Pat Rea captured the title in Grand Junction each year from 1961 through ’64, and Skip Tredway went back-to-back in 1982 and ’83.

But on Sunday, those two had to make room in their elite club for former Brigham Young University golfer Justin Keiley.

The 2017 winner made it two straight at Tiara Rado Golf Course, but needed a playoff to do it. After tying former Montrose resident Brandon Bingaman at 21-under-par 192 for three rounds, Keiley birdied the first extra hole (No. 18) for the victory and the $10,000 that goes with it.

The result foiled the bid of Bingaman, who shot a course-record 11-under-par 60 in Sunday’s final round and eagled the 18th hole in regulation. Bingaman, a former Colorado Mesa University standout, won the National Car Rental Colorado PGA Assistants Championship in 2017. He went on to finish 28th in the national Assistant PGA Professional Championship in November.

Keiley shot rounds of 67-61-64, while Bingaman went 65-67-60.

Former Grand Junction resident Monte Montgomery (66-63-67), a three-time RMO winner, placed third at 196.

Taking low-amateur honors on Sunday was incoming University of Denver freshman Cal McCoy of Highlands Ranch, who went 68-68-71–207 to prevail by two in that division. Low senior am by two was Owen Ellis of Boulder (76-70-74–220).
 

Tiara Rado Golf Course in Grand Junction will host the Rocky Mountain Open Friday through Sunday (Aug. 17-19).

As usual, a strong field will be on hand.

Two-time CoBank Colorado Open champion Derek Tolan will be one of the bigger names competing. The former University of Colorado golfer won the Navajo Trail Open in Durango in June.

Also entered are three-time champion Monte Montgomery, a former Grand Junction resident; Doug Rohrbaugh, who has played in two PGA Tour Champions majors this year; 2017 champion Justin Keiley, a former BYU golfer; 2017 CGA Amateur champion Glenn Workman, the low amateur at the RMO last year before turning pro; former University of Colorado golfer Derek Fribbs, the 2015 RMO runner-up; Dillon Stewart, the reigning Junior America’s Cup individual champion; three-time Wyoming State Open winner Kane Webber; and University of Denver men’s coach Erik Billinger.

The RMO has a rich history in western Colorado. Among the winners of the tournament is Orville Moody, who captured the 1975 title six years after claiming victory at the U.S. Open. Babe Didrikson Zaharias, named the top female athlete of the first half of the 20th century, finished third in the 1946 RMO as an amateur and competed in 1950 as a pro. Nate Lashley, a rookie on the PGA Tour this season, won the RMO in 2014.

For the Rocky Mountain Open field, CLICK HERE.
 

Workman, who won both the CGA Amateur and Wyoming State Amateur in 2017, added low-amateur honors in the 79th RMO to being low-am in the Wyoming State Open last month.

Workman closed with a 3-under-par 68 on Sunday at Tiara Rado Golf Course, giving him an 8-under 205 total, which was one better than any other amateur in the field. He made seven birdies on Sunday, including ones on Nos. 16 and 18.

Dillon Stewart of Fort Collins, who led the tournament overall after round 1, tied for second place among amateurs at 206. Also at that figure was Denver City Amateur champion Grant Olinger and Quintin Pope, a University of Wyoming teammate of Workman. Olinger fired a 65 on Sunday, while Pope had a 68 and Stewart a 72.

In the overal competition, Keiley earned the $10,000 first prize with his two-stroke victory. After taking a five-shot lead into the final round, the Hawaiian was 1 over par for the day through 12 holes. But he birdied 13 and 17 and didn’t make any more bogeys the rest of the way to post a 70. That left him at 15-under-par 198 overall.

Taylor Montgomery, a rookie pro after playing his college golf at Nevada-Las Vegas, tied for second at 200 after carding a final-round 64. He played his final six holes in 4 under par. Ryan Wallen, a former Wyoming teammate of Workman and Pope, also shared second place after closing with a bogey-free 63 that featured an eagle on the 300-yard par-4 seventh hole.

The top Colorado finisher was 2016 CGA Match Play champion Nathaniel Goddard of Fort Collins, who tied for fifth at 203 (66-71-66).

Owen Ellis of Boulder claimed senior amateur honors with a 5-over-par 218 total. He carded a 72 on Sunday.

For the final Rocky Mountain Open scores, CLICK HERE.
 

Keiley has yet to make a bogey through the first 36 holes, after which he owns a 14-under-par 128 total. On Saturday, he carded eight birdies, giving him 14 for two days.

Richard Gaona of Miami, Ariz., holds second place at 133 after shooting a bogey-free 65 on Saturday.

