Vanderbilt’s home course will serve as first playoff location.
There are 30 golfers who will earn PGA Tour cards for the 2025 season via the Korn Ferry Tour but 13 of them have already been locked up. That puts 17 up for grabs with the three-event playoff series left on the calendar.
The first of those is this week’s Simmons Bank Open for the Snedeker Foundation at the Vanderbilt Legends Club North Course in Franklin, Tennessee.
There are 144 players in the field and just like the PGA Tour’s FedEx Cup Playoffs, the field will get whittled down for the second event, the Nationwide Children’s Hospital Championship, which will have 120. From there, just the top 75 will head to the Korn Ferry Tour Championship.
Of the 13 players who earned their card from next year after 23 events are eight soon-to-be rookies:
Quade Cummins
Cristobal Del Solar
Taylor Dickson
Steven Fisk
Matt McCarty
William Mouw
Kevin Velo
Tim Widing
The other five have regained their PGA Tour status:
Brian Campbell
Ryan Gerard
Harry Higgs
Max McGreevy
Kevin Roy
Campbell will be returning to the PGA Tour for the first time since 2017.
Whoever finishes atop the season-points race earns a spot in the 2025 U.S. Open as well as the 2025 Players Championship.
Golf Channel will have coverage of all three KFT playoff tournaments.
Golf courses used for the Korn Ferry Tour Playoffs
Simmons Bank Open for the Snedeker Foundation: Vanderbilt Legends Club North Course, designed by Bob Kupp and Tom Kite. It’s the home course for Vanderbilt men’s and women’s golf teams.
Nationwide Children’s Hospital Championship: Ohio State University Golf Club’s Scarlet Course.
Korn Ferry Tour Championship: French Lick Golf Resort’s Pete Dye Course, which will measure 7,667 yards and play as a par 72.
“I never reached my playing goals, but I wouldn’t trade it for anything.”
Sam Saunders, the grandson of Arnold Palmer, announced he’s retiring from professional golf after missing the cut this week at the Korn Ferry Tour’s Magnit Championship.
Saunders, 37, who made more than 150 career starts on both the PGA Tour and Korn Ferry Tour, was mired in the worst season of his career. He had made just four cuts this season on the Korn Ferry Tour and missed the cut in nine of his last 10 starts. He ranked 157th in the season-long points standings and had earned only $29,920. He shot 71-75 and missed the cut on Friday.
“I started this career over 15 years ago, and today was my last professional round,” he wrote on X. “It was never easy for me, and I never reached my playing goals, but I wouldn’t trade it for anything…I am excited for the next chapter of my life.”
Saunders played his college golf at Clemson and turned pro in 2009. He lost in a playoff at the Puerto Rico Open in 2015. In 2019, he shot 59 on the Korn Ferry Tour. Last season, he lost in a playoff at the Korn Ferry Tour’s Panama Championship. Saunders qualified for the U.S. Open on three occasions, but he battled a myriad of injuries in recent years.
Sam Saunders holds up a ball inscribed with 59 after a birdie on the ninth green at the Web.com Tour Championship at Atlantic Beach Country Club on Sept. 28, 2017. (Michael Cohen/Getty Images)
Saunders counted his grandfather, who passed away in September 2016, as his swing coach. In recent years, his childhood pal Eric Cole served as a second set of eyes for him.
Saunders didn’t make clear in his social media post what he planned to do next other than to say “he would always be involved in this great game of golf that has given me so much.”
320 @PGATOUR-sanctioned starts, four runner-up finishes, and a lifetime of memories.
Amy Gutschewski won’t have any difficult decisions to make as far as what group to watch during the first two rounds of the Korn Ferry Tour’s Pinnacle Bank Championship. That’s because the PGA Tour’s developmental circuit made it easy for her, grouping husband, Scott, and sons Luke and Trevor together for Thursday and Friday play. It marks the second time a father and multiple sons have played in the same Tour-sanctioned event, following in the footsteps only of the Nicklauses.
