Most notably, Ballyneal (pictured), the Tom Doak-designed layout in Holyoke, was ranked fourth among the Best Modern courses, which Golfweek classifies as having opened since 1960.

Only Sand Hills in Mullen, Neb. (No. 1), Pacific Dunes in Bandon, Ore. (No. 2) and Friar’s Head in Baiting Hollow, N.Y., were ahead of Ballyneal in the rankings. And, for the record, Doak was the designer or co-designer of four of the top six on the list, with Coloradan Jim Urbina officially co-designing No. 5 Old Macdonald in Bandon and helping considerably with Pacific Dunes and No. 6 Sebonack in Southamption, N.Y., where Jack Nicklaus was the co-designer.

Also among Golfweek’s Best Modern courses are Colorado Golf Club in Parker, site of next year’s U.S. Mid-Amateur Championship. The Bill Coore-Ben Crenshaw layout checks in at No. 33.

And Castle Pines Golf Club, home to the PGA Tour’s International from 1986 through 2006, was No. 52. The Nicklaus-designed Castle Pines GC opened in 1981.

Meanwhile, in Golfweek’s Best Classic top 100 is Cherry Hills Country Club, host to three U.S. Opens, two PGA Championships and a U.S. Women’s Open. Cherry Hills falls at No. 89, according to Golfweek.

Pine Valley in New Jersey is No. 1 on the Best Classic list, which is limited to courses which opened before 1960.

Golfweek also lists its take on the “Best Courses You Can Play” in each state. Here’s the magazine’s top 10 for Colorado:

1. Redlands Mesa, Grand Junction
Ҭ2. The Broadmoor (East), Colorado Springs Ҭ
3. Red Sky (Fazio), Wolcott Ҭ
4. Haymaker, Steamboat Springs
Ҭ5. CommonGround, AuroraӬ
6. The Broadmoor (West), Colorado Springs Ҭ
7. Bear Dance, Larkspur Ҭ
8. Red Sky (Norman), Wolcott Ҭ
9. The Ridge at Castle Pines NorthӬ
10. Lakota Canyon, New Castle

For the full Golfweek lists, click MODERN, CLASSIC, YOU CAN PLAY.
 

Bryant (left), who won the 5A state high school title on Tuesday to go with his 2017 victories in the Colorado Junior PGA and the Colorado Junior Amateur, birdied his final three holes to fire a 2-under-par 70 in the boys tournament. The Colorado State University-bound golfer finished with seven birdies, three bogeys and a double bogey on Saturday.

Canon Olkowski of Grand Junction, who finished third behind Bryant and Dillon Stewart on Tuesday in the 5A state meet, sits in second place at 72 after going eagle-birdie on his final two holes. He carded an eagle, four birdies and six bogeys on Saturday.

In a four-way tie for third at 73 with one round remaining are Cal McCoy of Highlands Ranch, Barrett Jones of Eagle, Kailer Rundiks of Denver and Joseph Madden of Denver.

Schalk, winner of the AJGA Hale Irwin Colorado Junior, the Colorado Junior PGA and the 3A state high school title this year, shot a 2-over-par 74 on Saturday to earn a two-stroke lead going into Sunday’s final round of the girls tourney.

The 15-year-old made 16 pars — including 10 in a row to close the round — and two bogeys on Saturday.

The two other girls to break 80 in the first round were Julia Baroth of Denver (76) and Caroline Jordaan (78), who’s competing at her home club this weekend.

For scores from the JGAC Tour Championship, click on the following: BOYS, GIRLS.

A total of 42 boys and 21 girls — based off the JGAC Tour points list — accepted invitations to compete at prestigious Cherry Hills Country Club on Saturday and Sunday (Oct. 7-8), which will host the event for the second straight year. The 36-hole tournaments will be followed on Sunday night by the 2017 JGAC Awards Banquet.

Among those in the boys field are Davis Bryant, winner of the first two majors of the year and this week’s 5A state high school championship. Bryant and Hailey Schalk will be trying to become the first golfers to win three majors since the JGAC debuted at the beginning of 2016. Bryant didn’t play in the third major of 2017, the Colorado Junior Match Play, because of a scheduling conflict with another event.

Other boys state high school champions scheduled to play at Cherry Hills are Darren Edwards (4A) and Davis Long (3A), along with Luke Trujillo (2016 4A).

For the girls, Schalk will be looking to build on her big year as she’s won the girls 3A state high school title as a freshman, the AJGA Hale Irwin Colorado Junior and the Colorado Junior PGA Championship. She also captured the Colorado Junior Match Play title in 2016.

Lauren Lehigh, the 4A state high school champ, is also playing. And Emma Bryant, the Colorado Junior Match Play winner, is likewise in the field.

For Saturday’s first-round tee times for the JGAC Tour Championship, CLICK HERE.

Junior Ryder Cup at CommonGround: Meanwhile, another significant JGAC event will take place this weekend as CommonGround Golf Course in Aurora hosts the Junior Ryder Cup Friday through Sunday.