Amateur Dillon Stewart from Fort Collins, a junior golfer who led after Friday’s first-round 64, stands in third place at 8-under 134 following a 70 on Saturday. Stewart, a member of the Colorado Junior America’s Cup team this summer, leads CGA Amateur champion Glenn Workman by three in the low-amateur competition.

Play will concluded on Sunday at Tiara Rado. The winner — or low professional should an amateur prevail — will receive $10,000.

For Rocky Mountain Open scores, CLICK HERE.
 

Dillon Stewart of Fort Collins, part of the Colorado Junior America’s Cup team that recently finished fourth out of an 18-team field last month in Washington state, shot a 7-under-par 64 at Tiara Rado Golf Course to grab a one-stroke lead in the tournament.

The runner-up to Davis Bryant of Aurora in the 2017 Colorado Junior PGA Championship, Stewart (pictured) made eight birdies and one bogey in the opening round.

Former Brigham Young University golfer Justin Keiley carded the best score among the professionals on Friday, a bogey-free 65. He played his first eight holes in 6 under, then parred his final 10 holes.

Tied for third place at 66 are 2016 CGA Match Play champion Nathaniel Goddard, who finished third last year in Grand Junction; three-time RMO winner Monte Montgomery; and 2017 CGA Amateur champion Glenn Workman. Montgomery made two eagles in Friday’s round.

The tournament will continue through Sunday, with all the action at Tiara Rado for the first time this year.

For Rocky Mountain Open scores, CLICK HERE.
 

The big change this year is that, instead of the RMO being conducted at multiple courses, as has been the case in the recent past, this year it’s all based at Tiara Rado Golf Course for the first time.

From 2010 through ’15, Bookcliff co-hosted the event with Tiara Rado, and last year the Golf Club at Redlands Mesa joined Tiara Rado.

The 79th annual tournament will be conducted Friday through Sunday (Aug. 18-20), with a pro-am set for Thursday. The event will feature a $75,000 purse, with $10,000 going to the winner — or low professional.

Among the pros in the field this year are two-time CoBank Colorado Open champion Derek Tolan, 2017 Wyoming State Open winner David Oraee, 2007 RMO champ Scott Petersen, three-time RMO winner Monte Montgomery, and Nathaniel Goddard, who finished third last year.

Among the amateurs entered are 2017 CGA Amateur champion Glenn Workman, this year’s CGA Match Play winner Chris Korte, and Josh Seiple, who advanced to the round of 32 at this summer’s British Amateur.

For Friday’s tee times, CLICK HERE.

It’s been a long time since Ross Macdonald tasted victory in a golf tournament, but a trip out west worked wonders.

The University of Colorado golfer ended the drought on Sunday with a three-shot win in the 35th CGA Western Chapter Championship at Tiara Rado Golf Course in Grand Junction. It was the first victory in almost three years for the golfer from the Country Club at Castle Pines — since he claimed two significant Colorado junior titles in 2014.

“It’s been a while,” said the 21-year-old, who won the 2013 and ’14 Colorado Junior Amateur. “So this means everything. It’s awesome to be able to finally get it done. That feeling of winning a tournament is really cool.”

This weekend marked Macdonald’s first time competing in the Western Chapter Championship.

“I know I’ve been close to winning a tournament,” he said. “That’s actually why I went out here. I wanted to get a win. Obviously I got that done, so it feels good. That gets the confidence up.”

Macdonald, who redshirted last season at CU, put together two very strong rounds at Tiara Rado, going 67-66 for a 9-under-par 133 total. Only one other player — University of Denver golfer Isaac Petersilie from Colorado Springs Country Club — finished under par for two rounds.

Macdonald made a dozen birdies over 36 holes and his 66 on Sunday matches his low tournament score ever.

“I was hitting the ball in really good spots off the tee,” he said. “My wedges were really dialed in and I was making some solid putts. I didn’t ever do anything erratic the whole week(end), so I think that helped out a lot.”

Petersilie, who followed up Macdonald’s Junior Amateur wins with a victory in that event in 2015, matched Macdonald’s 66 on Sunday to check in at 136. Petersilie also had a seven-birdie, two-bogey day in round 2.

Petersilie, a former state high school champion, started round 2 three back of Macdonald, but he caught the CU golfer with his seventh birdie of the day, at No. 14. Macdonald pulled back in front — for good — with a birdie on No. 15, then a Petersilie bogey on 16 and a Macdonald birdie on 18 accounted for the three-shot margin of victory.

