Following up from earlier this week, when we started our two-part retrospective on the top Colorado golf-related stories of 2018 (CLICK HERE for the first installment), we continue our countdown with the top dozen stories of the year — in reverse order. And at the end, included is a list of honorable-mention selections.

12. Stewart Signs With No. 1-Ranked College Team in Nation: It’s not often that a Colorado golfer signs a national letter of intent with the No. 1-ranked college program in the nation. But such was the case in November when Dillon Stewart of Fort Collins put his John Hancock on the dotted line with Oklahoma State. Stewart, who graduated from Fossil Ridge High School this month, will be headed to Stillwater for the fall semester next year. The Junior Golf Alliance of Colorado’s Boys Player of the Year is one of at least nine Colorado residents or JGAC members from the Class of 2019 who are headed to NCAA Division I golf programs. READ MORE

11. Another National Honor for Colorado PGA: Dating back to the late 1950s, members of the Colorado PGA or the Section itself have won 19 national awards from the PGA of America. Ten of those 19 have come since 2007, including this year’s Herb Graffis Award for player development, which the CPGA received for the second time since 2011. READ MORE

10. New CGA President Janene Guzowski Continues Trend in Colorado: The last several months of this year have proven to be a major boon for women in leadership roles in Colorado golf. Janene Guzowski is the new president of the CGA, Janet Moore is the new president of the Colorado Golf Hall of Fame, and Molly Greenblatt has become the new chairperson of the Colorado Open Golf Foundation. And that’s in addition to Suzy Whaley being elected the first national president of the PGA of America. READ MORE

9. Colorado, Hiwan Shine as Girls Junior Americas Cup Hosts: The Girls Junior Americas Cup — a team competition featuring players from the western U.S., Canada and Mexico — is hosted just once every 18 years by Colorado, and 2018 was the Centennial State’s turn. Hiwan Golf Club in Evergreen, where the Colorado Open was held from 1964 to ’91, was a fitting mountainous setting for the event. While Mexico swept the team and individual titles, Colorado posted its best finish since 2013 by placing fifth out of 18 teams. Staff and volunteers from the CGA and the Junior Golf Alliance of Colorado played major roles in running this major junior event. READ MORE

8. Colorado Sweeps Team, Individual Titles at Boys Junior America’s Cup: At the same time the Girls Junior Amerias Cup was taking place at Hiwan, a Colorado team (left) was making history at the boys Junior America’s Cup in Montana. For the first time in the 44 years in which Colorado has competed in the event, its squad claimed the team title. In fact, a Colorado team had never finished better than third before this year in the competition that includes players from the western U.S., Canada and Mexico. To add to the feat, Dillon Stewart of Fort Collins won the individual title out of the 72-player field. Joining Stewart on the winning team were Cal McCoy of Highlands Ranch, Davis Bryant of Aurora and Walker Franklin of Broomfield. Former longtime CGA staffer Dustin Jensen captained the Colorado squad. READ MORE

7. 2 Coloradans Qualify for PGA Tour, 2 More for LPGA Tour: Seldom have players who grew up in Colorado enjoyed so much success in qualifying for the top men’s and women’s golf tours in the world as they did in the final half of 2018. Wyndham Clark and Jim Knous earned promotions to the PGA Tour with their performances on the Web.com Tour regular season and Finals, respectively. And Jennifer Kupcho and Becca Huffer landed spots on the LPGA Tour in 2019 by both finishing in the top 10 in the eight-round LPGA Q-Series, with Kupcho placing second and Huffer 10th. All four Coloradans will be rookies on those top circuits in 2019. In fact, the PGA Tour’s wraparound season began in October, and Knous recorded a top-10 finish in his first event as a member of that Tour. Joining Kupcho and Huffer in earning an LPGA card last month was former University of Colorado golfer Robyn Choi.

