Monthly Archives: August 2025

TalonsCove Golf Club once again played host to one of Utah golf’s great traditions as the Utah Section PGA and the Utah Golf Association renewed their annual team matches in the Governor’s Cup and Goddard Cup. Played in the spirit of competition and camaraderie, the day featured Foursomes, Four-Ball, and Singles matches, with some of Utah’s best men and women professionals and amateurs teeing it up on the shores of Utah Lake.

When the points were tallied, the Utah PGA retained both trophies—decisively winning the Goddard Cup 9 to 3 and holding on to the Governor’s Cup after a hard-fought tie of 16 to 16.

Goddard Cup

The Utah PGA women professionals proved dominant in this year’s Goddard Cup, named in honor of Utah women’s golf pioneer Jeannie Goddard. The Utah PGA team swept across all three formats, winning by a commanding margin of 9–3.

Foursomes: Utah PGA 2.5 – UGA 0.5
Four-Ball: Utah PGA 2.5 – UGA 0.5
Singles: Utah PGA 4 – UGA 2

Leading the charge for the Utah PGA were Haley Sturgeon, Ana Ross, and Cassie Campos, each going undefeated in their matches. The UGA team found bright spots from Kate Walker, Kareen Larson, Whitney Banz, and Faith Vui, who secured points in each format, but in the end the day belonged to the Utah PGA women.

Governor’s Cup

As it has so often in years past, the Governor’s Cup matches came down to the results of the Singles matches. By the time the Singles wrapped, the two sides had fought to a draw—Utah PGA 16, UGA 16. With the tie, the professionals retained the trophy for another year.

Foursomes: Utah PGA 4.5 – UGA 3.5
Four-Ball: Utah PGA 4 – UGA 4
Singles: Utah PGA 7.5 – UGA 8.5

For the Utah PGA, steady play from veterans Matt Baird, Tommy Sharp, and reigning Section Champion Dustin Volk—all undefeated in their matches—proved critical. The amateurs, however, showed plenty of firepower, led by Tyson Shelley, who went undefeated en route to MVP honors for the UGA squad.

For decades, these matches have been about more than trophies, showcasing PGA professionals going head-to-head with some of the state’s top amateurs. The Governor’s Cup and Goddard Cup continue to highlight not only great players but also the camaraderie and connection between Utah golf’s allied associations. At TalonsCove this year, all of that was on display once again.

Click here for Goddard Cup full results. Click here for Governor’s Cup full results.

2025 Goddard Cup & Governor’s Cup team match recap written by Fairways Media/Randy Dodson. Photography by Fairways Media/Garrit Johnson.

Three years is a long time, when you’re 19. A much different version of Kihei Akina appeared Sunday at Riverside Country Club, where he showed advances in his golf game and evidence of maturity as he battled through the final round of the Larry H. Miller Utah Open. 

And now he’s the youngest champion of a tournament that will celebrate its 100th anniversary next year. 

In 2022, starting his sophomore year at Lone Peak High School, Akina played in the last threesome of the final round and faded early. Three years later, it was a different story. Every time the BYU freshman showed signs of wobbling on the back nine, he steadied himself.

Akina may have given his challengers some hope, but he never fell behind. In the end, having taken a two-stroke victory over three players, he spoke of “a lot of relief right now.”

Akina added, “I’m proud of the way I fought through it.” 

He shot 66-65-68 for a 17-under-par total, topping amateur Cole Ogden and pros Spencer Wallace and Brady McKinlay. Boston Bracken, who will start his Arizona State career this month, placed fifth. With three top-five showings, this was the best Utah Open performance for amateurs since the 1930s. Patrick Fishburn, then a 25-year-old BYU senior, was the event’s most recent amateur champion, in 2017.

Akina’s victory came 50 years to the day after BYU sophomore Mike Brannan won the title at Riverside. Brannan turned 20 in late December that year; Akina will be 20 in early January, making him the youngest-ever winner by a week. 

His response to the news: “Cool.”

That’s a good description of the way Akina dealt with some back-nine adversity, while also catching a break or two. Not even a drive into the penalty area left of the No. 15 fairway fazed him, as he salvaged a par and maintained his lead. 