The top players age 6-13 compete, with designated Team USA and Team Europe squads squaring off. After a barbecue and shootout on Friday evening, Saturday will feature four-ball and foursomes matches (each nine holes), followed by 18-hole singles on Sunday.

The Evans Cup of Colorado raises money for the Evans Scholarship for caddies, and Western Golf Association director and state chairman Geoff “Duffy” Solich said it’s hoped that Monday’s event will net about $140,000 for the cause.

The University of Colorado has been home to an Evans Scholars house since the 1960s, and many of the roughly 60 current CU Evans Scholars (left) attended the festivities at Cherry Hills.

About 112 golfers played in the tournament despite temperatures in the 40s, and 200 attended the dinner.

Highlighting that dinner was World Golf Hall of Famer and three-time U.S. Open champion Hale Irwin, who grew up in Boulder and played golf and football at CU. Irwin participated in a Q&A with TV sports personality/emcee Vic Lombardi, and he provided advice and encouragement to the current Evans Scholars.

Dale Douglass, like Irwin a former CU golfer who’s a member of the Colorado Sports Hall of Fame, was also in attendance as an honored guest.

“It was a great event,” Solich, himself a former CU Evans Scholar, said via email. “We had great sponsors; BMW continues to support our event, (and) we had a very lively auction. All the Scholars joined us for dinner and took the stage at the same time. Hale was fabulous (and) Cherry Hills did an amazing job hosting the event.”

The Evans Cup of Colorado dates back to the early 1980s, when it was founded as the Par Club Tournament. The full tuition and housing Evans Scholarship is awarded to high-achieving caddies with limited financial means, The WGA, which adminsters the Evans Scholarship, has long partnered with the CGA and CWGA in supporting the scholarship at CU.
 

When John Ogden shook hands with playoff opponent Rick Cole after winning the Colorado PGA Professional Championship on Wednesday, he did so gingerly with his left hand.

That seemed only fitting given that the two professionals who squared off for the title are seniors by PGA tournament standards, with many of the ailments and maladies that come with age.

In Ogden’s case, his right elbow has been giving him fits, so he had to improvise — both with the handshake and with his swing at Red Sky Golf Club in Wolcott.

But in spite of their age — Ogden is 50 and Cole 64 — the two finished atop the leaderboard at the Colorado PGA’s biggest tournament of the year, ahead of a field that included plenty of guys in their 20s and 30s. In fact, had Cole won, Colorado PGA records indicate he would have been the oldest champion in this event, by far, and the tournament dates back to 1958.

“The gray-haired guys, that was pretty good,” Ogden said with a smile afterward. “But Rick’s got a few more years than me on the gray hairs.”

But the “seniors make good” theme didn’t stop with Ogden and Cole. The top dozen finishers included seven pros who are 50 and older. Besides Ogden and Cole, there was three-time champion Doug Rohrbaugh (55), Barry Milstead (50), former PGA Tour player Larry Rinker (60), Paul Lobato (54) and three-time winner Bill Loeffler (61).

“I think the seniors definitely had the advantage in the tournament,” Cole said. “We’re hitting drivers on some of the holes (where younger players) are hitting 4-irons and 5-irons and 3-woods. I think that was an equalizer on this golf course, to be honest with you.”

Appropriately enough, being the PGA head professional at Cherry Hills Country Club for the last decade, Ogden (above and left) earned a trophy on Wednesday that bears the name of Colorado Golf Hall of Famer Ralph “Rip” Arnold, who himself served as the head pro at Cherry Hills. Also for being the best of the bunch this week at the Fazio Course at Red Sky, Ogden received the $8,000 first prize — and promptly announced that he was donating half of that total to the Colorado PGA REACH Foundation.

“That’s such a great foundation,” he said. “I’ve sat on that foundation board in years past. I think it’s the right thing to do. Money is money. It’s nice, but I just like to compete. I’ve never been about winning money or anything like that. I’ve been very blessed in my life and my profession, so anything I can do to help out, I’m happy to help out.”

Despite his right elbow issues — which he said might eventually require surgery — Ogden had what it took to claim this title for the first time. But, again, he had to improvise.

“I usually play right-hand (dominant), and I played left-armed this week,” he said.

“When you play left-armed, it’s kind of like old school. When I was a kid I took some lessons from Stan Thirsk, who was Tom Watson’s instructor. I kind of went back to some of those thoughts and had some of those images of those lessons with Stan. All I was doing was letting my arm get up vertical and letting my left arm pass. I kind of had an image of Tom Watson in my head too.”

And that did the job for Ogden. He hit a 400-yard drive on the downhill par-5 final hole in regulation and two-putted from 20 feet for birdie to force a playoff with Cole, then won in sudden death on the same hole with a bogey.

Ogden shot a 2-under-par 70 on Wednesday to post a 4-under 212 total.

