On Friday, seven players with significant Colorado connections finished well enough in Web.com first-stage tournaments to earn spots into the second stage of the three-stage process.

Advancing from a tournament in Nebraska City by placing in the top 25 and ties were several current or former University of Colorado golfers, plus former Colorado State Ram Parker Edens. CU senior Jeremy Paul finished fourth at 10-under-par 278. As for the ex-Buffs, Justin Bardgett was fifth (279), David Oraee was ninth (280) and Josh Creel was 16th (282). (Creel finished his college career at Central Oklahoma after starting at CU).

Also in 16th place at 282 was Edens. And completing the local contingent who advanced was Miller Capps of Denver (283, 25th place).

Also advancing to stage 2, from a first-stage tournament in Maricopa, Ariz., was Nick Hodge of Littleton. Hodge made two eagles in three holes — one on a par-4 and one-on a par-5 — to go along with three birdies and three bogeys in a 4-under-par 68 in Friday’s final round. With a 10-under 278 total, he finished in 15th place.

Meanwhile, in Lantana, Texas, where Coloradans Jim Knous, Zahkai Brown and Derek Tolan are all in the top 25 through 54 holes, the final round was postponed until Saturday because the course was deemed unplayable on Friday.

Coloradans Gunner Wiebe and Nick Mason advanced to the second stage of Q-school at first-stage tournaments last week.

Five more first-stage tourneys will be held next week.

Here are the results of players with strong Colorado connections at Q-school tournaments that started on Tuesday:

Nebraska City (top 25 finishers and ties advance to second stage)
Advance to Stage 2
4. CU golfer Jeremy Paul 67-68-73-70–278
5. Former CU golfer Justin Bardgett 67-70-69-73–279
9. Former CU golfer David Oraee of Greeley 69-69-72-70–280
16. Former CSU golfer Parker Edens of Greeley 70-71-68-73–282
16. Former CU golfer Josh Creel 66-72-72-72–282
25. Miller Capps of Denver 72-71-68-72–283
Failed to Advance
49. Former Coloradan Alex Gutesha 73-74-71-71–289
58. Former CU golfer Beau Schoolcraft of Denver 73-68-76-74–291
68. Former CSU golfer Cameron Harrell of Colorado Springs 73-71-75-75–294

Maricopa, Ariz. (top 25 finishers and ties advance to second stage)
Advances to Stage 2
15. Nick Hodge of Littleton 72-69-69-68–278
Failed to Advance
51. Dustin Mills of Broomfield 75-73-71-71–290

Lantana, Texas (top 24 finishers and ties after 4 rounds advance to second stage)
8. Former School of Mines golfer Jim Knous of Englewood 67-69-68–204
17. Former CSU golfer Zahkai Brown of Arvada 70-69-70–209
23. Former CU golfer Derek Tolan of Highlands Ranch 71-70-69–210
 

Paul (left) shot a 4-under-par 68 on Wednesday, leaving him at 9-under 135 with two rounds left. After Friday’s final round, the top 25 finishers and ties will advance to the second stage of a three-stage qualifying process.

Paul, who has made 13 birdies through two rounds, shares the top spot in Nebraska City with T.J. Mitchell of St. Simons Island, Ga.

Also in the top 25 at the site after two rounds are three former CU golfers: Justin Bardgett (67-70–137, sixth place), David Oraee of Greeley (69-69–138, 11th place) and Josh Creel (66-72–138, 11th place).

Meanwhile, at another first-stage tournament, in Lantana, Texas, Jim Knous of Englewood and Zahkai Brown of Arvada are on pace to advance in qualifying.

Knous holds seventh place after rounds of 67-69 left him at 8-under-par 136. Brown, meanwhile, shares 14th place at 139 after going 70-69.

And in Maricopa, Ariz., Nick Hodge of Littleton (72-69–141) shares 23rd place.

Coloradans Gunner Wiebe and Nick Mason advanced to the second stage of Q-school at first-stage tournaments last week.

Five more first-stage tourneys will be held next week.