And on the par-4 No. 16, after his iron shot off the tee barely stayed out of trouble on the left, he made what became a clinching birdie. Distracted by “a big fly,” he hit the 30-foot putt too hard. But the ball crashed into the hole. 

“Kihei played incredible golf,” McKinlay said. “He was as steady as anybody and made countless putts.”

Akina kept Utah Section PGA administrators from presenting the traditional oversized check to the winner. First prize was boosted to $25,000 in the first year of the Larry H. Miller Company’s title sponsorship; McKinlay and Wallace earned $20,500. 

Wallace, who teaches golf in St. George, collected a $1,500 bonus as the top performer among Section members and associates. “Always fun when you can finish on top with those guys,” he said.  

McKinlay, who won four consecutive tournaments as a Utah Valley University senior, knows how to finish. He couldn’t quite catch Akina or hold off Wallace’s run, and spoke of “a lot of missed opportunities this week, to be honest.” But he was happy to make a tough par save on No. 18, worth a difference of $4,500. 

“Honestly, in this stage of golf, that’s a lot of money,” he said. 

Ogden became a Utah Open success story at age 33 as a former BYU golfer and 2013 State Amateur champion, while trying to follow his brother, Clay, a two-time winner of this event.   

“Nobody probably picked me to win at the start of the week, and I don’t blame ‘em,” he said, “but it’s pretty damn fun to be in the mix, for sure.”

Kihei made that discovery in 2022, and he followed through in ‘25. He noted how learning from “past failures” became important Sunday. His swing coach, Riverside teaching professional Matt Baird, sounded more proud of Akina’s win than his own performance as the low senior, while tying for 15th place overall. 

“Being here with my student is something special,” Baird said after the awards presentation. “We’ve been working pretty hard on his game and seeing him succeed … is more gratifying. It’s kind of passing the torch.”

Click here for the final Utah Open leaderboard.

2025 Larry H. Miller Utah Open final round recap written by Kurt Kragthorpe. Photography by Fairways Media/Randy Dodson and Garrit Johnson.

As a member of the newly created U.S. National Junior Team, Kihei Akina might be BYU’s most celebrated golf recruit since U.S. Junior Amateur champion Mike Brannan. 

Sunday will mark 50 years since Brannan’s win over a strong field of professionals and Cougar teammates at Riverside Country Club. Akina has a great shot at his own victory in the Larry H. Miller Utah Open. 

The Lone Peak High School graduate would join Brannan as the only 19-year-old champions in the 99-year history of the tournament. Akina eagled the par-4 No. 2 with a 60-yard wedge shot in the second round, while carding six birdies and one bogey for a 65. 

Akina is 13 under par, one stroke ahead of 33-year-old amateur Cole Ogden (65-67), a former BYU golfer. They will be joined in the final threesome by former Utah Valley University star Brady McKinlay (66-67), who’s competing for the $25,000 first prize among the pros. 

Three years ago, having shot 67-67 at age 16, Akina played with eventual champion Blake Tomlinson in the last group. He settled for a 72, tying for 11th place. His approach this time is “just to be loose, have fun, just another round of golf,” he said. “I feel comfortable with my game.”

Akina was on the road this summer for what “felt like forever,” he said, while his game produced mixed results. He missed the 36-hole cut in the Korn Ferry Tour’s Utah Championship in Ogden in early August and failed to make match play this week in the U.S. Amateur in San Francisco. 

He has been sharp at Riverside, though. So, more surprisingly, has Ogden. At 33, he works in medical sales, having long ago given up his pro golf ambitions. The 2013 State Amateur champion reached the round of 16 in that event last summer and finished the 2024 Utah Open with a 65, tying for seventh place among amateurs. 

After posting a 29 on the back nine Friday to complete a 65, he started the second round on that side and shot a 35. An eagle on the par-5 No. 7 (his third of the tournament, on three different holes) gave him a 67. 

“My mind-set about golf in general has changed a lot, just because it’s not what I’m trying to do full-time,” he said. “I’m not worried about the paycheck and it’s not affecting my life.”      

Ogden played the first two rounds with his brother, Clay, a two-time champion in the tournament’s Oakridge Country Club era. No two brothers have claimed Utah Open titles since Emery and Al Zimmerman won a combined six times in the 1930s and ‘40s.