Scott, or “Gootch” as he is affectionately called, is a 47-year-old journeyman pro who once went 10 years – 3,626 days to be exact – between starts as a PGA Tour member. He should be in Greensboro, North Carolina, at the Tour’s Wyndham Championship, but he’s far enough down the alternate list that he decided to commit to his first Korn Ferry Tour event of the year in his home state of Nebraska. Scott has made just four of 16 cuts this season in the big leagues and not even a victory at the Wyndham would have earned him a place in the FedEx Cup Playoffs, which begin next week.
Luke, a rising junior at Iowa State, won the Nebraska Junior Amateur in 2020 and was one of six first-round co-leaders and one of four co-medalists at the 122nd U.S. Amateur Championship in 2022 at Ridgewood Golf Club. His younger brother, Trevor, just won the U.S. Junior Amateur at Oakland Hills last month. The brothers are making their debuts in a PGA Tour-sanctioned event in their hometown of Omaha, Nebraska, alongside their pops in the 9:57 a.m. group off No. 10.
Through the years, Luke has caddied for Scott on occasion, including several years ago at a Korn Ferry event in North Carolina.
Meanwhile, Scott and Amy’s daughter, Isabelle, attends the University of Nebraska and is part of the PGA Golf Management program. As for their youngest, Isaiah? He’s only eight but has inherited the family’s passion for golf. Two years ago, Amy posted on Twitter after Isaiah made a birdie on the first hole of his first tournament: “And just like that, another one is hooked,” she wrote.
This family affair in the game just keeps getting better and it doesn’t get much better for Scott, a three-time winner on the Korn Ferry Tour, than a chance to play in a professional event alongside his boys.
“I thought there was a chance at some point Luke and I may kind of cross paths depending on how long I could still walk and everything,” Scott told Omaha’s CBS affiliate KMTV, “but yeah, Trevor was definitely a huge surprise [to play alongside at a Tour event].”
It marks the Korn Ferry Tour’s first par-4 ace since 2012 and fifth overall.
A hole-in-one is one of the greatest shots in golf. A hole-in-one on a par 4? Even better.
That’s what Timmy Crawford did Saturday. He Monday qualified into this week’s Korn Ferry Tour event, The Ascendant at TPC Colorado. Come Saturday morning after making the cut, he hit the best shot of his life.
Crawford hit driver on the 365-yard par 4 over water and onto the green before the ball went in the cup, giving him an ace.
The hole measures 365 yards on the scorecard and is played across a large pond. Saturday’s direct line tee-to-hole measured 336 yards. It marks the Korn Ferry Tour’s first par-4 ace since 2012 and fifth overall.
This week is Crawford’s PGA Tour-sanctioned debut, and now he has a memory forever. He recently finished his college career at Illinois after four years at Loyola-Chicago.
There has been just one par-4 ace on the PGA Tour, recorded by Andrew Magee in the first round of the 2001 WM Phoenix Open (No. 17 at TPC Scottsdale). Last year, Davis Shore made a par-4 ace on PGA Tour Canada, coming at Ambassador Golf Club’s par-4 15th during the second round of the Windsor Championship.
Just three weeks ago, he won the San Juan Open (and $15,000) in Farmington, N.M.
Home is where the start is.
That’s how the saying goes, at least this week for AJ Ott.
The Fort Collins native, Fort Collins High alumnus and former Colorado State men’s golf standout is practically on home turf for his first-ever Korn Ferry Tour tournament in The Ascendant at Berthoud’s TPC Colorado course.
“This event being so close and on a course I know so well, it’s definitely special to qualify here specifically,” Ott told The Coloradoan before the event.
While he’s played in smaller pro tournaments and top collegiate events, this is Ott’s first taste of true high-level pro golf. The Korn Ferry Tour is essentially the minor-league training ground for the PGA Tour.
Ott estimates he’s played “over 70” rounds at TPC Colorado since it opened in 2018, many of them during his Rams’ career.
His familiarity paid off in qualifying for The Ascendant.
The event used a meritocratic tournament format instead of handing out four sponsor’s exemptions. Ott won the open division last Saturday, birdieing the first six holes and shooting a five-under 67 to beat 32 other hopefuls.