Cole, the PGA head pro at Eaton Country Club for the last 32 years, also checked in at that figure after finishing birdie-birdie. He nearly aced the 156-yard 17th hole, then two-putted from 30 feet to close out regulation. His 67 was Wednesday’s best round by two strokes.

Kirk Trowbridge of the MetaGolf Learning Center finished tied for third at 213 after leading early on the back nine on Wednesday. After making an eagle and two birdies on the front side and shooting a 4-under 32, his Waterloo came on the par-4 13th hole. There, he lost two balls — one right off his tee shot and one over the green when the wind shifted as he was hitting his approach — and he had to sink a 6-foot putt for a triple bogey.

Still, Trowbridge would have been part of the playoff had he sunk his 6-foot eagle putt on 18, but he missed and settle for birdie. His 70 put him at 213, one back of Ogden and Cole.

Asked if he was playing “what-if” after what happened on the 13th hole, Trowbridge said no. “I also made an eagle and a couple of birdies early on, so that’s golf, right? I’m happy. I probably managed my game this week better than maybe ever.”

Sharing third place at 213 with Trowbridge was 2016 champion Geoff Keffer from the Greater Golfer Development Center at Park Hill. Keffer had a one-birdie, one-bogey final day and shot 72.

Rohrbaugh, who’s believed to be the oldest winner of the tournament when he claimed the title in 2015 at age 53, placed fifth on Wednesday at 215 after carding a final-round 71.

The playoff on the 18th hole wasn’t pretty — as both participants readily admitted — but Ogden posted a bogey to win, while Cole made a double bogey. It was a far cry from their birdies in regulation, but both players paid the price for their tee shots.

Ogden thought his drive was as good as the one he hit in regulation on the hole, but it bounced into the environmentally sensitive area right of the rough and he was forced to take a penalty. Cole (left), usually a fixture in the fairway off the tee, double-crossed his drive and his ball shot left and “onto somebody’s back patio, but there’s no out of bounds stakes,” he noted. If Cole’s memory serves, it was just his second missed fairway of the entire tournament, though he hadn’t seen the course before Monday’s first round.

After the awry drive, “I thought I hit a perfect shot out of there,” Cole said. “I see a ball down there in the middle of the fairway — which was my provisional; I forgot I hit a provisional because I’m kind of old — so I’m thinking, ‘What a shot.’ But somebody comes down and says, ‘Rick, your ball went into a hazard’ (on the right side, where Ogden had hit his tee shot). I said, ‘You’ve got to be kidding me. Really?’ It hit really, really hard and bounced into the hazard. So I took a drop, and it was (all but done) at that point because John was greenside in three.”

Ogden was indeed laying 3 in a greenside bunker. And after Cole hit a 7-iron to just short of the green and a pitch that ended up 18 feet shy of the cup, Ogden blasted to about 20 feet. He two-putted for bogey and Cole did likewise for double bogey and that was the tournament.

“I didn’t see this one coming,” Ogden said of the victory. “I’ve got a messed-up right elbow. And I haven’t played very good in the last month. I didn’t play good last week at the Smith-Cole (at Cherry Hills). And at 50, I thought my days of (possibly) winning this, those times were past. But you just never know.

“This means the world. It’s probably the biggest victory of my professional career, that’s for sure,” added the former University of Kansas golfer, who once beat John Daly to win the Missouri Open. “I don’t win much, so this might be No. 1 (of his career overall). Who knows? It’ll mean a lot to my family and to my club and my staff.

“Winning is hard to do, especially in our Section where we have great players. At the (Colorado PGA) Senior Championship a few weeks ago, I shot 3 under and just got it handed to me.”

Meanwhile, Cole came ever so close to winning the Section’s top championship as a 64-year-old, which would have set the new age standard in the event by 11 years.

“I don’t even think about it to be honest with you,” he said of the age factor. “I’m just happy with the way I played, happy with the way I putted.

“I’ve got the points lead (among seniors in the Section). I thought if I could just make a good showing in this tournament I might win the points championship on the senior end of it. My goal honestly was to make the cut and get some more points on (his senior challengers). I really accomplished my goal in that regard. And I managed my game probably as well as I have all year.”

Thanks to their performances at the Colorado PGA Professional Championship, eight players qualified for the 2018 national PGA Professional Championship, set for June 17-20 at Bayonet Black Horse in Seaside, Calif.

Advancing to that event were Ogden, Cole, Trowbridge (left), Keffer, Rohrbaugh, Jack Allen of Heritage Eagle Bend, Micah Rudosky of Conquistador and Barry Milstead of Valley. Allen, Rudosky and Milstead tied for sixth place on Wednesday along with Rinker, the director of instruction at Red Sky who isn’t eligible to compete at the national championship.

For Cole, it will be the first national PGA Professional Championship he’s qualified for since 1987.

“I figured there was no chance,” he said. “So to go out there is an awesome privilege.”