6. Gearing Up for Rules Changes: With the modernized Rules of Golf set to take effect on Jan. 1, the USGA and its affiliated Allied Golf Associations have been very busy trying to bring members up to speed on the changes. For the CGA, that effort has included weekly “Ready for the 2019 Rules” videos and four-hour Ready for the Rules seminars held at various locations around the state late in 2018 and also planned for the first several months of 2019. READ MORE

5. Year 1 of New-Look CGA: Our No. 1 story of 2017 in Colorado golf was the unification a year ago of the CGA and CWGA after both associations had celebrated their 100th anniversaries as separate — but complementary — organizations serving golf in Colorado. With 2018 being their first full calendar year together, things have gone, by just about any measure, extremely well. All of which is very good news, considering how many golfers the new-look CGA serves as members. There’s still work to be done, but it’s certainly been a stellar first year together.

4. CSU Golfers Claim USGA National Title: Golfers with strong Colorado ties don’t often get to say they’re reigning USGA national champions, but Colorado State University golfers Katrina Prendergast and Ellen Secor (left) earned that honor by winning the U.S. Amateur Four-Ball title in early May in Tarzana, Calif. The two never trailed in the first four matches they played at El Caballero Country Club. In the title match, they were 2 down with four holes left, but a big-time rally down the stretch netted them a 1-up victory over teenagers Yachun Chang of Chinese Taipei and Lei Ye of China — and the national championship. The victory was believed to be the first USGA national amateur championship by a person or team with strong Colorado ties since Jill McGill won the 1993 U.S. Women’s Amateur and 1994 U.S. Women’s Amateur Public Links. READ MORE

3. Vickers Passes Away: There are almost 12 dozen people in the Colorado Golf Hall of Fame, but even in that select group, there are some that took it to the next level. A good rule of thumb as to who those people are is if they’ve also been inducted into the Colorado Sports Hall of Fame. There are less than a dozen people who are members of both Halls of Fame. One of them passed away in September — 93-year-old Jack Vickers. Vickers made his mark in a variety of sports, but likely will be most remembered as the founder of Castle Pines Golf Club and The International that hosted PGA Tour events for 21 years. No less than Jack Nicklaus, who designed Castle Pines, paid tribute to Vickers the day he died. Vickers’ International ran from 1986 through 2006. It featured a unique modified Stableford scoring system, which promoted aggressive play as a birdie and a bogey were worth more than two pars. The tournament produced quite a few big-name champions, including Greg Norman, Davis Love III (twice), Phil Mickelson (twice), Vijay Singh and Ernie Els. READ MORE

2. Kupcho Phenomenon Continues: Jennifer Kupcho of Westminster may very well accomplish great things in the coming decades, but even long into the future, 2018 will be a year she’ll remember fondly. Here’s a brief rundown of what she accomplished: The Wake Forest golfer won an NCAA Division I individual title a year (left) after placing second. She became the first Colorado resident to win the prestigious individual championship on the women’s side. She helped three U.S. national teams capture international team titles in 2018 — at the Curtis Cup, the Arnold Palmer Cup and the Women’s World Amateur Team Championship. In the latter event, Kupcho finished second individually out of a field of 170. She also placed second at the eight-round final stage of LPGA Q-school. After concluding her college career in May, she’ll immediately begin her LPGA career. Kupcho finished an LPGA career-best 16th this year in the LPGA Marathon Classic. Overall in 2018, she won three individual college titles. Kupcho also claimed the prestigious Mark H. McCormack Medal, becoming the first American to win the women’s McCormack honor as the top female player in the Women’s World Amateur Golf Rankings as of the conclusion of the U.S. Women’s Amateur. And she was named the world female Amateur of the Year by digital new magazine Global Golf Post. READ MORE

1. U.S. Senior Open a Hit at The Broadmoor: It had been almost four years since Colorado had hosted a big-time tour-level event — the kind that attracts 100,000-plus fans. But the drought ended this year when the U.S. Senior Open (pictured at top) was conducted at The Broadmoor in Colorado Springs. And the results didn’t disappoint. The announced attendance for the week was 134,500, the most for the Senior Open since the 157,126 in Omaha, Neb., in 2013. David Toms, who won the 1999 Sprint International at Castle Pines but hadn’t captured a title on the PGA Tour or PGA Tour Champions in seven years, captured the victory at the Senior Open by one stroke. Colorado Golf Hall of Famer Brandt Jobe placed fifth, marking his second straight top-5 performance in the U.S. Senior Open. Shortly after the conclusion of the championship, the USGA announced that the U.S. Senior Open will return to The Broadmoor in 2025.

