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With the second Utah PGA Junior Series Majors in the bag, as the 36-hole Valley View/Davis Park Major concluded on July 1^st, several juniors punched their tickets to the season-ending Promontory Major Championship, and a few are that much closer to the exemptions awarded into the 2021 Siegfried & Jensen Utah Open and Utah Women’s Open.

Boys 17-18

Tanner Telford and Willard Richards were neck-and-neck after the first round at Valley View, both carding a (-4) 68. It would remain a tight race until the end.

Telford’s (-7) 64 at Davis Park was just one-shot better than Richard’s 65. One shot is all it takes as Telford finished birdie, par, birdie his last three holes.

“It was a lot of fun out there, being close with Willard. It was fun to compete with him. I knew we were right there together until the last hole, it was close.”

With a T4 finish in the Glenmoor Major and the victory at Valley View & Davis Park, Telford is in first place in the Majors’ points race. Finishing first in points at the end of the season would provide a ticket into the Utah Open. Another way in is to win the Promontory Major Championship.

Girls 17-18

There’s certainly never a bad time to win a golf tournament, but Carly Belliston certainly picked a good time to notch her first win.

With rounds of (+3) 85-74 Belliston played her way into a playoff with first-round leader, and Glenmoor Major winner, Millie Terrion. A par on the first playoff hole, Davis Park’s 9^th hole, was all it took for Belliston to become a Utah PGA Junior Series Major champion.

“It feels really good, this is a personal record for me today, so it’s a good day.” Belliston said. “I was feeling really nervous (in the playoff). Millie is such a good player, so it’s fun to have that high competition.”

Boys 15-16

Extra holes would become a theme of the final round at Davis Park, as half of the divisions ended in playoffs, including KJ Ofahengaue and Carter Papke as they finished 5-under after 36 holes.

Ofahengaue, who won the Glenmoor Major, finished regulation with a pitch-in eagle on the 17^th hole and a birdie on 18. He would continue his strong play into the playoff by driving the green on Davis Park’s first hole and two putting for birdie.

“I knew I was tied going into the last hole and I knew I needed a birdie on 18. He drove the green (and birdied) so I was just trying to build on my momentum,” Ofahengaue said. “My game is in a good spot right now.”

Girls 15-16

Madalyn Hadley started the Major off strong at Valley View with a (+1) 73 and never looked back.

With a final-round 75 at Davis, she won the Girls 15-16 division by four strokes over Ellie DeMond (+9) and by six over third-place finisher Ashley Lam (+11).

“It feels really good,” Hadley said about her win, “my game has been struggling lately a little bit, but I played well the last two days so I’m proud of myself.

“I love playing Promontory, it’s a great course to play and a great opportunity.”

Boys 13-14

Starting the final-round two shots behind leader Max Landon, Cayson VanBeekum posted a (-5) 66 to climb his way into a playoff with Landon, who shot a final-round 68. Both made lengthy, clutch birdies on the 36^th hole to force an extra hole.

It was the approach shots in the playoff that made the difference on the dogleg-left 9^th hole. VanBeekum knocked it close while Landon flew the pin to the back of the green.

A two-putt par was all that was needed for VanBeekum to claim the Major.

“It was pretty nerve-wracking making the 15-footer on 18 for birdie to tie Max, but then in the playoff, that was probably the most nerve-wracking par putt I’ve ever had to make,” VanBeekum said.

Girls 13-14

Kate Walker from St. George has a unique opportunity to make a clean sweep of wins in the Girls 13-14 Majors this year, collecting another win at the Valley View/Davis Park Major, following her win at Glenmoor in June.

With rounds of (+24) 90-77, Walker took another trophy home and continued to accumulate the Major Player of the Year points.

“I had a bad first day, but it’s all about coming back, which I did today,” Walker said.

Campbell Kato (+38) was runner-up while Natalie Mclane (+39) was 3^rd and Remi Rawlings (+51) 4^th.

The next Utah PGA Junior Series Major will be the Utah County Rumble played at The Oaks at Spanish Fork and Tmpanogos Golf Club on July 19-20. The Promontory Major Championship will be played July 26^th.

Thank you to Valley View, Davis Park, Davis County Directory of Golf Dustin Volk and Head Professionals Pete Stone and Zach Johnson for being gracious hosts and providing their excellent golf courses for our event.

Results

Event Photos

The 2021 Utah Junior PGA Championship is sending two boys and two girls from the 16-18 divisions at Soldier Hollow Golf Course, held on June 14-15, to the Boys Junior PGA Championship at Kearney Hills Golf Links in Lexington, Kentucky, and the Girls Junior PGA Championship at Valhalla Golf Club in Louisville, Kentucky.