Colorado PGA Professional Championship
Sept. 11-13, 2017 (final) at Par-72 Fazio Course at Red Sky GC in Wolcott
Top Finishers
1. John Ogden (won playoff on first extra hole) 72-70-70–212
2. Rick Cole 70-75-67–212
T3. Kirk Trowbridge 74-69-70–213
T3. Geoff Keffer 70-71-72–213
5. Doug Rohrbaugh 72-72-71–215
T6. Jack Allen 75-72-69–216
T6. Micah Rudosky 77-69-70–216
T6. Barry Milstead 71-72-73–216
T6. Larry Rinker 71-70-75–216
10. Paul Lobato 76-70-72–218

For complete results, CLICK HERE.
 

Ballyneal in Holyoke again was among the very best modern courses as the Tom Doak design checked in at No. 4 among courses that were built after 1960, according to Golfweek raters. The only sites ahead of Ballyneal on the Golfweek modern list were Sand Hills in Mullen, Neb. (No. 1), Pacific Dunes in Bandon, Ore. (No. 2) and Friar’s Head in Baiting Hollow, N.Y.

In fact, four of the top seven in the modern category were at least co-designed by Doak, with Old Macdonald in Bandon (No. 5) and Sebonack in Southampton, N.Y. (No. 7) joining Pacific Dunes and Ballyneal (pictured).

Other Colorado courses among the top 100 modern layouts were Colorado Golf Club in Parker (No. 33), which will host the 2019 U.S. Mid-Amateur, and Castle Pines Golf Club (No. 48), home to the PGA Tour’s International from 1986-2006.

As for Golfweek’s top 100 classic courses — which opened before 1960 — in the country, Cherry Hills Country Club made the grade. The club — which has hosted three U.S. Opens, two PGA Championships and a U.S. Women’s Open — checked in at No. 91. No. 1 in the classic category was Pine Valley in New Jersey.

For the complete Golfweek classic list, CLICK HERE. For the modern top 100, CLICK HERE.

(April 19 Update): Golfweek also published a list of the “best courses you can play” in each state”. Here’s its rundown for Colorado:

1. Redlands Mesa in Grand Junction
2. The Broadmoor (East) in Colorado Springs
3. Red Sky (Fazio) in Wolcott
4. CommonGround in Aurora
5. Haymaker in Steamboat Springs
6. The Broadmoor (West) in Colorado Springs
7. Lakota Canyon in New Castle
8. Red Sky (Norman) in Wolcott
9. Bear Dance in Larkspur
10. Ridge at Castle Pines North

Golfweek rated the states on the basis of their top five public-access golf courses, and Colorado placed 18th out of 50. For that ranking, CLICK HERE.
 

The words “life-changing” are sometimes thrown around casually. But when people use them when speaking of the Evans Scholarship for caddies, they never seem to ring hollow.

Peter Evans, an Evans Scholar at the University of Colorado, recently put into words what thousands of Scholars have felt when they realize their good fortune in being awarded full tuition and housing to college thanks to the brainchild of Charles “Chick” Evans.

“It was a dream of Chick Evans,” Peter Evans noted in a recent speech at a CU Evans Scholars house function. “He believed in a bunch of poor caddies — and it turned out so well.”

And now, at least 12 more Colorado caddies will get to share in the experience, following in the footsteps of more than 10,400 Evans Scholars alums nationwide, plus roughly 935 currently in school. It’s now estimated that the scholarship is worth an average of more than $100,000 if renewed for four years.

On Monday, the Illinois-based Western Golf Association/Evans Scholars Foundation, which administers the Evans Scholarship, announced the new recipients from Colorado, who will begin school at CU in the fall semester. The finalists for the scholarship were interviewed by a group of about 130 people on Jan. 18 at a selection meeting at Cherry Hills Country Club, home to the largest caddie program in the state.

The WGA has long partnered with the CGA and CWGA in supporting the scholarship at CU. The Evans Scholarship, awarded to high-achieving caddies with significant financial need, is a flagship program for both the CGA and CWGA. Through CGA and CWGA bag-tag sales and Par Club contributions, Colorado donors fully fund the year-to-year scholarship costs at the CU Evans Scholars house.

To qualify for an Evans Scholarship, applicants must have excellent caddie records and academic results, show strong character and leadership, and demonstrate financial need.

The new recipients include 10 young men and two young women. Of the dozen, three caddied at Cherry Hills, three at Denver Country Club and two at Boulder Country Club. A record-tying four new Scholars started caddying at the Solich Caddie & Leadership Academy at CommonGround Golf Course before graduating to Denver CC or Cherry Hills CC. Four recipients reside in Aurora.

Overall, they’ve averaged a 3.625 grade-point average and a 27.4 ACT score. Six are members of the National Honor Society.
 
“Each of these deserving Evans Scholars epitomizes what our program has been about since its creation in 1930,” said WGA chairman David Robinson. “Their dedication, hard work and sacrifice is humbling, and we are honored to be able to help them pursue their dreams.”

Here’s the rundown of the dozen new Evans Scholars from Colorado:

— Ayanna Hwang of Aurora, Smoky Hill HS, caddied at Cherry Hills Country Club.