Here are the results of players with strong Colorado connections at Q-school tournaments that started on Tuesday:

Nebraska City (top 25 finishers and ties advance to second stage)
1. CU golfer Jeremy Paul 67-68–135
6. Former CU golfer Justin Bardgett 67-70–137
11. David Oraee of Greeley 69-69–138
11. Former CU golfer Josh Creel 66-72–138
26. Parker Edens of Greeley 70-71–141
26. Beau Schoolcraft of Denver 73-68–141
37. Miller Capps of Denver 72-71–143
46. Cameron Harrell of Colorado Springs 73-71–144
66. Former Coloradan Alex Gutesha 73-74–147

Lantana, Texas (top 24 finishers and ties advance to second stage)
7. Jim Knous of Englewood 67-69–136
14. Zahkai Brown of Arvada 70-69–139
26. Derek Tolan of Highlands Ranch 71-70–141

Maricopa, Ariz. (top 25 finishers and ties advance to second stage)
23. Nick Hodge of Littleton 72-69–141
66. Dustin Mills of Broomfield 75-73–148
 

It’s been a unique week at the CoBank Colorado Open.

Through three days at Green Valley Ranch Golf Club …

— Twice the course record of 62 has been matched, including Saturday by Alex Kim (left) of Fullerton, Calif., who used a hole-in-one to vault into the 54-hole lead. It was the second ace of tournament week.

— Also on Saturday, the very rare “albatross” made an appearance at GVR, with James Back of La Palma, Calif., recording a double eagle on the 531-yard par-5 12th hole, flying a 229-yard approach into the cup with a 5-iron.

— With little wind and pure greens, the scores are so low this year that the 36-hole cut of 3 under par was a tournament record by three strokes. And Kim’s 18-under-par total is a 54-hole tourney record, also by three.

— And this year’s tournament also featured a female competitor, Sherry Andonian-Smith of Denver, for the first time ever.

Now, though, things will really take on a different look. In the first 51 Colorado Opens, the highest first-prize payout has been $38,800, in 1997. But on Sunday, $100,000 will go to the winner, more than quadrupling last year’s $23,000 winner’s check.

Suffice it to say that many of those in the running for the title this year have never truly been in contention going into the final round of a tournament in which the winner would receive a six-figure check.

Indeed, aside from for the two players on the leaderboard who have won PGA Tour events — Jonathan Kaye of Boulder and Parker McLachlin of Honolulu — Sunday will be novel experience for just about everyone who’s in contention.

And making it even more unique is the huge money difference between first and second place, $100,000 and $20,000.

“The purse is huge, especially for guys playing the mini tours,” said Kim, a former UCLA golfer who played in the 2015 U.S. Open. “We don’t play for this kind of purse ($250,000).”

As noted, Kaye (left) is an exception. The former University of Colorado golfer earned $900,000 for winning the 2003 Buick Open and $936,000 for his victory at the 2004 FBR Open on the PGA Tour.

“I always looked at it that they were giving away money and I was there to get it,” Kaye said Saturday. “I was like, ‘I’m going to go as low as I can.’ I wasn’t really thinking about the consequences at that point. I was trying to go as low as I could to make money.’

“My rookie year (on the PGA Tour), that was how I kept my card. I had the No. 1 scoring average on tour on Saturday, but I only made eight cuts. I played good when I had to.

“But the young kids now, they aren’t scared. They look at it as a (cash) giveaway, I think. They think they can win right away. I think these guys (in contention at the Colorado Open) are all pretty good. (But) hopefully they all get nervous and crumble and I can slide in there. I’ll still take the money. A hundred grand is a hundred grand.”

With Saturday’s 62 and an 18-under-par 198 total, Kim will take a one-stroke lead into Sunday. The previous 54-hole tournament record, in relation to par, was Derek Tolan’s 15 under mark in 2009. That year, the former CU golfer went on to finish a record 22 under par.

Wil Collins (left) of Albuquerque, N.M., the 2005 Open champion, played his final five holes in 3 under par on Saturday and his bogey-free 67 left him a stroke behind Kim heading into the final round.

