart. Met a lot of people playing that way."

If he makes the cut, as an amateur he can't cash a check. But thanks to a new PGA rule, amateurs can donate winnings to charity. McCoy knows exactly what to do if he is fortunate enough to play on the weekend.

"A good friend of mine runs a charity called Fifty Legs, which provides prosthetics to kids and adults," McCoy said. "I would donate anything to them. That's a big goal for me this week, too."

Brian Harman, Brendon Todd, Erik Compton, Chris Kirk, Harris English, Russell Henley and Hudson Swafford also are in the field.