Tag: Jared Wolfe

Jared Wolfe closing in on PGA Tour card with each success

Jared Wolfe is fourth on the points list, which all but assures him of the PGA Tour card given to the top 25 points leaders.

Jared Wolfe is living the dream. Or at least he possibly will be next year.

Wolfe, a native of Louisville, Ky., who played his college golf at Murray State University, turned pro 10 years ago. His career has been one of belief in his ability, persistence, dedication and hard work to improve his game.

It’s finally paying off, though the 32-year-old and his wife had to take an introspective look at his game and determine if it was worthwhile to continue.

The couple’s life took a different outlook with the birth of their baby daughter. At that point, they had an honest and open discussion about his career and what the future may hold.

Their decision — one which has proven to be the right one — was that Wolfe had to qualify for either the Korn Ferry Tour or the PGA Tour. No more bouncing around on the mini-tour circuit.

SAVANNAH GOLF CHAMPIONSHIP: Scoreboard

That meant another year on the PGA Tour Latinoamerica to improve his status, and suddenly things started to click. Wolfe won once and finished third on the Legion of Merit standings, which qualified him for the Korn Ferry Tour.

Don’t look for any changes in Wolfe’s game or his lifestyle in one of the feel-good success stories of the year.

“We’re just going to continue doing what we’ve been doing,” said Wolfe, who resides in Ponte Vedre Beach, Florida. “As to lifestyle, we’re not going to change too much. We’re the same three people we were before.

“We’ll be starting a college fund and retirement fund,” Wolfe said. “This game has a lot of highs and lows. We’re just trying to enjoy it.”

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Wolfe has taken advantage of the opportunity in his third go-round on the Korn Ferry. He had previously played the tour in 2014, making the cut in two of 17 tournaments. He finished 131st in 2018, which sent him to the Latinoamerica Tour.

Wolfe came into this week’s Savannah Golf Championship fresh off a win at the Wichita Open last weekend. That left him fourth on the points list, which all but assures him of his PGA Tour card as the top 25 points leaders get the opportunity to move up. Heading into Sunday, he’s seven shots off the lead at 11 under. Evan Harmeling leads the way at 18 under.

The win in Wichita gave Wolfe an additional confidence boost in the way it came about.

“I just kept hitting some good shots and fought all the way to the end,” Wolfe said. “I made a lot of pars, had an eagle, and then got up and down on the last hole for the win.

“It was a first for me because it was the first time I had to make a putt to win. Other times when I’ve won it was by two or three shots, so that was pretty special.”

It was also Wolfe’s second win of the year as he had opened his season by winning The Bahamas Great Abaco Classic in January. Those two victories left him one short of getting a battlefield (automatic) promotion to the PGA Tour. He is having the best year of his career in earnings with $296,932.

He is trying for that elusive third win this Sunday in the Savannah Golf Championship at The Landings Club’s Deer Creek Course.

Wolfe went into the third round Saturday at 9-under par, four shots behind leaders Kevin Dougherty and Evan Harmeling.

When the round ended, Harmeling and Dougherty were still at the top, but Harmeling had a one-stroke lead at 18 under (6-67-67). Dougherty was next at 17 under (65-66, 68).

Wolfe (67-68-70) and former Armstrong State University standout Shad Tuten (67-66-72) were among those tied for 26th place at 11 under.

The next level

As to moving up in the ranks, Wolfe will have a certain degree of job security and, of course, the opportunity to enhance his earnings ability. Several former Korn Ferry Tour players have gone on to do well on the big tour, and Wolfe wants to add his name to the list.

“Having job security for the next two years at this level (Korn Ferry) and higher is huge,” Wolfe said. “I’m excited for where we’re going and we’re going to enjoy it.”

This is Wolfe’s second appearance in the Savannah Golf Championship. Two years ago, he finished in a tie for 75th place as he shot an even-par 288 to take home $1,265.

“The weather this year is perfect,” Wolfe said. “Two years ago (in April) it was cold, windy and miserable. They were tough conditions.”

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Jared Wolfe wins Korn Ferry Tour’s Wichita Open Supporting Wichita’s Youth

Jared Wolfe won his second Korn Ferry Tour title of the season at the Wichita Open.

The Korn Ferry Tour is full of grinders, and Jared Wolfe is high up on that list. He’s high up on another list Sunday after winning the Wichita Open, his second title on that tour in 2020. Wolfe is now up to No. 4 on the Korn Ferry Tour regular season points list.

Wolfe fired rounds of 63-65-65 to open the week at Crestview Country Club. He closed out his week with a final-round 71, which was just enough to keep him one shot ahead of Canadian Taylor Pendrith.

It was hardly a bluebird day in Wichita. After the first six holes, a storm moved into the area, creating a battle for the end of the round.