— Isaiah Monroe of Denver, Cherry Creek HS (2016 graduate), caddied at Cherry Hills Country Club. Was a freshman at Metropolitan State University of Denver in the fall.

— Ian Sevier Barrios of Aurora, Regis Jesuit HS, caddied at Solich Caddie & Leadership Academy at CommonGround Golf Course and at Cherry Hills Country Club.

— Joshua Garcia of Denver (pictured at top), Faith Christian Academy, caddied at Solich Caddie & Leadership Academy at CommonGround Golf Course and at Denver Country Club.

— Kalil Miles of Aurora, Aurora Central HS, caddied at Solich Caddie & Leadership Academy at CommonGround Golf Course and at Denver Country Club.

— Madison Rivas of Aurora (left), Overland HS, caddied at Solich Caddie & Leadership Academy at CommonGround Golf Course and at Denver Country Club.

— Quinton Kelly of Littleton, Dakota Ridge HS, caddied at Bear Creek Golf Club.

— Richard J. Biggs of Lakewood, Bear Creek HS, caddied at Lakewood Country Club.

— Dietrich Berning of Longmont, Silver Creek HS, caddied at Boulder Country Club.

— Elias King of Lafayette (below), Fairview HS, caddied at Boulder Country Club.

— J. Creek Kamby of Edwards, Battle Mountain HS, caddied at Country Club of the Rockies.

— Jack Cohan of Basalt, Aspen HS, caddied at Roaring Fork Club.

At least two of the above will be the first in their family to go to college.

The 12 averaged 112 caddie loops, with Cohan accumulating 200 and Barrios 180.

“Based on their excellence in the classroom and their service to their schools and communities, there is little doubt that these young men and women have earned this life-changing opportunity,” said John Kaczkowski, WGA president and CEO. “We welcome them to the Evans Scholars family.”

The Evans Scholarship, one of the nation’s largest privately funded scholarship programs, was established in 1930 by Chick Evans, winner of the 1916 U.S. Open and two U.S. Amateurs.

Nationwide, there are Evans Scholars at 20 universities, 15 which feature E.S. houses. The scholarship has produced 10,412 graduates, including about 450 from CU since the 1960s. Roughly 270 scholarships are expected to be awarded for the incoming class of 2017-18.

Over the last 87 years, the Evans Scholarship has provided more than $348 million worth of tuition and housing to caddies. The scholarship costs for Evans Scholars in 2016 were $17.6 million.

Evans Scholars typically excel academically, with a cumulative college GPA of 3.2, and a 95 percent graduation rate. In the fall semester, the CU Evans Scholars averaged a 3.3 GPA.Ӭ

For those interested in donating to the Evans Scholars Foundation, CLICK HERE.
 

Short and Sweet: This month’s Evans Scholars Selection Meeting was the ninth of an anticipated 15 that will be held nationwide during this academic year. The number of people in attendance at Cherry Hills — about 130 — was among the most for any selection meetings the WGA holds. … Among those in attendance at Cherry Hills was WGA president and CEO John Kaczkowski, along with numerous WGA directors, staff and supporters; Evans Scholar alums; several staffers and leaders from both the CGA and CWGA; and some head golf professionals and others from the Colorado golf industry. … Almost 60 caddies currently reside at the CU Evans Scholars house, with about a quarter being young women. The CU house underwent a $6 million renovation and expansion, with the project concluding a year ago… A record 780 caddies applied for the Evans Scholarship this academic year, including 34 in Colorado. … Former WGA chairman Jim Bunch, a Denver resident, recently was recognized for having served as a WGA director for 25 years.
 

It may be a coincidence that University of Colorado students Peter and Allie Evans and their family share their surname with Charles “Chick” Evans, but it seems altogether appropriate.

After all, founding the Evans Scholarship cemented the legacy of Chick Evans, who won a U.S. Open and two U.S. Amateurs, then created a scholarship that fully pays for college tuition and housing for high-achieving caddies with excellent grades, strong character and significant financial need. Over the last 87 years, more than 10,400 caddies have graduated through the program, including about 450 from CU.

And few, if any, families have seen the benefits of the Evans Scholarship more than that of Peter and Allie Evans (pictured above at the CU E.S. house).

You see, there are 13 siblings in the Evans family, and to date, seven (including Peter and Allie) have received the Evans Scholarship. Officials from the Evans Scholars Foundation/Western Golf Association, which administers the scholarship nationwide, say no records are kept regarding which family has produced the most Evans Scholars. But it’s safe to say that the Evanses are at — or near — the top of the list. And the family’s youngest sibling, a high school junior who has caddied at the WGA Caddie Academy in the Chicago area, will likely apply for the scholarship in the fall.