Colorado native Nick Hodge of Littleton and Neil Johnson of Phoenix share third place at 201, with Hodge carding a 66 that featured a 30 on the front nine, and Johnson posting a 68.

“This is the biggest event we play during the year as mini-tour players,” said Hodge (below). “There’s a little extra on there. I’ve been playing really well all week. It’s definitely a big event. It would be important to me to win (having grown) up here and everything.”

The group four out of the lead — at 14-under-par 202 — features two former champions (Kaye and Zahkai Brown of Arvada) and, as noted, two players who have won on the PGA Tour (Kaye and McLachlin), along with Martin Trainer of Palo Alto, Calif.

Brown is in the hunt for his fourth top-2 Colorado Open finish in the last five years, while Kaye is playing his first tournament in two years. Both shot 70 after sharing the 36-hole lead with Collins.

“I’d much rather be closer, but I am where I am so I guess I’ll have to try to make it up,” said Kaye, who needed a 30-foot chip-in for bogey on No. 16 after hitting a tree and watching his second shot go into a hazard. “It was kind of ugly today. I didn’t play very well all in all. It wasn’t as clean as the other two days. Hopefully tomorrow will be better and we’ll try to make a run at it.”

Kim, meanwhile, put himself atop the leaderboard Saturday thanks to matching the course record of 62 set by Nick Mason in 2013 and matched by Collins on Thursday.

While Kim made nine birdies on the day — including a 7-footer on 18 — it was the ace on the 177-yard eighth hole that especially grabbed the attention. His 9-iron hit about 6 feet short of the flag, took a bounce and rolled in. It was his fourth hole-in-one, but his first in competition.

“I was plugging along at 2 under, and made that hole-in-one and it was just off to the races,” said Kim, who qualified for the Colorado Open on July 12 in Eagle. “I birdied the next hole and turned at 5 under. It easily could have been a 2-under front nine, but it helps when you make a ‘1’.

“One of my playing partners said while (his tee shot on 8) was in the air, ‘Go in’, and sure enough, it one-hopped and just disappeared. I threw my club in the air. That was pretty cool.”

As for the day overall, while Kim has shot 61 before, Saturday’s 62 was his best ever in competition.

“I’m pretty pleased with that,” said the South Korea-born 26-year-old, who’s playing his first Colorado Open.

Mark Me Down for a Deuce: As noted, James Back — whose hometown of La Palma, Calif., is about 10 miles from Kim’s hometown of Fullerton — had his own fireworks on Saturday.

After a good drive on the 531-yard 12th hole — his third hole of the day — he hit a baby draw with his 5-iron from 229 yards and the ball flew straight into the cup for a double eagle, the first of his life.

Only it took Back several minutes to realize his accomplishment.

“I hit it pretty good and I was looking at it,” he said. “I didn’t see any bounce. I went up to the green and I thought it had gone over. The guys were checking all over (for the ball). Finally, the guys checked the hole and it was in the hole. It hit the back of the cup and went in the hole. It was pretty crazy.

“I didn’t expect it to go in, but if it’s in, good for me.”

Back finished with a 7-under-par 65 on Saturday and shares 14th place at 11-under 205.

Ram Tough: The chase for low-amateur honors may come down to what amounts to an intrasquad competition for Colorado State University golfers from last season.

Jake Staiano of Cherry Hills Village will take a two-stroke lead in the amateur competiton into Sunday’s final round. Staiano, who advanced to match play at last year’s U.S. Amateur, has gone 68-68-69 for an 11-under-par 205 total. He played his last four holes in 3 under par on Saturday.

Two back of Staiano is former Ram Dominic Kieffer of Byron, Minn., who posted a 67 on Saturday. And Jimmy Makloski of Pueblo is another two back after carding a third-round 68.

University of Colorado golfer John Souza trails Staiano by five following a 74 on Saturday.

Sitting Out This Senior British: It might seem a bit unusual to see Mark Wiebe caddying for son Gunner in this week’s Colorado Open, considering the Senior British Open is being contested this week in Scotland. After all, Wiebe won the Senior British just three years ago.