“That was some pretty intense golf on the last 12 holes,” Wolfe said.

At one point, players were pulled off the course for a weather delay as gusting winds and rain blanketed the course. Wolfe knew he’d have to keep his head down. He made eagle on the par-5 14th and even though he backed that up with bogeys on the next two holes, it was enough to bring home the title.

“I knew that a couldn’t let up,” Wolfe said of returning to the golf course. “I knew we couldn’t give shots away.”

Wolfe is an 11th-year pro who has won three times on the PGA Tour Latinoamerica. He also won the Bahamas Great Abaco Classic at Baha Mar on the Korn Ferry Tour in January. A third win would give him an instant promotion to the PGA Tour.

“It’s crazy,” Wolfe said of being on the cusp. “It kind of puts things at peace for me a little bit about having to wait another year for the PGA Tour but maybe not. It’s huge. I feel like I’ve been playing great all year.”

Coronavirus has placed graduation to PGA Tour on hold

Further cancellations might force the PGA Tour to look at the possibility of a hybrid season covering 2019, 2020 and 2021.

Imagine being in Jared Wolfe’s golf shoes.

Since turning pro in 2010, he’s journeyed throughout the game’s lesser circuits in pursuit of his ultimate dream – earning membership on the PGA Tour. It was a struggle at times but Wolfe remained resolute in his quest and in January he captured his first title on the Korn Ferry Tour at the Bahamas Great Abaco Classic.

Graduation to the PGA Tour was well in hand. Now it’s on hold.

The COVID-19 global pandemic has stalled the world and halted play on every major golf tour. This week’s announcement of a new schedule beginning in mid-June for the PGA Tour and the Korn Ferry Tour offers hope. But the restart is far from certain and it remains undecided how playing status for players on the PGA Tour and Korn Ferry Tour will be determined for next season if the restart is delayed due to the coronavirus.

Normally, the top 25 on the Korn Ferry Tour points list after the final regular-season event – Wolfe is No. 6 – earn PGA Tour cards for the next season. The top 75 players also qualify for the three-tournament Korn Ferry Tour Finals, where they would be joined by 75 PGA Tour members who finished Nos. 126-200 on the FedExCup points list. From that postseason, the top 25 players also earn PGA Tour cards.

A view of the tee marker on the 16th hole during the first round of the 2019 Korn Ferry Tour Championship in Newburgh, Indiana. Photo by Stacy Revere/Getty Images

But the truncated season could force PGA Tour officials to adjust allocation of PGA Tour cards. Graduation could even be annulled.

Wolfe said he’s gone down a “rabbit hole” thinking about potential scenarios but his wife pulls him out of the proverbial abyss.

“I’m at peace with whatever happens,” Wolfe said.

A hybrid season for ’19, ’20, ’21?

The PGA Tour is set to return June 11-14 at the Charles Schwab Challenge in Texas. The PGA Tour would play 36 events – down from 49 last year. In a conference call this week, Andy Pazder, chief tournaments and competitions officer for the PGA Tour, said if 36 events are played, Tour officials and player directors on the policy board feel it would constitute a credible season.

But if there are further cancellations and/or postponements, a credible season would be in jeopardy and force the PGA Tour to make major status adjustments, including the possibility of a hybrid season covering 2019, 2020 and 2021.

“If there is a scenario where we carry eligibility from the PGA Tour over to the following season, that will likely have a profound impact on the Korn Ferry Tour eligibility system and could go as far as preventing promotions from the Korn Ferry Tour and their eligibility would then have to merge into their following season in 2021,” Pazder said. “We’ve had extensive conversations, and at this stage I can tell you that if we are able to resume at the Charles Schwab Challenge, playing nearly three-fourths of our season does give us great comfort in considering it a credible season. But we have not defined that threshold if we fall below X number of tournaments, then Y will happen.”

Six events have been played on the Korn Ferry Tour this season. The first event back for the tour is a new tournament set to begin June 11 on the Dye’s Valley Course at TPC Sawgrass near the PGA Tour’s headquarters in Ponte Vedra Beach, Florida. Ten events would follow. Without further interruptions of play, the Korn Ferry Tour would have a 17-tournament schedule, down from 28 on the original schedule. Would that be enough to hand out promotions?

“We’ve looked at one option where there would be a hybrid model, I’d call it, where we would reward all of the players on the PGA Tour this year based on their play but find a way to also, for those who didn’t make the top 125, retain some type of access into the next season,” Tyler Dennis, chief of operations for the PGA Tour, said in a conference call. “And then that would flow down to the Korn Ferry Tour and how the graduates would morph between their seasons in a hybrid way, as well. We’re still in the process of analyzing that and evaluating options with our PAC and player directors.”