“I definitely felt comfortable out there,” Ott said. “Once I had that fast start, I had to keep the pedal down since it was just for one spot.”
He opened the tournament Thursday with a tough draw, getting the day’s final tee time (2:15 p.m.) as temperatures approached 100 degrees in the sweltering afternoon sun.
Ott finished a grueling first round that took nearly six hours with a steady even-par score of 72. Several dozen fans, friends and family followed him around the vast TPC Colorado layout for the largest crowd on day one.
AJ Ott watches his tee shot of Hole 1 during the Korn Ferry Tour’s The Ascendant golf tournament on Thursday, July 11, 2024, at the TPC Colorado course in Berthoud, Colo. (Photo: Logan Newell/The Coloradoan)
“My parents were excited, really just about being able to see me play,” Ott said. “I travel a lot for other tournaments and there aren’t really many in Colorado for them to come watch live.”
Ott has a short turnaround, teeing off Friday for his second round at 8:42 a.m. local time.
The crowd of supporters came as no surprise since the crafty lefthander has a storied track record in local golf.
He finished top 10 in Class 5A all four years during his Lambkins’ high school career, including a runner-up state finish his senior year in 2015.
Ott stayed home for college, playing five seasons at CSU from 2016-21. Three times he made the All-Mountain West team and won a pair of tournaments in his super senior season.
The Rams’ Most Improved Player award within the program is even named after Ott, who improved his scoring average by over three shots after his freshman season.
Since finishing his CSU career, Ott (now 26 years old) has relocated to Denver and continued pursuing his professional golf career.
He’s a member at Bear Creek Country Club in Lakewood, his home base these days, playing plays mini-tours across the country hoping to break through in the professional ranks.
He mainly enters small tournaments in Texas, Oklahoma and Kansas, with winter work coming in California and Arizona plus Korn Ferry/PGA Tour Qualifying “Q” School in Nebraska and Alabama.
“It certainly isn’t that glamorous,” Ott said. “You’re staying in crappy hotels and putting miles on the truck, just grinding and driving a lot.
“But it’s playing golf for a living and I started playing competitively because the sport is fun and I love it. So that’s the wide lens I try to keep in perspective.”
He often travels to events with roommate and friend Jackson Solem, a former University of Denver golfer and Longmont native who also plays pro golf.
Ott takes coaching by committee, relying on teaching pros Kirk Rider (Bear Creek) and Ed Oldham (The Ranch in Westminster) plus former college coaches and advisors in California.
Spectators follow AJ Ott as he and other golfers walk down the fairway of hole 1 during the Korn Ferry Tour’s The Ascendant golf tournament on Thursday, July 11, 2024, at the TPC Colorado course in Berthoud, Colo. (Photo: Logan Newell/The Coloradoan)
It all has Ott on the upswing lately.
Just three weeks ago, he won the San Juan Open (and $15,000) in Farmington, N.M. with a four-day score of 19-under-par for his third pro win.
“Winning is always a nice little confidence boost and it came at a good time,” he said.
The stage is bigger in Berthoud, something Ott hopes to find himself facing more often.
“I’m just thrilled and blessed to compete against some of the best golfers out there,” Ott said. “A lot of these guys have PGA (Tour) experience and they know what it takes. You’re working to be on that level.”
Ultimately, Ott said this opportunity is less about the pressure of high-level pro golf or what a good showing could mean for his career.
He’s mostly just grateful to be home for a week, quite literally staying in his childhood bedroom 12 miles north of the course in south Fort Collins.
“I’m excited to sleep in my own bed for a few days,” Ott said before laughing. “It’s a pretty cheap hotel bill this week.”
The course can play up to 8,029 yards from the tournament tees.
Professional golf is back in Colorado for what has become an annual summer tradition: The Ascendant at TPC Colorado in Berthoud.
This will be the sixth annual edition of the Korn Ferry Tour event that started in 2019, and it’s a popular spot on tour.
The golfers are fresh off a bye week for the Independence Day holiday, and The Ascendant was named Korn Ferry Tournament of the Year in 2023 for the second time in three years.
The Colorado stop kicks off the back half of the tour calendar, as top golfers hope to cement a top-30 finish in the season standings to earn their PGA Tour card.