But concerns over physical ailments — most notably neck problems — made the elder Wiebe think better of a trip overseas.

“Something is going on, so it’s been a real drag,” said Wiebe, a Colorado Golf Hall of Famer and five-time Champions winner who noted that he’s had to withdraw from all the senior majors so far in 2016. “And to go all the way over there, all I’m thinking is, ‘Am I going to get there and be able to play?’

“I’ve tried to play injured for over a year and I suck (at that). I’m no good injured. I need to be 100 percent.”

Gunner Wiebe, playing his first tournament in two months, shares 10th place at 12-under 204 after a 68 on Saturday. (Gunner and Mark are pictured together above.)

Notable: The lead threesome of Alex Kim, Wil Collins and Nick Hodge will tee off for Sunday’s final round at 9:25 a.m. … Part-time Denver resident Kevin Stadler, winner of the 2014 Waste Management Phoenix Open on the PGA Tour, shot a 4-under-par 68 on Saturday to move up to 29th place at 8-under 208 in his first tournament in over a year.

For scores from the Colorado Open CLICK HERE.
 

For Sunday tee times, CLICK HERE.
 
 

There are two brothers from Arvada, two former CGA Players of the Year, the winners of three recent HealthOne Colorado Opens, and a golfer who once shot 60 in the final round of the CGA Stroke Play Championship.

Such is the local contingent that’s embarking on the ever-important second stage of qualifying for the Web.com Tour. At stake for all the competitors is a spot on a tour that boasts more than $17 million in purses over the course of a season. And with Q-school for the PGA Tour having been eliminated a couple of years ago, the Web.com qualifying process has become the key steppingstone to the big time for many elite-level golfers.

Just ask Denver native Mark Hubbard or Fort Collins resident Sam Saunders, both of whom parlayed strong Web.com Tour performances in 2014 into PGA Tour cards for the 2014-15 wraparound season.

The Web.com qualifying includes four steps — pre-qualifying, and the first, second and third stages — just as the PGA Tour’s Q-school did several years ago. The second and third stages are particularly important as those who advance to the final stage are guaranteed at least conditional status on the Web.com Tour. And the final stage determines who will get to play a full schedule, as opposed to the conditional qualifiers (the finishers after the top 45 and ties) who will be relegated to a far smaller number of events.

With that as a backdrop, 11 players with strong Colorado connections will compete in stage 2 of Web.com qualifying either this week or next. The top finishers at each of six 72-hole tournaments — the exact numbers will be announced after the events start — will advance to the final stage. That’s scheduled for Dec. 11-16 in Palm Beach Gardens, Fla.

Among those competing are brothers Zahkai and Zen Brown of Arvada, both former Colorado State University golfers. The two are playing at different sites and on separate dates.

Also among the locals in the stage 2 fields is former University of Colorado golfer Derek Tolan (pictured at top) of Highlands Ranch. Tolan, like Zahkai Brown (left), is a Colorado Open champion (in Tolan’s case, twice a champ) and a former CGA Les Fowler Player of the Year.

Another Coloradan in stage 2 is Jim Knous of Basalt, a former Colorado School of Mines golfer who fired a course-record 10-under-par 60 at Boulder Country Club in the final round of the 2010 CGA Stroke Play.

Here are all the local competitors, and the sites and dates in which they’ll compete in stage 2 of Web.com Tour qualifying:

Kingwood, Texas Nov. 11-14 — Nick Hodge of Littleton; former Fort Collins resident Drew Stoltz; Derek Tolan of Highlands Ranch.

McKinney, Texas Nov. 11-14 — Zahkai Brown of Arvada; Parker Edens of Greeley; Jim Knous of Basalt.

Panama Beach, Fla. Nov. 18-21 — Former CU golfer Jason Burstyn.

Murrieta, Calif. Nov. 18-21 — Former CU golfer Justin Bardgett; Zen Brown of Arvada; Bryan Kruse of Westminster; Luke Symons of Aurora.