The final round was a day of playoffs and extra holes to determine exemptions and champions.

In the boy’s qualifying division, Peter Kim and Parker Bunn stole the show, both going low to vault their way up the leaderboard.

Kim’s final-round 63 and Bunn’s 64 placed them tied for the lead at 11-under for the 36-hole championship. Though both earned the available exemptions, it took an extra four holes to determine a winner.

On the fourth playoff hole, Soldier Hollow’s uphill, par-four fourth hole, Kim’s nearly 400-yard drive left him with a pin-high chip, which he got up-and-down for birdie to win.

“it means a lot, I’ve won two tournaments in two weeks, and I’ve been in a little drought with wins, so it feels good to be back.”

Alternates for the Boys Junior PGA Championship are Jackson Rhees, who finished third at 7-under and KJ Ofahengaue and Carter Frisby who both finished 6-under for the event. The boy’s championship will be held July 12-15.

In the girl’s qualifying division, there was a three-way tie at the top after the first round between Ali Mulhall, Berlin Long and Sunbin Seo – all finishing at (-4) 68.

It was Mulhall who would separate herself from the field with a (-3) 69 in the final round to get to 7-under and win the Utah Junior PGA Championship.

“I was down heading to the back nine, but got it back. I made birdie on 10 and then eagled 16 and 18.”

Mulhall, who won her age division in the National Drive, Chip and Putt Championship at Augusta National back in April, will be adding to her already impressive resume when she competes at Valhalla on July 27-30.

A three-hole playoff was needed between Long and Seo, tied at 3-under, for the second exemption spot.

Long won the playoff with a par on the par-three third hole to earn her way into the Girls Junior PGA Championship.

“This was one of my biggest goals this season, to qualify for this tournament. I was able to go a couple of years ago and it was really fun. I’m excited to be able to qualify for it again.”

The extra holes didn’t stop with the older divisions, in the Girls 13-15 division, Kate Walker and Alyssa Meadows finished tied at 15-over after 36 holes.

A par on the first playoff hole was all that was required for Walker. She shot rounds of 82-77 to maximize her trip up from her home-town St. George. She won her division in last week’s Glenmoor Major as well.

Whitni Johnson finished third at (+34) 84-94.

In the Boys 13-15 division, a final-round 69 from Chase Burton was more than enough to come from behind and win. With rounds of (-2) 73-69, he won by three over Max Landon (+1) and Carter Papke and Will Olson who tied for third at 2-over.

Thank you to Soldier Hollow Head Professional Chris Newson and his staff for hosting the 2021 Utah PGA Junior Championship and best of luck to our qualifiers in Kentucky.

Click HERE for results.

Click HERE for tournament photos.

The 2021 Utah PGA Junior Series Majors season has arrived and the Glenmoor Major on June 11-12 at Glenmoor Golf Club didn’t disappoint with some final-round heroics.

With two Utah State Amateur exemption spots on the line for the Boys 15-18 division, Jackson Mauss shared the first-round lead with Rawson Hardy with a (-4) 68.

 However, every golfer knows that it doesn’t get real until the back nine of the final round in a Major and Mauss took that to heart with six birdies. A 30 on the back nine led to a (-7) 65 – 11-under for the tournament to take the top spot.

“It feels really good to win the Glenmoore Major,” Mauss said. “This was a big win for me. I always love to play at Glenmoore because of the great greens and the course is always in great shape.

“On the back nine, I hit eight of 9 greens and my putter caught fire. I only had 12 putts.”

It was KJ Ofahengaue that would claim the second State Am exemption, and win the Boys 15-16 Division, firing a (-5) 70-69 for the tournament.

“It feels great to get into the State Am,” Ofahengaue said. “I can’t wait to play. I’d like to qualify for match play this year and make a good run at it.”

In the Boys 13-14 division, the importance of those final-9 holes in a Major rang true again, as Max Landon finished eagle, par, birdie, eagle – to not only claim his third eagle of the day, but to win the division by three with rounds of (-2) 73-69.

“I knew what I needed to do the last couple of holes so I played pretty aggressive and tried to make some putts,” Landon said. It’s nice to win and It’s good to qualify for Promontory.”

The boys’ divisions didn’t take all the final-round heroics, in the Girls 17-18 Division, Millie Terrion started the final round two-strokes behind first-round leader Cheyenne Hansen and would go on to win by four with a final-round (-1) 71.