McKinlay recently married Caylyn Ponich, the Women’s Golf Coach at Southern Utah University. She’s the sister of 2024 State Amateur champion Cole Ponich, who’s playing as a rookie pro.

The 36-hole cut came at 1 over par. Provo’s Nicklaus Miller, 13, who’s believed to be the youngest contestant in the tournament’s 99-year history, shot 76-70 and was among a big group of golfers missing by one stroke. 

In the Section Sidebar competition for Utah Section PGA Members and Associates, Spencer Wallace (67-68) has a two-shot lead over Zach Johnson and Utah Golf Hall of Fame member Steve Schneiter.
Schneiter (69-68) leads the Senior Sidebar for 50-over players by one stroke over Riverside teaching professional Matt Baird (67-71).   

Click here for the Larry H. Miller Utah Open 36-hole leaderboard.

36-hole recap story written by Fairways Media senior writer Kurt Kragthorpe. Photography by Fairways Media/Garrit Johnson.

If the USGA Development Team coaches need a poster boy for the success of their new program, they should take a good look at BYU’s incoming freshman Kihei Akina.

Fresh off competing at the U.S. Amateur, Akina has brought that confidence with him to Riverside Country Club. Back-to-back rounds of 66-65 have him sitting atop the Larry H. Miller Utah Open leaderboard at 13-under 131, one shot clear of former Cougar and 2013 Utah State Amateur champion Cole Ogden as the morning wave wrapped up Saturday.

“The Development Program has really helped me,” Akina said. “They’ve taught me how to track my stats and see areas of improvement. I’ve really have never done that before. It’s cool to see the stats, and kind of just learn from that and see what you’re doing well. It’s helped me a lot in learning where I can get better.”

Akina credited his wedge play and iron game for keeping him in scoring position. He even gave his grandparents a show early in today’s round, holing out from 60 yards for eagle on the par-4 second hole.

“My wedges are all about controlling distances and being pin high,” he said. “One way to be great at golf is to be pin high all the time.”

While his summer has been a mix of highs and lows, Akina says he’s feeling good as he looks ahead to Sunday’s final round. “I’m comfortable with my game now. I just want to stay loose, have fun, and stick to my process.”

The field will be cut to the low 60 and ties following the afternoon wave to set the stage for Sunday’s finish in Provo.

Click here for Larry H. Miller round 2 leaderboard.

Morning Wave Report and photography by Fairways Media/Randy Dodson & Garrit Johnson.

Playing as the Utah State Amateur’s reigning champion two years ago, Simon Kwon made a late run at Riverside Country Club in search of another prestigious title, before falling just short. 

He’s leading the Larry H. Miller Utah Open after Friday’s opening round, while competing this time as a State Am runner-up. 

The BYU senior from Skyline High School played Riverside just the way elite golfers think they should. He went 5 under par on the four par-5s holes, with an eagle on No. 7 propelling him to an 8-under 64.

In all, Kwon posted eight birdies and two bogeys to go with that eagle. He took a one-stroke lead over two players whose biggest golf achievements came a dozen years ago, when Zach Johnson won the Utah Open and Cole Ogden took the State Amateur title. 

Ogden produced the day’s most spectacular scorecard, with two eagles highlighting a back-nine 29. 

Next at 66 are University of Utah golfer Brandon Robison, former Utah Valley University star Brady McKinlay and BYU freshman Kihei Akina.

The group at 67 includes Riverside teaching pro Matt Baird and 2022 winner Blake Tomlinson. Defending champion Derek Fribbs of Colorado shot a 68.     

The 54-hole tournament will conclude Sunday, 50 years to the day since Mike Brannan’s Utah Open victory at Riverside as a BYU golfer. That was in an era when the tournament rotated annually; this is the club’s 12th consecutive year as host.     

Entering his second year as an active player for the Cougars after transferring from the University of California and redshirting in 2023-24, Kwon is accustomed to battling at Riverside to make BYU’s tournament lineup. “Qualifying, there’s a lot of pressure, so it’s good that we have a lot of pressure rounds out here,” he said. 

Kwon missed only one green in regulation Friday, due to an errant drive. Nearing the end of what he labeled an “up-and-down” summer of golf, he said, “I just kind of wanted to come in with a different mentality, and just be super present.”