“One of my earliest memories is visiting my sister (Colleen) at the Marquette Evans house when I was probably 4 or 5 years old,” Peter said in a recent interview — along with younger sister Allie — at the CU Evans Scholar house. “It was a family tour day or family weekend or something. I definitely didn’t fully understand what the Evans Scholarship was, but I remember it being really cool visiting my sister Colleen. It was a fun, family thing.”

The annual Colorado-based Selection Meeting for the Evans Scholarship will be held this week at Cherry Hills Country Club, and within a couple of weeks thereafter the next new class of CU Evans Scholars will be announced.

If anyone can relate to what is at stake at such meetings — the latest information from the Evans Scholars Foundation reports that, nationally speaking, the average value of an Evans Scholarship if renewed for four years is $100,000 — it is the Evanses.

Their father caddied as a youngster and Allie said their mother indicated she had some distant relatives who attended Northwestern University on an Evans Scholarship. All but one of the Evans siblings caddied during their formative years, and roughly 10 of the 13 applied — or will apply — for the scholarship. Five have graduated from various universities thanks to the Evans Scholarship:

Colleen (2003 Marquette grad), a nurse practitioner.

Paul (2010 Illinois grad), a health consultant.

Joe (2014 Northwestern grad), who works in finance.

Kevin (2015 Northwestern grad), a health consultant and analyst.

Tim (2016 Marquette grad), a CPA-to be working with an acconting firm.

And now Peter and Allie are studying at a fourth E.S. university — CU — with Peter being a junior and Allie a freshman in Boulder. Two of the older Evans siblings — Paul and Dave — live in the Denver area.

“I don’t think any of us felt entitled to it,” Allie said of she and her siblings receiving the scholarship over the course of the last 20 years. “For me personally, I felt pressured to get it. It was very nerve-racking. But knowing about the scholarship your whole life and actually having it are completely different. I knew it was going to be good, but it’s definitely better than I ever thought it would be. … It’s a ridiculously incredible thing I’ve been given.

“It’s pretty crazy how many people (the ESF/WGA) have helped and how it continues to grow. It’s pretty impressive and it’s making a huge difference. I know there are people a lot less fortunate than I am (financially who have received the scholarship). It’s a huge deal for me, so I can’t even imagine how it is for people who literally have nothing to get college for free.”

Added Peter: “I don’t think (the good fortune of being awarded an Evans Scholarship) wears off for anyone. I feel very, very blessed and lucky to be here.”

After a $6 million renovation and expansion project that wrapped up a year ago, the CU Evans Scholar house is home to nearly 60 Scholars. Most of the Scholars at CU caddied at Colorado courses, but some come from out of state, primarily from the Chicago area. The Evans family originally lived in Illinois, but moved to Little Rock, Ark., in 2008. Five of the siblings received the scholarship after caddying at The Alotian Club in Roland, Ark., including Peter and Allie. (The older Evanses caddied at Inverness Golf Club in Palatine, Ill.)

The Illinois-based WGA has long partnered with the CGA and CWGA in supporting the scholarship at CU. Through CGA and CWGA bag-tag sales and Par Club contributions, Colorado donors fully fund the year-to-year scholarship costs at the CU Evans Scholars house.

Many siblings have received the Evans Scholarship over the years — both at CU and the other 19 universities that feature Evans Scholar programs. At CU, for instance, Jack Haake in the late 1970s and early 1980s was one of five siblings to have earned an Evans Scholarship, with his brothers going to Northwestern (2), Marquette (1) and Illinois (1).

But the Evanses have taken it to the next level.

“I know at my (selection) interview, there was a mention of, ‘Wow, it’s got to be a record,’ but I’ve never really looked into it,” Peter Evans noted. “It’s always been a cool thing where (almost) everyone in our family has caddied. You’re always happy for your siblings to see that their hard work has paid off.”

Peter and Allie Evans not only ended up as CU Evans Scholars together, but they’re additionally linked because Peter is the current vice president of new scholars at the house, while Allie is one of those new scholars. In other words, Peter has been responsible for seeing that Allie and the other E.S. newcomers start off on the right foot as Evans Scholars.

“If they’re not doing something well, I can always use the ‘I’m telling mom’ excuse,” Peter said with a chuckle.

Seriously, though, Peter, Allie and the other new Evans Scholars must have done something right as the newcomers posted an average GPA of 3.47 in their first semester in the program, which is one of the best academic averages in house history for an incoming class.

In some ways, things have come full circle for the Evanses. As youngsters, they grew up in a house with 13 kids and two parents.

“It was definitely crazy at times,” Peter said. “Growing up in Illinois especially, we got to know all of our family pretty well. We definitely had a lot of bunk beds and everything.”

And it wasn’t unusual for four or five kids at a time to to be caddying during the summer.

Nowadays, Peter and Allie are living in a house with roughly 60 people — again, with bunk beds and all.

And, of course, there are caddies everywhere.

“In high school I had the chance to visit my older brothers at Northwestern or at Marquette for a weekend or something,” Peter said. “I kind of got to see the friendships they had formed. It was a very tight-knit group and it seemed liked everyone got along really well, so I really bought in to the whole family aspect of the scholarship well before I even applied. I was definitely motivated all through high school to caddie a lot and study hard to get it.”