“I definitely figured out the greens a lot more today,” Terrion said. “I played last year in the Promontory event so it’s good to qualify again. I’m looking forward to it.”

Not only did Terrion come from behind to win her age division, she also won the Girls Majors Points division by one stroke.

It was Ashley Lam and Ellie DeMond who led the girls after round one with 74s but it would be Lam who would win the Girl’s 15-16 division with a final round 76.

“It means a lot to win since I’ve been playing a lot this week,” Lam said.

And to round out the Girl’s divisions was St. George resident Kate Walker that won the Girls 13-14 Division with rounds of (+12) 76-80, winning by 27 strokes.

“My putting and chipping were very good,” Walker said. “The win shows that I’ve worked hard.”

That’s a wrap for the first Utah PGA Junior Series Major of the season. With qualifying spots starting to fill in for the season-ending Promontory Major Championship, we look on to the Davis Valley View PGA Junior Major on Jun 30 – July 1.

A big thank you to PGA Head Pro Darci Olsen and the entire Glenmoor staff for hosting our championship with excellent tournament conditions and hospitality.

Results HERE

Tournament photos HERE

Davis County Director of Golf and Utah PGA Honorary President Dustin Volk won the 2021 Utah Section PGA Match Play Championship at Hubbard Golf Course at Hill Air Force Base on May 26^th, earning a career “Hat Trick” winning it for the third time.

Volk may have had the most challenging road to victory within this year’s bracket, facing Chris Moody, Tommy Sharp and Zach Johnson his last three matches. From 2012 to 2019, the Utah PGA Player of the Year consisted of those three PGA Professionals. Volk won the honor in 2011.

“I kind of got a little emotional, to be honest,” Volk said. “I’m grateful for my friends I compete against – Zach in particular, we had a good hug on our last hole. Just grateful for relationships and friendships.

“I was just trying to have fun. To be honest, the first couple matches I was tinkering with my swing and trying to find something. I made the turn with Moody and quit trying to tinker and just started to play. It freed me up.”

With a “what do I have to lose?” attitude, Volk found momentum that would carry him through three heavy-weight matches until he was holding the trophy at the end.

With a 2&1 victory against Moody, Volk found himself four-down after five holes in the semifinal match with Sharp. “I was a little down in the dumps but with that mindset, I got back in the match. I don’t have anything to lose, that’s how I’m looking at playing now.”

Volk won the semifinal match one-up against Sharp.

“I was pretty happy how I held it together being four down after five and winning the match, that was my best of the week. I won a couple holes, he clearly gave me a couple, but you take what you get and have a good attitude.”

Playing against a friend and co-worker in Zach Johnson in the championship match, Volk describes as “Awkwardly good.”

“We’re buddies and we work together. We played the match in 2 hours 20 minutes. Neither of us were playing awesome, we weren’t 9-under par, but it got to a point where I’m a couple up and we’re going into our 14^th hole and he hit it out of bounds, which isn’t hard to do there. That got me three-up with four to go. It was just true match play, I just didn’t make any huge mistakes.”

Volk won on their 17^th hole 2&1.

“It means a lot,” he said about winning. “With all the changes and the tense times, it means a lot. Hopefully winning will breed the desire to play more.

“It was fun to have some of those nerves in all of those matches. I could feel the pressure that I hadn’t felt for a few years.” Volk previously won the Utah PGA Match Play Championship in 2006 and 2010.

Click HERE for the 2021 Utah PGA Match Play Bracket.

Photos: Garrit Johnson / Fairways Media

May is here and so is the newest addition of Utah PGA Monthly digital magazine!

In this issue we feature Quentin Sasser’s journey in discovering golf, the PGA of America and becoming the Utah Section PGA’s first African American member.

Jordan Van Orman shares why he plays the game today, Lynsey Myers highlights how to get more women in the game and we play an emergency 9 with Carl Sarahs.

Read it HERE.

Every golfer dreams of playing in golf’s Majors, even PGA Professionals. For Eagle Lake Golf Course Director of Instruction Joe Summerhays, he’s been there before and heading in comfortable and confident his second time around.

Summerhays finished T8 in the PGA Professional Championship this week to earn his spot in the PGA Championship at the Kiawah Island Ocean Course May 20-23. He competed in the 2016 PGA Championship at Baltursrol, the year his cousin Daniel Summerhays finished third.

“It is very satisfying,” Joe said of qualifying again. “One of the things that I’ve learned over the years is to enjoy the good times in your golf career because there are a lot of down times as well. To qualify for the PGA this year is one of those good times. I will enjoy the experience for sure.”