Here’s what golf fans should know about the 2024 edition of The Ascendant Presented by Blue, including players to watch, how to watch/follow online, ticket options and more.
The TPC Colorado course
The TPC Colorado at Heron Lakes course opened in summer 2018 and is an 18-hole layout just northwest of Berthoud that is renowned for its prodigious length.
TPC Colorado plays as a semi-hybrid of American and European links golf, featuring deep pot bunkers and scenic holes lined by shimmering lakes with Rocky Mountain vistas in the distance.
Players to watch at TPC Colorado
The Colorado connections
AJ Ott: The 2021 Colorado State graduate and former Rams’ star qualified thanks to a win in the sponsor exemption tournaments held Saturday at TPC Colorado. It will be Ott’s first-ever Korn Ferry Tour appearance.
Jeremy Paul: The former University of Colorado golfer finished third at TPC Colorado in 2022 and sits at No. 13 on this year’s Korn Ferry Tour points list, including a win at The Bahamas Great Exuma Classic in January.
Kyle Westmoreland: The former Air Force Academy standout is 25th on the tour’s points list and has five top-five finishes this season, highlighted by a runner-up finish in The Bahamas Great Abaco Classic.
Sam Saunders: The Fort Collins resident and grandson of Arnold Palmer is often a fan favorite at this event. He had his best finish of the season last month with a tie for 14th at the UNC Health Championship.
Kevin Stadler: The part-time Denver resident and son of former PGA Tour star Craig Stadler will be looking for his first made cut this season.
Josh Creel: The Cheyenne native and former CU golfer is coming off a tie for 34th at the PGA Tour’s John Deere Classic last week and is looking to snap a streak of five missed cuts at the Korn Ferry ranks.
Former Ascendant champions
Nelson Ledesma: The inaugural champion in 2019 is back and could use a good finish while currently at 42nd on the points list.
Tag Ridings: The 2021 winner is looking to regain his form from three years ago after just one top-25 finish to date this season.
Track record of success
There are a handful of golfers who sit among the top 20 on the Korn Ferry Tour and were in Sunday contention at The Ascendant last year:
Tim Widing: Tied for fourth (16 under) last year and is currently third on the Korn Ferry points list.
Quade Cummins: Tied for sixth (14 under) in 2023 and sits at No. 8 on this season’s points list.
Frankie Capan III: Tied for 14th (11 under) last year and is 10th on 2023-24 Korn Ferry points list.
Jackson Suber: Tied for ninth (13 under) in 2023 and currently 11th on the points list.
Isaiah Salinda: Tied for 16th (10 under) in last year’s event and sits at No. 15 on Korn Ferry points list.
Former PGA Tour winners in TPC Colorado field:
Ben Crane (5 wins); Bo Van Pelt (1)
Tournament schedule, format
The tournament features four 18-hole rounds, July 11- 14. The field of 156 will be cut to the low 65 scores (including ties) for the final two rounds on Saturday and Sunday.
Leaders are expected to tee off by 1:30 p.m. local time on the weekend, weather permitting. For example, the 2022 final round was moved up nearly three hours due to anticipated inclement weather.
The prize purse for the 2024 edition is again $1 million, with the winner set to earn $180,000.
Past TPC Colorado results, champions
The tournament has been consistently competitive, with three of the five champions winning by just one shot and the other two winners taking it by two strokes each.
An event scoring record has also been set or matched in all five years.
Here are the previous Ascendant at TPC Colorado winners:
2023: Nicholas Lindheim (20 under) 2022: Zecheng “Marty” Dou (17 under) 2021: Tag Ridings (16 under) 2020: Will Zalatoris (15 under) 2019: Nelson Ledesma (15 under)
The Ascendant has become a launching pad to the PGA Tour, with Ledesma, Zalatoris, Dou and Lindheim all moving up after winning at TPC Colorado.
Zalatoris is currently No. 46 in the Official World Golf Ranking (after consecutive years in the top 20) and has four top-10 finishes at major championships.
Lindheim will not be defending his 2023 title this week.
Little John is making his professional debut this week.