Claiming third place on Sunday was Chris Carlson of Highlands Ranch Golf Club, who carded back-to-back 71s for a 142 total. Barrett Jones of Eagle Ranch Golf Course, runner-up in the CGA Junior Am earlier this week, ended up fourth at 143 after a closing 73.

In the senior division, Brian Woody (left) of the Ridge at Castle Pines North went wire-to-wire for the title. He shot a 4-over-par 75 on Sunday, giving him a 5-over 147 total and a two-stroke victory. Woody’s second round was highlighted by an eagle on the 455-yard par-5 second hole.

Keith Atkins of Highland Meadows Golf Course placed second at 149 after posting a 73 on Sunday. Former CGA Senior Player of the Year Harry Johnson of Eagle Ranch tied for third at 151, along with Owen Ellis of Flatirons Golf Course, Thomas Roos of Spring Valley Golf Club, Shane Unfred of Highland Meadows and Gary Driber of the Ridge at Castle Pines North.

For scores from the Western Chapter Championship, CLICK HERE.

The two-time Colorado Junior Amateur champion (pictured) made five birdies and one bogey in round 1.

Next best going into Sunday’s final round of the 36-hole event are 2015 Colorado Junior Amateur winner Isaac Petersilie of Colorado Springs Country Club and the University of Denver, and Barrett Jones of Eagle Ranch Golf Course, the runner-up this week in the Colorado Junior Am. Jones carded an eagle and a bogey on Saturday for his 70, while Petersilie had two birdies and a bogey.

At even-par 72 on Saturday were Chris Carlson of Highlands Ranch Golf Club and John Buccos of the Riverdale Golf Courses.

Tristan Rohrbaugh of Ironbridge Golf Club, winner of this championship two years ago and runner-up last year, posted a first-round 75.

In the senior division, Brian Woody of the Ridge at Castle Pines North took a one-stroke lead at 1-over-par 72, making three birdies on the day.

Owen Ellis of Flatirons Golf Course made a hole-in-one at the 94-yard 14th hole and shares second place among the seniors at 73. Also at that figure are former CGA Senior Player of the Year Harry Johnson of Eagle Ranch Golf Course, Cary Dilzell of the Golf Club at Redlands Mesa, Thomas Roos of Spring Valley Golf Club, Scott Sullivan of Bookcliff Country Club and Doug Jones of Tiara Rado.

For scores from the Western Chapter Championship, CLICK HERE.
 

The 36-hole event will include open and senior flights, with gross and net divisions.

Coloradan Kyler Dunkle won’t defend his title as he’ll be competing in U.S. Amateur qualifying on Monday in Highland, Utah. Dunkle advanced to the round of 16 at the 2016 U.S. Am.

But the Western Chapter field will include Tristan Rohrbaugh of Carbondale, who won the championship in 2015 and was runner-up to Dunkle last year. Rohrbaugh, a former 3A state high school champion who plays his college golf at Boise State, qualified for last year’s U.S. Am.

Also scheduled to compete this weekend are Ross Macdonald and Isaac Petersilie, winners of every Colorado Junior Amateur from 2013 to ’15, with Macdonald capturing two of those three. Macdonald is a University of Colorado golfer, while Petersilie plays at the University of Denver.

The Western Chapter senior division field includes David Delich and Harry Johnson, both former CGA Senior Players of the Year.

At the beginning of the training session for the Solich Caddie & Leadership Academy at CommonGround Golf Course, some of the first-year caddies are a bit raw, to put it mildly. Many may have no idea how to carry a golf bag, much less the difference between a putter and a wedge.

“Basically, you’re teaching them what a tee box is, a flagstick, a fairway, the rough and the green,” said one of the trainers, Janene Guzowski (pictured at bottom), who chairs the CGA’s Caddie Development Committee. “Most of these kids, maybe they’ve watched Tiger Woods a few times, but they’ve never actually been on a golf course carrying a bag. Believe it or not, carrying a 25- or 30-pound bag 18 holes for a lot of kids is a huge challenge.”

But by the end of a nine-hole training session on the Kids Course at the CGA-owned and operated facility in Aurora, some of the newcomers already are handing their trainers their putters immediately after their shots stop on the greens, and are getting the basic gist of not walking in a players’ putting line.

It’s a work in progress, to be sure, but considering this is the first time on a golf course for a fair number of these prospective Solich Academy caddies, it’s a positive first step toward what could become a life-changing venture.

Thirty-eight boys and girls took part in Wednesday’s first on-course training session for the Solich Academy, which is entering its sixth season at CommonGround, its third at Meridian Golf Club and its first at Lincoln Park and Tiara Rado Golf Courses in Grand Junction. Most of the kids participating in the program at CommonGround are from the area surrounding the golf course at First Avenue and Havana.