Not only did Peter receive the scholarship, but at Cherry Hills during the 2014 BMW Championship — a tournament that has all its proceeds go to the Evans Scholars — he was given the Chip Beck Evans Scholars Award, presented based on academic achievement, extracurricular activities and caddie record. TV golf analyst Gary McCord introduced Evans as the Beck award winner during a dinner at Cherry Hills.

“One thing that was really cool for me was caddying for the (Monday) donor day at the BMW Championship my freshman year,” Peter said. “No one in my family had done that before — been to a pro event — so that was really cool to see that. Everyone there was passionate about giving back to the scholarship. The fact that that whole tournament is for the benefit of the scholarship is really cool. It showed for me that everyone is very impressed and enamored by what the scholarship has to offer, including big-name golfers. Regular spectators at the tournament, if they heard I was an Evans Scholar, they would talk to me for like 15 minutes and were very excited.”

And that excitement translates into ongoing opportunities for Evans Scholars — whether they’re named Evans or not.
 

That’s certainly been the case with the 2012 U.S. Amateur that was hosted by Cherry Hills Country Club, with CommonGround Golf Course serving as the companion course for the stroke-play portion of the championship.

We’ve noted before how several competitors in that 312-man field have moved to the forefront in the world of golf, but the last few months have particularly reinforced the point.

And the PGA Tour’s SBS Tournament of Champions that concluded on Sunday in Maui really drove home the fact that Colorado spectators attending the U.S. Amateur 4 1/2 years ago were watching the budding of something special.

The top three finishers at the Tournament of Champions — winner Justin Thomas, runner-up Hideki Matsuyama and third-place Jordan Spieth — all competed at Cherry Hills and CommonGround in the 2012 U.S. Amateur. (Thomas is pictured above at Cherry Hills in 2012.)

But the Tournament of Champions is just the latest example of 2012 U.S. Am players thriving at the highest level of golf. In fact, four of the top eight players on this season’s PGA Tour money list competed in Colorado in August 2012: Matsuyama (No. 1 on the list), Thomas (No. 2), Cody Gribble (No. 7) and Daniel Berger (No. 8).

Some recent PGA Tour highlights from 2012 U.S. Am players:

— In his five official and unofficial starts on the PGA Tour during the current wraparound season, Matsuyama has finished no worse than sixth place. He’s won twice (HSBC Champions and the Hero World Challenge) and been runner-up twice.

— In five official and unofficial PGA Tour events this season, Thomas has notched two victories (CIMB Classic and SBS Tournament of Champions), a fifth and an eighth. And on Thursday at the Sony Open in Hawaii, he carded a cool first-round 59.

— Spieth won the Australian Open in late November, marking his third win worldwide in 2016.

— Gribble won the Sanderson Farms Championship in late October, marking one of two top-10s so far this season.

— Berger has posted a second in the HSBC Champions and a ninth in the Franklin Templeton Shootout in recent months.

— Former NCAA individual champion Thomas Pieters has recorded two top-15 finishes in two tournaments on the PGA Tour this season.

— Bryson DeChambeau, winner of the 2015 U.S. Am, posted two top-6 showings on the PGA Tour in 2016.

— Also recording top-10 finishes on the PGA Tour in 2016 were Zac Blair (third in the Sony Open), Oliver Schniederjans (sixth in RSM Classic) and Cheng-Tsung Pan (also sixth in RSM Classic).

Career-wise in official PGA Tour events, Spieth owns eight wins, Thomas and Matsuyama three apiece, and Gribble and Berger one each.

And, mind you, all of the aforementioned players are still in their young to mid-20s. Spieth, Thomas, Berger, DeChambeau and Schniederjans are 23; Matsuyama and Pieters 24; Pan 25; and Gribble and Blair 26.

All told, five of the top 50 players in the world rankings — and three of the top dozen — competed in the 2012 U.S. Am: Spieth (fifth), Matsuyama (sixth), Thomas (12th), Berger (32nd) and Pieters (48th). Also currently in the top 200 in the world are DeChambeau (123rd), Patrick Rodgers (148th), Gribble (181st), Schniederjans (187th) and Pan (200th).

In case you’re wondering, here’s how some of these notable players fared at the 2012 U.S. Amateur:

— Spieth: The winner of two U.S. Junior Amateurs and the low amateur at the 2012 U.S. Open lost in the round of 64 in match play, 1 up to Pieters.

— Matsuyama: Japanese standout shot 73-72 and missed a playoff to advance to match play by two strokes.

— Thomas: Advanced to the match play semifinals, where he lost to eventual national runner-up Michael Weaver, 3 and 2.

— Gribble: Shot 75-69 and missed a playoff to advance to match play by one stroke.

— Berger: Shot 75-69 and missed a playoff to advance by match play by one stroke.