Summerhays needed par on the 18^th hole of the PGA Professional Championship to qualify without playing in a playoff. His drive found tree trouble, but with a gap in the trees and a precise iron shot, he hit the green and two putted his way in.

In between his first Major appearance and his next, he’s won several Utah Section events, including 2020’s Utah Section Championship, earning the Utah PGA Omega Player of the Year award.  

“I hope to enjoy the experience this time around, be comfortable, confident and treat this tournament as an opportunity that doesn’t come around often,” he said. “Golf wise, I hope to treat it just like any other tournament I play in. A good shot in golf requires a good mental state. I hope to continue to do the things I’ve been doing, as far as my routine, so I can play the best I can – one shot at a time.”

Summerhays will be the 10^th Utah Section PGA Professional in the last eight years to compete in the PGA Championship.

Cover Photo: Montana Pritchard/PGA of America

The Utah Section PGA will be well represented with nine Section members competing in the 2021 PGA Professional Championship on April 25-28 in Port St. Lucie, Florida at PGA Golf Club. 

After a year off from the annual PGA Professional Championship, PGA Professionals around the country will once again have the chance to compete on a national stage and a shot to qualify for the PGA Championship, which will be played at Kiawah Island Golf Resort’s Ocean Course May 20-23.

Among the qualified Section pros competing in Florida is 2020 Utah PGA Omega Player of the Year Joe Summerhays.

“My game is in good shape,” said Summerhays. “There are several things I like about the PPC. Usually the courses are fun to play and the overall feel of the event. It feels like a big event.”

The top 20 finishers will move on to Kiawah to play in the PGA Championship with the best golfers in the world.

Each round of the 53^rd PGA Professional Championship will be broadcasted on the Golf Channel.

Best of luck to:

Matt Baird
Jeff Brehaut
Craig Hocknull
Zach Johnson
Chris Moody
Aaron Purviance
Steve Schneiter
Pete Stone
Bruce Summerhays
Joe Summerhays

For more information click here: https://www.pgaprochampionship.com/

By Kurt Kragthorpe

Road to the LPGA

When she joined the BYU women’s golf program as a non-scholarship player from North Carolina, Kendra Dalton (cover photo) was not a likely LPGA Tour prospect.

Here she is, though, closer to reaching that level than any former Cougar since Carrie Summerhays Roberts, now BYU’s coach, who qualified for the LPGA Tour nearly 20 years ago. Dalton is an established player on the Symetra Tour, which is staging the inaugural Copper Rock Championship this week.

The event is a homecoming for Dalton and Haley Sturgeon, a Dixie State University graduate who received a sponsor exemption to compete for the $200,000 purse Thursday through Saturday at Copper Rock Golf Club in Hurricane.

As the fourth of 20 tournaments in 2021, the Copper Rock Championship is another opportunity for Dalton to move up the money list. She’s 3 for 3 in making 36-hole cuts and, while her final rounds could be better, she likes the way she’s playing.

Dalton won consecutive tournaments on the Cactus Tour in Arizona in February, when some members of both the LPGA and Symetra Tours were preparing for their seasons. Those performances reflected the work she has done with Milo Lines, a former Utah Section PGA member who’s now teaching at Superstition Mountain GC in Arizona.

“My game’s really good and I’m excited to play the whole year and I feel good about moving on and getting (LPGA) status,” Dalton said.

That would require finishing in the top 10 on the Symetra Tour money list; Dalton is No. 27 through three events.

Dream Come True

Sturgeon was thrilled when John Horton, Copper Rock’s head PGA professional, awarded her the exemption into the Copper Rock Championship. As she said in February, after Horton delivered the news on the driving range during the Utah Section PGA’s Winter Classic, the exemption “kind of just seemed like a far-fetched dream when I first asked John about it.”

Sturgeon, who works as an assistant pro at The Country Club of Salt Lake City, is making her first Symetra Tour appearance. “Hopefully, it’s not my last,” she said.

The Korn Ferry Tour, the men’s equivalent of the Symetra Tour, offers a spot in the next event to any player who finishes in the top 25. In Sturgeon’s case, she would have to win the Copper Rock Championship to gain any status. She’s embracing that opportunity, while eager to see how her game compares.

Here’s a good sign: Sturgeon finished solo fourth in the Cactus Tour event that Dalton won in a three-way playoff with two touring pros in Queen Creek, Arizona. That performance showed her that “I can compete with those girls, even though I don’t have status, and knowing that I belong here,” Sturgeon said.