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Coronavirus put his day job on hold, so Jared Wolfe got a side gig in medical sales

Korn Ferry Tour player Jared Wolfe’s pro golf career is on hold, but he’s still staying active with his game and has a new side gig.

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PONTE VEDRA BEACH, Fla. – Since turning pro in 2010, Jared Wolfe has taken small steps toward the utopian destination that is the PGA Tour, a journey that has been at times a struggle but always steadfast.

In 2017, Wolfe’s stepping stones became consistent strides with victories in three consecutive seasons on the PGA Tour Latinoamerica and a 2019 summer of three top-10 finishes in four starts on the Mackenzie Tour in Canada.

Then he took a giant leap toward the PGA Tour in January when he won the Bahamas Great Abaco Classic on the Korn Ferry Tour, while his newborn daughter, Khloe, and wife, Kelsey, were glued to the TV in the U.S.

His check of $108,000 was the largest of his career, he was playing some of the best golf of his life and he definitely could see the PGA Tour on the horizon as he held the top spot in The 25, the number of players who earn PGA Tour membership as the top regular-season money winners from the Korn Ferry Tour.

Then the coronavirus global pandemic shut down most of the world and put his hopeful journey to the PGA Tour on hold.

Wolfe, however, isn’t standing still. He continues to practice and play at TPC Sawgrass, works out regularly, and has even picked up a part-time job. Not due to financial strain, mind you, but as a family man and one who has to stay active, bringing in a little cash while most every pro tour is on stand still at least until the third week of May.

And in ironic twist, Wolfe will lend a small hand in defeating the virus that put his golf career in stationary status. Wolfe has gotten a job with RevMed, a sales organization that offers ancillary medical services. He’ll be selling and raising awareness to diagnostic infectious disease testing called PCR (Polymerase Chain Reaction).

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention just passed a ruling that all COVID-19 testing would be processed through this technology. Wolfe will help bring COVID-19 and all infectious diseases testing to the outpatient clinics that need the services.

“It’s pretty cool to look at it from that point of view,” said Wolfe, 31, who earned a degree in business administration and management from Murray State. “It’s pretty cool to help clinics get tests and get them answers quickly on who has it and who doesn’t.”

Wolfe got on-the-job training the past few weeks from those experienced in the company and will start next week. He’ll head out with a team across Florida two to three days a week. He’ll work his day job on the golf course the rest of the week.

“It will be sort of a revolving door,” he said. “Sacrificing my golf two to three days a week isn’t the end of the world. It’s a good chance to make some money and it’s important work.

“Before the Tour starts back up I’ll quit this and get ready to go back on the road.”

No one knows when that will be. And right now, it’s unclear if Wolfe would still be in a prime spot to obtain his PGA Tour card.

The Korn Ferry Tour has played just six events, so would PGA Tour cards be awarded to those in The 25 if there’s no more play this year? If only two more events could be played? Or does everyone restart in place next year?

“I don’t know if the PGA Tour card would be there if the season ended today,” said Wolfe, who is No. 6 on the money list. “I’m at peace with whatever happens. I’ve gone down the rabbit hole thinking about those things, but my wife is very good at pulling me out of that rabbit hole.

“I’ve thought about what happens if they wipe the season, what happens if this or that happens. Everything is still up in limbo. But I’m optimistic it will start again and that’s what I’m holding on to.”

That and a part-time job fighting the coronavirus.

Jared Wolfe wins Korn Ferry Tour’s Bahamas Great Abaco Classic

Jared Wolfe won for the first time on the Korn Ferry Tour, sealing the deal with birdies on holes 15, 16 and 18 in the final round.

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Jared Wolfe won for the first time on the Korn Ferry Tour on Wednesday, sealing the deal with birdies on holes 15, 16 and 18 in Wednesday’s final round of the Bahamas Great Abaco Classic at Baha Mar.

Wolfe shot a final-round 69 and won by four shots over Brandon Harkins. Billy Kennerly, Curtis Thompson and Nick Hardy finished T-3, five shots back of Wolfe. Kennerly had the round of the day, a 5-under 67.

Wolfe and Kennerly were the only two golfers to break 70 in the final round.

Wolfe has tasted professional victory before. He has three PGA Tour Latinoamérica victories, one each season from 2017-19.

The Bahamas Great Abaco Classic at Baha Mar: Leaderboard

The 11-year pro also won the 2015 Indian River Open on the Florida Professional Golf Tour.

But Wednesday’s win is the biggest one yet for the 31-year-old former Murray State Racer.

Tommy Gainey, who won the KFT season opener a week ago, missed the cut after shooting a pair of 74s.

After consecutive events in the Bahamas to open the 2020 season, the Korn Ferry Tour heads to the Panama Championship, Jan. 30-Feb. 2.

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