LAS VEGAS (April 26, 2026)–Grant McKay (Championship), Ed Fryatt (Senior) and Steve McPherson (Silver) won gross titles in the 2026 Mesquite Classic. Jay Ship (Net), Robert Zoine (Senior) and Loren Little (Silver) won net titles in the Nevada Golf Southern Region tournament held April 25-26, 2026, at CasaBlanca Golf Club in Mesquite.–by Bill Bowman, Las Vegas Golf Insider
Championship
Grant McKay had an eagle each day (including a hole-in-one the first round) in winning the Championship Division by two strokes.
It was the second win of 2026 for McKay, the Director of Tournament Golf for the Southern Nevada Junior Golf Association.
“It was a really good two days of golf for me,” he said. “I did a great job of keeping the ball in front of me all weekend. I just needed to stay patient and I did a good job of that.”
McKay said his two eagles showed his game is trending in the right direction.
“Both of those shots were really solid,” he said. “They both went right where I was aiming. Fortunately, the first one went in and today I rolled in a 15-footer for the eagle.”
He did have his struggles–a bogey and a double bogey on the 11th hole over the two days–but said he stayed positive.
“Eleven was the only hole I struggled on all weekend,” he said. “I didn’t hit a great tee shot there today and made a not-so-great second shot and that led to a double. I knew there was definitely a chance to have a hole like that out there but told myself it was bound to happen and to just move on.”
He said overall, he stayed focused.
“It’s a marathon out there,” he said. “You’ve just got to be patient and take it one shot at a time. You’ve got to be in the mindset that you’re going to miss greens and be reliant on your short game to get up and down. I did that pretty well all weekend.”
Championship
Grant McKay, 70-72—142
Drake Harvey, 71-73—144
Matt Mitchell, 72-74—146
Senior
Ed Fryatt overcame a quadruple bogey mid-way through his final round and won for the second time in 2026.
Fryatt played his final eight holes after the quad in two-under-par in picking up the victory.
“Well, that was fun,” Fryatt said. “I don’t know what happened on that hole…my whole body just went numb for a little bit.”
He didn’t let the bad hole phase him.
“That was a holy crap moment,” he said. “I just tried to breathe through it and get my mind right. I hit a good tee shot on the next hole and made a nice birdie and that settled me down a little bit.”
But there was a little more drama about to unfold.
“On my tee shot on 16, I felt a little twinge in my back,” Fryatt said. “Then I moved a little and it popped. All of a sudden, I wasn’t sure if I would be able to finish the round. But I slowed everything down because I didn’t want to tweak it anymore. After that, I probably put on a couple of my best swings of the day because I was just trying to stay calm.”
Overall, with the weather (wind), his quad and his back, Fryatt said it was quite the round.
“It was more of a survival than anything,” he said. “I am kind of proud of the way I finished with everything going on.”
Senior
Ed Fryatt, 77-74—151
Rick Sepp, 76-77—153
James Corey, 77-79—156
Senior Net
Robert Zoine saved the best for last as he recorded a net eagle on the final hole in winning his first Nevada Golf Southern Region title since 2015.
Zoine had the lead after the first round but a shaky front nine in the final round left him scrambling to rally. He said the eagle was the ideal way to end the weekend.
“I didn’t look at the scores until after 17,” he said. “I knew I was tied with Greg (Pyszko) and figured a worse-case scenario we would be tied if I made a par (net birdie). But I hit a great drive and hit my second shot to about six inches for a birdie (net eagle). It was definitely a great way to end the day.”
Zoine said his game is on the rise.
“I practice almost every day,” he said. “But I’ve been having trouble taking what I have on the range out onto the course. I’ve been finishing in the top-five or so but I just felt a win would happen soon.”
Zoine said his play on each of the nines was like night and day.
“It’s been back-to-back days where I played much better on the back nine than the front,” he said. “I didn’t have a good front nine today but I was optimistic I could have a solid back nine and it all worked out.”
Senior Net
Robert Zoine, 71-74—145
Greg Pyszko, 74-72—146
Danny Johnson, 74-77—151
Silver
Steve McPherson eagled the second hole in the final round en route to a five-stroke victory in the Silver Division.
It was McPherson’s second Nevada Golf Southern Region victory as he won the 2025 Winter Classic in December.
“I played beautifully today in difficult conditions,” McPherson said. “With the wind, you really needed to grind it out and show patience and I did that.”
He said his game is moving in the right direction.
“I’ve been working on my game and made a commitment to win,” he said. “I’ve made some changes in my swing and I’m driving it especially well. My mid-and-long irons are also coming along nicely and letting me really trust the swing.”
He added that once he made the eagle on his second hole, he became a little more focused.
“That eagle helped me separate from the field,” he said. “I knew I was playing well and I just played solid golf from top to bottom. I was up two, three or four for most of the round and didn’t have a lot of pressure so I just tried to focus on playing smart golf.”
Silver
Steve McPherson, 75-73—148
David Foggia, 77-76—153
Kevin Parrish, 77-79—156
Silver Net
Loren Little posted five net birdies in his first eight holes of the opening round and went on to win the Silver Net title by three strokes.
It was Little’s first win since he won the 2025 Cascata Amateur last August.
Little said his start was something he’s been working on.
“It’s kind of a long story,” he said of what has turned his game around. “I went back and looked at the last five tournaments and each round I averaged 22 shots above par. That’s pretty consistent…consistently rotten.”
The change came as he turned on the Golf Channel.
“I was flipping through the channels and stopped on the Golf Channel,” he said. “I realized what Martin Hall was talking about on his instruction show was a lot of what felt wrong about me. I ordered his DVD set and went through each one. I took notes and took them to the range and I started turning things around.”
Now he’s looking to make sure those lessons stay with him.
“I’m going to be 85 soon,” he said. “And I’ve finally started playing well again. I’m re-learning the swing principals I knew so many years ago but got out of the habit of doing them.”
He said he’s anxious going forward with his play.
“It’s the new me…or maybe it’s the old me who has just started coming back,” he said with a laugh.
Silver Net
Loren Little, 71-77—148
Dave Golder, 74-77—151
Robert Martin, 67-84—151
Net
Jay Ship had net birdies on his final two holes to rally for the Net Division title, winning by one stroke.
It was Ship’s first victory in Nevada Golf Southern Region play in two years. He won the 2024 SNGA Desert Inn Classic which also snapped a two-year winless streak.
“At least I’m consistent,” Ship said. “That’s my interval.”
He said the last two birdies helped him start on the road to a major goal.
“I told Tim Brand (Southern Region Executive Director) on the first tee Saturday that I really want to make the Cobb-Whalen team,” Ship said. “I said this would be a good weekend to get started in making that happen. I haven’t played well enough this year but getting points with a win is a great step.”
Ship said his play off the tee was key…especially with the windy conditions.
“I don’t hit it as far as some of the guys but I did hit a lot of fairways,” he said. “And when I did miss the fairway, I was still in play and stayed away from the big numbers. I didn’t kill myself with penalty strokes.”
Net
Jay Ship, 74-76—150
Robert Taylor, 79-72—151
Chris Cannaverde, 75-76—151
