Kupcho (pictured), winner of the last three CWGA Player of the Year awards, led for a time during the final round, but had to settle for ending up two shots behind champion Kristen Gillman of Alabama. Kupcho closed with a 1-under-par 71, giving her a 6-under 210 total. She made five birdies on Sunday, but paid the price for a double-bogey 7 on her 10th hole of the day.

Ranked in the top 10 nationally in women’s college golf, Kupcho will go into the stretch run of the season on a strong note. In her last two tournaments, she’s placed second and third. Overall for the season, she’s notched two wins, a second-place showing, a third, a fourth and an eighth. Her only hiccups came after suffering a concussion in one event, having to withdraw there, and placing 47th in her next tourney.

Next up for Kupcho is the ACC Championships in mid-April. She was runner-up in that event last year and went on to tie for sixth in the NCAA Finals.

Colorado State, the only local team competing in the Bryan National Collegiate, ended up 16th in the 18-team field, with sophomore Katrina Prendergast leading the way with an 14th place individual showing. In finishing at 217, she recorded her fourth consecutive top-16 performance.

Bryan National Collegiate
April 1-2, 2017 (final) in Browns Summit, N.C.
16. (out of 18 teams) Colorado State 316-304-309–929
14. Katrina Prendergast 74-70-73–217
76. Ellen Secor 82-76-78–236
76. Brianna Becker 78-81-77–236
84. Elisabeth Rau 82-77-81–240
93. Jessica Sloot 83-87-85–255

Also
3. Coloradan Jennifer Kupcho, Wake Forest 70-69-71–210
 

A year after Steve Jones pulled off the feat by placing ninth for his first Champions top-10 of his career, Brandt Jobe tied for third Sunday in the Senior PGA in Benton Harbor, Mich.

It marked Jobe’s best showing on either the PGA Tour or the PGA Tour Champions since he placed second at the Memorial five years ago.

Jobe, who lived in Colorado for about 20 years before moving to Texas, could have finished even higher if not for a triple bogey on the par-3 17th hole in Saturday’s third round.

For the week, Jobe shot rounds of 67-67-69-68 for a 13-under-par 271 total. He ended up six strokes behind champion Rocco Mediate. Jobe finished with an eagle and 22 birdies over the four rounds at Benton Shores. He earned $161,000 and moved up to 28th on the 2016 Champions money list.

Jobe, who turned 50 on Aug. 1, has now recorded two top-10 finishes on the Champions circuit, having placed sixth in the Chubb Classic. He won the Champions qualifying tournament in the fall and placed 17th last week in the Regions Tradition, which, like the Senior PGA, is a senior major.

Jobe won the Colorado Open in 1992 and five major CGA championships during the 1980s (three Match Plays, one Stroke Play, one Junior Match Play and one Junior Stroke Play).

He has four runner-up finishes on the PGA Tour to his credit.
 

The CGA placed third in the 18-team field at Pine Canyon Golf Club in Flagstaff, Ariz. The Coloradans also were third in 2011 at Hiwan Golf Club in Evergreen. Three other times — in 1984, ’85 and 2012 — the Coloradans finished fourth in the event.

That means CGA teams have posted top-four performances in three of the last five JACs.

Three of the four Colorado representatives shot par or sub-par rounds in Thursday’s final round. With eight birdies on Thursday, Coby Welch of Highlands Ranch fired a 5-under-par 67 to place seventh individually at 5-under 211. AJ Ott of Fort Collins carded a 72, good for a 214 total and 16th place. And Jackson Solem of Longmont closed with a 70 to come in at 222, leaving him in 38th place.

The fourth Colorado player, Davis Bryant of Aurora, checked in at 226 for 49th place. Bryant carded a team-best 68 in Wednesday’s second round.

Sam Choi of Southern California claimed the individual title on Thursday by posting 204 overall.

With the CGA throwing out its high score of the day, it recorded a stellar 7-under-par 209 team total on Thursday. That put Colorado at 8-under 640 overall, 17 strokes behind champion Southern California and four back of runner-up Wyoming. Southern California has won three of the last eight JAC titles.

Colorado’s 640 total is 17 strokes better than when it finished third in 2011 at Hiwan.

Colorado’s team total on Thursday included a 9-under-par showing over the final nine holes, with Welch going 5 under, Solem 3 under, and Ott 1 under. Welch and Ott were competing in the Junior America’s Cup for the second straight year.

(Pictured above is the CGA team. From left: Bryant, Ott, captain Dustin Jensen, Welch and Solem.)

Here are the round-by-round scores and standings for all the Coloradans:

3. Colorado 216-215-209–640
7. Coby Welch of Highlands Ranch 69-75-67–211
16. AJ Ott of Fort Collins 70-72-72–214
38. Jackson Solem of Longmont 77-75-70–222
49. Davis Bryant of Aurora 79-68-79–226

For all the scores from the JAC, CLICK HERE.