That means not getting ahead of myself as he went deep under par. He acknowledged some trouble maintaining that mind-set after getting to 9 under after the eagle on his 16th hole of the day. That resulted in his second bogey, but he parred the tough par-3 No. 9 to finish.     

In 2023, Kwon bogeyed the last two holes of the final round, ending up two shots out of the playoff that was won by PGA Tour veteran Zac Blair.

Johnson and Ogden played in the afternoon, when conditions typically are tougher. Johnson, 42, is the PGA Head Professional at Davis Park Golf Course. His 2013 victory came at the end of the Utah Open’s seven-year run at Oakridge Country Club (where Ogden’s brother, Clay, earned two wins).

Johnson, one of the Utah Section PGA’s top players, never really has contended in the Utah Open’s Riverside era, although a final-round 66 last August gave him a tie for 14th place. He made eight birdies and one bogey Friday.

Ogden plays limited tournament golf, but has a knack for showing up at the State Amateur and the Utah Open and performing well. Last year, a closing 65 gave him a tie for seventh place among amateurs.

He was even par through 10 holes Friday, then made two eagles (on the par-5 Nos. 13 and 15) and three birdies, including one on the par-4 No. 18.

Akina’s 66 stemmed mainly from five birdies on the last six holes of the back nine (his first nine). After carding two bogeys on his second nine, he eagled No. 7. Akina missed the cut to match play in this week’s U.S. Amateur in San Francisco. State Am champion Bowen Mauss, who made match play, posted a 69 at Riverside, as did State Am semifinalist David Liechty, who won a first-round match at The Olympic Club.    

Robison, who was last year’s low amateur in Provo with a closing 64, eagled the par-5 Nos. 5 and 13. McKinlay, a Canadian who won four straight tournaments as a UVU senior in 2022-23, is now a pro. He played bogey-free golf Friday with six birdies. 

Click here for the Larry H. Miller Utah Open leaderboard heading into Saturday’s second round.

Opening round recap story written by Fairways Media senior writer Kurt Kragthorpe. Photography by Fairways Media/Garrit Johnson.

The morning wave at the 99th playing of the Larry H. Miller Utah Open belonged to BYU junior and this year’s Utah State Amateur runner-up Simon Kwon, who fired an 8-under 64 at Riverside Country Club — two shots clear of Brandon Robison and Brady McKinlay.

Starting on the back nine, Kwon went to work on Riverside’s par 5s, birdieing three of them and eagling the other. 

“I missed one green all day and hit a lot of wedges close,” Kwon said. “I just wanted to be super present, not thinking about a number, just the shot in front of me.”

Comfortable on a course he knows well from BYU qualifying rounds, Kwon admitted to feeling the good kind of pressure early. “On hole 10 I thought, ‘Man, this is great — I love this pressure, I love this field.’”

A couple of late bogeys kept him from going lower, but in the morning wave of Round 1, Kwon’s scorecard already has everyone chasing. Click here for live scoring.

Larry H. Miller Utah Open opening round morning wave recap and photography by Fairways Media/Randy Dodson & Garrit Johnson.

Ever since the Utah Section PGA launched the Larry H. Miller Utah Women’s Open, Executive Director Devin Dehlin has wanted to attract more out-of-state professionals.

Dehlin may have discovered the formula: Sending a Utah high school graduate to an out-of-state college, having him meet a women’s golf team member and eventually ask her to marry him and live in his hometown. 

Well, it worked in the case of Emilee Hoffman, who became the champion of the ninth Utah Women’s Open at The Country Club in Salt Lake City. 

Hoffman (71-73) balanced eight birdies and eight bogeys over two days in a three-stroke victory over Haley Sturgeon (78-69), who nearly produced an even bigger, close-to-home story. After helping bring the tournament to the club where she works as assistant pro and securing additional sponsorships that doubled the size of the winner’s check ($4,000), Sturgeon “almost won the tournament,” as Dehlin marveled during the awards presentation. 

Sturgeon was 5 under par through 16 holes of Tuesday’s final round before bogeying the last two holes. Starting the day seven shots behind, she applied all kinds of pressure to Hoffman, not that the eventual champion actually noticed. 

Hoffman refused to check any on-line scoring updates until approaching the No. 18 green and asking her father/caddie, Jeff, how she stood. His reply: “I think you’re good.”

