Brady Exber is a 9-time Southern Nevada Golf Association player of the year and a three-time hall of famer. Kevin Marsh was the 2005 U.S. Mid-Amateur champion, played in the 2006 Masters and is a two-time Hall of Famer. Now the two are the captain and assistant captain of the West team in the nationally-renowned East-West Matches to be played Nov. 1-3 at Maridoe Golf Club in Carrolton, Texas.
The bi-annual East-West Matches are in the their third rendition, and features teams made up of top senior and mid-amateur players from state associations East and West of the Mississippi River against each other. Exber will captain the West while the East is captained by Nathan Smith, who is also the United States Walker Cup captain in 2025. The three-day amateur golf competition features a Ryder Cup-style team format for American amateur, mid-amateur and senior competitors. The competition is currently tied 1-1.
“We’ve got really good team,” said Exber just prior to heading to Texas. “We’re loaded with a bunch of really good players and it’s really gratifying that so many good players are looking forward to playing on the West team. This true amateur golf. Everybody who is getting their i paying their own way and play for the love of the game. I think the East-West Matches are furthering the legacy of being an amateur.”
Exber is a member of the Las Vegas Golf Hall of Fame, the Southern Nevada Sports Hall of Fame and National Senior Amateur Hall of Fame, while Marsh is a member of the Las Vegas Golf Hall of Fame and Pepperdine Hall of Fame. Marsh served as captain of the West team in 2022 and both Exber and Marsh have played in the matches.
“I can’t believe that they actually asked me to do it, but it is very gratifying to look back at what I’ve done in golf and that is what put me in a position where I would even be asked to be a captain,: Exber said. “I am very grateful. I think amateur golf is important because it represents the majority of all golfers. Professional golf is great and it has its place, but the backbone of the sport or the hobby is amateur golf, because that’s who most of us are. We represent the largest portion. The tour is a superstar league and not everybody is a superstar, but that doesn’t mean there are not a lot of stars out there. These guys that are coming for the East West Matches are elite players and it will be a terrific event.”
The talent is extreme on both teams. Seven players – the East’s Brian Blanchard, Scott Harvey, Doug Hanzel, Bob Royak, and Paul Simson and the West’s Gene Elliott, Stewart Hagestad, Trip Kuehne and Mike McCoy, have won a USGA Championship. Eight players – the East’s Deraney, Hanzel, Harvey, Rick Stimmel, and Dan Sullivan and the West’s Drew Kittleson, Bobby Massa, and Brad Nurski – are USGA championship runners-up.
EAST – Captain Nathan Smith, Pittsburgh, Pa.
Mid-Amateurs (12)
Jonathan Bale, Jupiter, Fla.; Stephen Behr, Atlanta, Ga.; Hayes Brown, Charlotte, N.C.; Christian Cavaliere, Katonah, N.Y.; Will Davenport, Palm City; Fla.; Joe Deraney, Tupelo, Miss.; Jeromino Esteve, Windermere, Fla.; Scott Harvey, Kernersville, N.C; Sam Jackson, West Columbia, S.C.; Nick Maccario, Haverhill, Mass.; Andrew Price, Lake Bluff, Ill.; Brad Tilley, Easton, Conn.
Seniors (6)
Jack Hall, Savannah, Ga.; Doug Hanzel, Savannah, Ga.; Bob Royak, Alpharetta, Ga.; Paul Simson, Raleigh, N.C.; Rick Stimmel, Pittsburgh, Pa.; Kevin Vandenberg, Pulaski, N.Y.
WEST – Captain Brady Exber, Las Vegas, Nev.; assistant captain Kevin Marsh, Las Vegas, Nev.
Mid-Amateurs (12)
Brian Blanchard, Scottsdale, Ariz.; Denny Bull, Norwalk, Iowa; Parker Edens, Brookings, S.D; Stewart Hagestad, Newport Beach, Calif.; Michael Jensen, Menlo Park, Calif.; Drew Kittleson, Scottsdale, Ariz.; Trip Kuehne, Westlake, Texas; Bobby Massa, Dallas, Texas; Brad Nurski, St. Joseph, Mo.; Josh Persons, Fargo, N.D.; Andy Sajevic, Omaha, Neb.; Chris Wheeler, Carrolton, Texas
Seniors (6)
Gene Elliott, Norwalk, Iowa; Bryan Hoops, Tempe, Ariz.; Mike McCoy, Des Moines, Iowa; Terrance Miskell, New Braunfels, Texas; Mark Strickland, San Diego, Calif.; Dan Sullivan, Pasadena, Calif.