Dalton is a BYU success story, having improved every year of her stay in Provo. She was known for consistency, finishing in the top 20 in 29 of 45 events for the Cougars. In her final three years, she won three tournaments and finished second seven times. She helped BYU reach the NCAA Championships as a sophomore in 2016, the same year when she beat teammate Lea Garner in the final match of the Women’s State Amateur at Victory Ranch.

And in 2018, she turned pro and immediately qualified for the Symetra Tour, via the LPGA Tour Qualifying Tournament. She made 21 starts in the 2019 season and finished 56th on the money list with $20,185. That showing became even more significant when the COVID-19 pandemic reduced the tour’s 2020 schedule to 10 events, while every player’s status was frozen through 2021.

In essence, golfers’ 2020 earnings didn’t matter, as everyone started over this season. That helped Dalton, who expects to thrive in her third year. “I know what the travel is like, I know a lot of the golf courses, I know how the tour kind of runs,” she said. “And all of it’s a little bit overwhelming your first year, because it’s so different from college golf; you’re kind of out there on your own trying to figure it out. So that definitely is a nice thing, to feel a little more at ease.”

Sturgeon hopes to feel comfortable in the Copper Rock Championship. She has done everything she could to prepare for her Symetra Tour debut, traveling to Hurricane several times in the past two months.

The former Haley Dunn is married to Davis Sturgeon, who she describes as “my kindergarten sweetheart.” She’s working steadily toward PGA membership, while trying to maximize her playing ability.

Before focusing on golf, Sturgeon was a high-level junior ski racer and a Layton High School cheerleader known as the “tumble queen.” Injuries led her to give up ski racing, and she considered cheerleading in college before pursuing golf at Utah Valley University and then Dixie State.

Sturgeon won two Pac-West Conference individual titles for DSU, helping the women’s golf program get established. She pointed to those St. George-area ties in asking for the sponsor exemption, and she’s determined to follow through with a good showing in the Copper Rock Championship. Dalton and Sturgeon are part of featured pairings in the first two rounds, as announced by the Symetra Tour. Dalton will tee off at 8:47 a.m. Thursday, playing with Rachel Rohanna and Gigi Stoll. Sturgeon plays at 12:05 p.m. with Katelyn Dambaugh and Sophie Hausman.

Story by Kurt Kragthorpe for Fairways Media, Photos by Cactus Tour/Noah Montgomery and Fairways Media/Randy Dodson.

Former Utah Section PGA President Chris Stover and Wasatch Pro Joe Barton teamed up and went low in the 2021 Utah PGA Spring Pro-Pro at Ogden Golf & Country Club April 20^th to win with a Four-Ball score of (-8) 64.

Not only did they win the championship but they claimed the second seed in the 2021 Utah PGA Four-Ball Championship, behind 2020 champs Chris Moody and Mark Owen of Riverside Country Club and Mountain View Golf Course, who automatically claimed the top seed.

“I’ve been working really hard at it for years,” Barton said of his first professional win. “But to get it done with Chris was really fun. Everything just came together and to start the season with a 65 and a win, feels really good.”

Barton shot a (-7) 65 on his own ball, a new tournament personal record for the PGA associate.

“I can remember coaching Joe in high School at Manti while I was the Head Professional at Palisade,” Stover said. “Joe was so good yesterday that I kind of felt like I was coaching him again versus being his playing partner.  

“It was a fun way to end my time as his boss at Wasatch, and just like yesterday on the course, the student has become the teacher. Joe has a bright future in golf and I’m proud of him!”

Davis County Director of Golf Dustin Volk and Valley View Head Pro Pete Stone tied for second place at (-6) 66 with Palisade Head Pro Jordan Van Orman and Sunset View Head Pro Casey Fowles.

Immediately following the completion of the Spring Pro-Pro, the first round of the season-long Four-Ball Championship began. The top 32 teams of the morning round advanced to match play.

Stover and Barton continued their hot play with a 5 & 4 win over Lynn Landgren and Brad Stone in the round of 32.

Number-one seed Owen and Moody also advanced to the round of 16 with a 5 & 4 win over Nate Olson and Tyler St Jeor.

Thank you to Bob Wallis, Craig Sarlo and the Ogden Golf & Country Club staff for hosting the Section membership for the day and thank you to Charley Carlson of JC Golf Accessories for sponsoring the event and supporting the Utah PGA.

Click here for Spring Pro-Pro results.

Click here for Four-Ball Championship bracket.

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