So let’s connect the dots that brought Hoffman to Utah. She grew up in Northern California and went to the University of Texas to play golf in 2016. During their freshman year, she met Garek Bielaczyc, a Longhorn distance runner from Salt Lake City’s East High School. They became engaged last August and plan to be married in Austin, Texas, on Oct. 24. 

Having lived in Arizona as an LPGA Epson Tour player, Hoffman moved to Utah in January to join her fiance, who works in banking. She teaches lessons at Salt Lake City’s golf courses, describing that role as “a nice change of pace for me.”

Hoffman added, “It’s just been a really warm welcome here. I’m loving living in Utah.”

In winning her first title since the 2020 Arizona Women’s Open, she showed some resilience. “It’s easy to make bogeys out here, because it’s so tough, and you really can’t beat yourself down when that happens,” Hoffman said. “You’ve just got to stay patient with it and keep believing in yourself. I feel like I did a great job of that this week.”

Even though her comeback fell short, Sturgeon also was at the heart of this tournament. As Dehlin said, “This wouldn’t have happened without Haley.” A $3,000 second-place check was among the rewards for her efforts both before and during the tournament, having increased sponsorships among the club’s membership. 

In the process, Hoffman and Sturgeon led the strongest-ever showing for pros in the Utah Women’s Open, after college golfers had won past six titles. BYU senior Sunbin Seo (76-72) of Provo, who tied for third overall, was the only amateur in the top six. 

Seo tied with rookie pro Ali Mulhall (76-72) of Washington, Utah, who holed out for an eagle on the par-4 No. 7 in the final round. Arizona pro Leighton Shosted (74-75), who started her college career at Utah Valley University, bounced back from a rough front nine to birdie three of the last six holes and finish fifth.

The Country Club was a tough test, while attracting a starting field of 89 players that nearly doubled the average size of the previous eight years. “What an amazing site we’ve been able to experience,” Dehlin said.   

Click here for the Larry H. Miller Utah Women’s Open final leaderboard

Final round recap of the Larry H. Miller Utah Women’s Open written by Fairways Media senior writer Kurt Kragthorpe. Photography by Fairways Media/Randy Dodson.

In the past six years, one college golfer after another has won the Larry H. Miller Utah Women’s Open. The trend could end Tuesday, amid wedding plans that have helped bring that possibility into play. 

Emilee Hoffman will take a three-stroke lead into the final round at The Country Club. The former Epson Tour pro carded five birdies and four bogeys for a 71 in the opening round. She was followed by Herriman High School senior Natalie Mclane and rookie pro Leighton Shosted at 74. The pros are playing for a $4,000 first prize. 

Hoffman, 27, is a California native who played for the University of Texas and then lived in Arizona during her Epson Tour tenure. So what’s she doing in Salt Lake City? Hoffman is engaged to East High School graduate Garek Bielaczyc. They met in Austin, Texas (the site of their wedding in October), where he was a distance runner for the Longhorns. 

Hoffman birdied the par-3 No. 2 and the par-5 No. 3, then mixed in bogeys and birdies the rest of the way. 

After eight years at public venues in Utah County, the Utah Women’s Open moved to The Country Club for the ninth edition. The first-round scores were high. Only 21 players in the starting field of 89 shot in the 70s, with conditions becoming more difficult when the wind kicked up in the afternoon.

Each of the top three players birdied the par-5 No. 17, then bogeyed the par-4 No. 18. Mclane, who won the Utah Section PGA’s Junior Major Championship last week, overcame a double bogey on the par-5 No. 13 to post her 74. 

Shosted, whose college career took her to Utah Valley, Grand Canyon and Tennessee, turned pro this summer. The Arizona native also absorbed a double bogey, on the par-4 No. 7. 

Three golfers will start the final round five shots behind Hoffman: Raina Riml, a recent Wasatch High School graduate; rookie pro Ali Mulhall, who has played the Women’s All Pro Tour and made her LPGA Tour debut in the Black Desert Championship in May; and Timpview High School alum Sunbin Seo, who was in and out of BYU’s tournament lineup the past three seasons. 

Larry H. Miller Utah Women’s Open Round One leaderboard.

Written by Fairways Media seinor writer Kurt Kragthorpe. Photography by Fairways Media/Garrit Johnson and Randy Dodson.