“I’m really impressed,” said another trainer, Tom Woodard (pictured at top with two caddies), a Colorado Golf Hall of Famer who as a teenager earned a full-ride Evans Scholarship for caddies to the University of Colorado. “The kids are super smart, they have good manners, they’re polite. That’s the one thing I noticed more than anything.

“I had two kids who had never been on a golf course. You start from A and go through Z (regarding training). After nine holes you could see how much experience they gained — little things like carrying the bag and cleaning the clubs and watching the ball and where to stand and making sure you don’t step in lines and holding flags against the pin. It’s amazing how much you can go over in nine holes.

“But one thing I try to share with them is, it’s a process. You’re going to make mistakes and get frustrated, but it’ll get better. You’ll catch on really fast.”

The Solich Caddie & Leadership Academy is one of the flagship programs at CommonGround, which takes pride in hosting numerous such initiatives that benefit the community and the game. Also on site are Community and Wellness Programs and the Hale Irwin Elite Player Program, among other things.

Founded in 2012, the Solich Academy — named for former caddies and current oilmen and philanthropists George and Duffy Solich — creates opportunities for boys and girls to build leadership skills and develop character through caddying and Academy programming.

The Solich Academy promotes the use of caddies by paying the base caddie fees through an educational grant, with participating golfers having the option of adding a tip. In addition to the caddying, a major component of the Academy is that all of the caddies are required to attend weekly leadership classes and do volunteer community-service work each summer. Ideally, some of the participants will become good candidates for the Evans Scholarship.

“The way I look at CommonGround is it’s a lab for a lot of different programs related to golf, and this is one of them,” CGA president Joe McCleary (pictured in second photo from the top) said regarding the Solich Academy. “We also have a chapter down at Meridian and we’re now into Grand Junction. And the model has been used for other places around the country. How can anyone argue with what we’re doing? I think it’s awesome, and I love being a part of it.”

Between the two existing Solich Academy sites, CommonGround (almost 1,100) and Meridian (about 330) produced more than 1,400 caddie loops for participating youngsters in 2016. Over the past five years, CommonGround and Meridian have generated almost 5,400 loops, with CommonGround on its own racking up almost 4,800. And 13 Solich caddies have gone on to earn full-tuition and housing Evans Scholarships at CU.

The normal pattern is for Solich caddies to spend two years at CommonGround (or Meridian), then graduate to other programs around the metro area such as those at Cherry Hills Country Club, Denver Country Club, Lakewood Country Club, etc.

Wednesday’s training group included both first- and second-year caddies, but mostly newbies. Almost three dozen trainers — which included leaders of the CGA and CWGA, Colorado PGA professionals, friends of CommonGround and others — volunteered their time to help teach the nascent caddies the basics.

Last week, the prospective 2017 Solich Academy caddies began their training by attending video sessions. The next couple of weeks, a much smaller group of trainers will run the caddies through “intensive situation training”, where they’ll learn about raking bunkers, work around the greens and other specifics.

Wary of overloading the kids with too much information too quickly — giving them the “firehose” approach, as CGA executive director Ed Mate calls it — Mate prefers to mainly emphasize keeping up and where to stand during this week’s first on-course session.

“That makes it so much more enjoyable — just enjoying the conversation and getting to know (the caddies) — rather than getting them distracted by giving them the firehose,” he said.

Following situation training for the remainder of April, the prospective Solich Academy 2017 roster may be winnowed a bit based on absences or lack of interest on the part of a few kids. Then the remaining youngsters will be taken out on the CommonGround championship course twice in May by a group of about eight trainers before getting their first official loop of the season, probably starting around Memorial Day weekend.

“We’re really going to drill them on the most important things: keeping up, and being pro-active on the putting green and not just standing back twiddling their thumbs,” Mate said. “The new kids will be so much better off because they will have caddied two rounds on the big course before they go to their first live loop.”

Of course, while the kids can reap potentially large dividends through participating in the Solich Caddie & Leadership Academy, the trainers tend to get a lot of fulfillment out of it as well.

McCleary, for instance, has served as a trainer all six years the Academy has existed. And his youngest daughter, Sydney, participated in the program the last two years and plans to caddie at Cherry Hills this summer.

“These are great kids and to see them grow and move on is special,” he said. “And it’s rewarding when you go to the Evans Scholars Selection Meeting and you see kids from this program making their way up to that and getting the scholarship. The Selection Meeting is one of my favorite events every year. I’ve been to that longer than we’ve had this program.

“But I love doing this. That’s just the best way to put it.”