John Daly II, the son of John Daly, will tee it up this week on the Korn Ferry Tour at the Compliance Solutions Championship at Jimmie Austin OU Golf Club in Norman, Oklahoma. It will be his first start on the Korn Ferry Tour and his first professional event.
A rising junior at Arkansas, Daly II received a sponsor exemption into the event. In eight events last season, he had a 71.78 stroke average and two top-10 finishes.
Daly II is no stranger to the public eye, as he has made appearances (including a win in 2021) at the PNC Championship in Orlando alongside his dad at the season-ending scramble event. The duo also has runner-up finishes in 2018 and 2022.
Higgs went five years between his first and second wins. He only had to wait seven days for his third.
Harry Higgs had gone five years between his first and second win. He only had to wait seven days for his third.
Higgs fired a 5-under 65 on Sunday to finish at 19 under. A short time later, Frankie Capan III birdied the 18th to shoot a 66 to get to 19 under and force a playoff at Holston Hills Country Club in Knoxville, Tennessee.
The duo each birdied the par-5 18th to open the playoff, then Higgs eagled it the second time they played it to clinch his victory in the weather-challenged Visit Knoxville Open on the Korn Ferry Tour. Tee times were moved up both days over the weekend to avoid what the tour called “dangerous weather.”
Higgs winning putt was from more than 36 feet away.
“It does eons for confidence, but there’s a reason why I won. Taking care of
my body, my mind. Obviously I stuck to the exact same routine as last week and it worked again this week, so that’s probably not going to change much,” Higgs said. “I didn’t really feel like doing anything Tuesday and Wednesday of this week, but I just made sure that I did the same things. I got prepared in the same way.”
Harry Higgs poses with the trophy after winning the 2024 Visit Knoxville Open at Holston Hills Country Club in Knoxville, Tennessee. (Photo: Brennan Asplen/Getty Images)
Higgs is the first golfer to win back-to-back tournaments in a playoff on the Korn Ferry Tour.
Capan shot 62 on Saturday and held the solo 54-hole lead. Quade Cummins went low Sunday with a 9-under 61, thanks in part to an ace on the fourth hole, but missed out on the playoff by a shot.
But neither could quite catch the overall steadiness of Higgs, who has conditional status on the PGA Tour in 2024. He has now put himself in great position to return full time in 2025. He entered the week No. 7 on the Korn Ferry Tour points list but shot up to No. 2 after his second straight win. The top 30 on the KFT list at the end of the season earn the promotion.
Higgs, just two weeks after getting married, celebrated his first win in five years.
Harry Higgs won on the Korn Ferry Tour on Sunday in the most improbably way.
On the par-5 18th hole, Higgs chipped in for eagle, his shot running seemingly all the way across the green before going down for a 3.
That shot capped a final-round 66 but he still needed to chew on his nails in suspense, as Tanner Gore had a chance to win in regulation but his potential winning putt wouldn’t drop and he could only par the closing hole.
That meant things were knotted up at 19 under in the 2024 AdventHealth Championship at Blue Hills Country Club in Kansas City, Missouri.
They replayed the 18th hole and Higgs birdied it again for his first win in five years, or, 1,757 days, as noted by the KFT.
It’s going to be a Thursday to remember for Frankie Capan III.
The 24-year-old shot 13-under 58 during the first round of the Korn Ferry Tour’s Veritex Bank Championship at Texas Rangers Golf Club in Arlington, Texas. The round included seven straight birdies on the back nine, a 29 on both sides and taking down World No. 1 Scottie Scheffler’s course record, which he set May 3, 2020.
His round started with a par before four consecutive birdies on Nos. 2-5. He added an eagle at the par-5 ninth to turn in 6-under 29.
On the back nine, the circles added up.
One. Two. Three. Four. Five. Six. Seven in a row before he finally made par at the par-4 17th. On the closing par-5 18th, his tee shot ended up in the fairway bunker, and he was unable to card another birdie for a 57.
With a pair of top-10 finishes coming into the Veritex Bank Championship, Capan was finding his rhythm. Hard to imagine he pictured a start like he put together Thursday.