— Pieters: A round after defeating Spieth, lost 4 and 3 in the round of 32 to Canadian Albin Choi.

— DeChambeau: Three years before winning the U.S. Amateur, he lost in 19 holes in the match play round of 64 to Andrew Presley.

— Blair: The 2011 Colorado Open low amateur lost 2 and 1 in the match play round of 64 to Weaver, the eventual runner-up.

— Schniederjans: Lost 2 and 1 in the match play round of 64 to Adam Schenk.

— Pan: Lost in the quarterfinals 4 and 3 to Brandon Hagy, another current PGA Tour player.
 

The golf course ranking business is ever-expanding — and apparently ever-popular — but every two years it returns to its roots. And that time is now.

The grandaddy of all the rankings — both the first and the most respected — was published this week as Golf Digest unveiled its biennial “America’s 100 Greatest Golf Courses”. America’s 100 Greatest has been a fixture since 1966.

As usual, Colorado figures prominently in the rankings. While no local course is in Golf Digest’s very top rung — Pine Valley in New Jersey, Augusta National in Georgia and Cypress Point in California are 1-2-3, respectively — the Centennial State has more than its share of the nation’s greatest courses.

Specifically, Colorado is home to three layouts in the top 100 — and in the top 75, for that matter. The only states with more than three courses in the top 75 are New York (11), California (8), Illinois (5), Ohio (4), New Jersey (4) and Oregon (4, all in Bandon). Three states besides Colorado put three courses in the top 75: Michigan, Wisconsin and Massachusetts.

The three Colorado courses that made the cut should come as no surprise to the followers of national/international golf rankings. Castle Pines Golf Club (pictured above), home of the PGA Tour’s International from 1986-2006, checks in at No. 42, according to Golf Digest. Ballyneal (left) — the minimalist Tom Doak design in a remote area of northeastern Colorado, in Holyoke — was placed No. 50, its highest mark ever. And Cherry Hills Country Club, host to three U.S. Opens and two PGA Championships, was ranked No. 73.

Castle Pines, the Jack Nicklaus design that opened in 1981, has been an America’s 100 Greatest fixture since ’87, and has reached as high as No. 28. Cherry Hills, nearing its 95th birthday, was ranked from 1966-70 and ever since ’73, reaching No. 21 at one point. Ballyneal has risen in Golf Digest’s list since making its debut in 2011.

Here are the top 10 courses on America’s Greatest 100 list this time around:

1. Pine Valley in Pine Valley, N.J.
2. Augusta National in Augusta, Ga.
3. Cypress Point in Pebble Beach, Calif.
4. Shinnecock Hills in Southampton, N.Y.
5. Oakmont in Oakmont, Pa.
6. Merion in Ardmore, Pa.
7. Pebble Beach in Pebble Beach, Calif.
8. National Golf Links of America in Southampton, N.Y.
9. Sand Hills in Mullen, Neb.
10. Winged Foot (West) in Mamaroneck, N.Y.

For the entire Golf Digest list, CLICK HERE.

While America’s Greatest 100 is the most famous golf course ranking, there are many others done on a national and international basis by respected publications and raters. Here’s a sampling of how Colorado courses have fared in such rankings in recent months, along with the top-rated course in each case:

Golf Channel travel insider Matt Ginella’s
Top 50 Courses You Can Play in the U.S. (Dec. 8, 2016)

Ranked No. 1
Pebble Beach Golf Links in Pebble Beach, Calif.

Colorado Course
50. The Broadmoor GC’s East Course in Colorado Springs

Golfweek Best Resort Courses (Nov. 1, 2016)

Ranked No. 1
Pebble Beach Golf Links in Pebble Beach, Calif.

Colorado Courses
48. The Broadmoor East Course in Colorado Springs
66. Red Sky Fazio Course in Wolcott
123. The Broadmoor West Course in Colorado Springs
152. Telluride GC
153. Red Sky Norman Course in Wolcott
174. Country Club of Colorado in Colorado Springs

Golfweek Best Residential Courses (Nov. 1, 2016)

Ranked No. 1
Wade Hampton Club in Cashiers, N.C.

Colorado Courses
5. Colorado Golf Club in Parker
9. Castle Pines Golf Club in Castle Pines
32. The Glacier Club at Tamarron in Durango
60. Golf Club at Ravenna in Littleton
66. Redlands Mesa Golf Club in Grand Junction
154. Cherry Creek Country Club in Denver
177. Aspen Glen in Carbondale

Golf.com’s Top 100 Courses You Can Play (2016/17)

Ranked No. 1
Pebble Beach Golf Links in Pebble Beach, Calif.

Colorado Courses
51. Red Sky Norman Course in Wolcott
67. The Broadmoor East Course in Colorado Springs
93. Golf Club at Redlands Mesa in Grand Junction

Golfweek’s Best Campus Courses (Aug. 30, 2016)

Ranked No. 1
The Course at Yale in New Haven, Conn.

Colorado Course
24. Eisenhower Blue Course at Air Force Academy