Honorable Mention

— Lauren Howe, who grew up in Colorado, was a finalist in the U.S. Girls’ Junior as a 15-year-old and went on to win an event on the LPGA Tour, was voted into the Colorado Golf Hall of Fame.

— Patrick Reidy became the fifth 50-something player in the last six years to win the Colorado PGA Professional Championship.

— Players from Texas swept the two CGA women’s major titles in 2018, giving Texans three consecutive such championships. Emily Gilbreth, a lifetime Houstonian before moving to Denver, won the 2017 CGA Women’s Match Play; Kristin Glesne of San Antonio the 2018 CGA Women’s Stroke Play; and Kennedy Swann the 2018 CGA Women’s Match Play.

— Former BYU golfer Justin Keiley won his second straight Rocky Mountain Open, defeating former Montrose resident Brandon Bingaman in a playoff after the latter shot a course-record 11-under-par 60 in the final round at Tiara Rado in Grand Junction.

— Three Colorado courses — Castle Pines, Ballyneal and Cherry Hills — are ranked among the 150 Greatest International Courses, according to Golf Digest.

— Kaden Ford of Colorado Springs finished sixth — tying the best showing ever by a Coloradan — in the Drive, Chip and Putt National Finals at Augusta. At the 2019 National Finals, three Coloradans will compete — Caitlyn Chin of Greenwood Village, Chunya Boonta of Centennial and Grady Ortiz of Colorado.

— The University of Denver women’s golf team saw its remarkable string of league tournament championships end at 14, though the Pioneers’ Sophie Newlove claimed the individual title at Summit League Championship.

— CU’s Robyn Choi qualified in Colorado for the U.S. Women’s Open for a second straight year. Choi later earned her LPGA Tour card at the final stage of Q-school.

— Former Coloradan Kyler Dunkle, who won the CGA Amateur in August, claimed the Mark Simpson Colorado Invitational championship for the second straight year for his second individual college title in eight days.

— Doug Rohrbaugh, who was paired with Scott McCarron and Miguel Angel Jimenez at the Senior PGA Championship, became the first golfer to sweep the Colorado PGA Player of Year and Senior Player of Year honors in the same season. Like Rohrbaugh, Colorado PGA professional Chris Johnson qualified for two PGA Tour Champions majors in 2018 — the U.S. Senior Open and the Senior PGA Championship.

— Nicholas Pevny of Aspen captured a national title, prevailing in the boys 12-13 age division of the Optimist International Junior Golf Championships in Florida.

— Former Parker resident Elizabeth Wang finished 34th — fourth among amateurs — at the U.S. Women’s Open. Wang also made it to the round of 16 at the U.S. Women’s Amateur and to the round of 32 at the U.S. Girls’ Junior. Wang, now playing for Harvard, defeated Jennifer Kupcho of Westminster in 19 holes in the round of 64 at the U.S. Women’s Am.

— Fort Collins resident Dillon Stewart became to first Coloradan to win the AJGA Hale Irwin Colorado Junior boys title. Later, he captured a second AJGA championship, this time in Montana, and won 5A state high school individual and team titles.

— New Colorado resident Dan Erickson shot a 9-under-par 61 — a course record by two strokes at Fort Collins Country Club — en route to qualifying for the U.S. Amateur, where he made match play but bowed out in the round of 64 at Pebble Beach.

— Hadley Ashton of Erie finished fifth in the girls 9-10 division at the prestigious IMG Academy Junior World Championships.

— Thirty-two years after winning her first CGA/CWGA title, Kristine Franklin earned her second, this time overcoming five-time champion Kim Eaton in the Women’s Senior Stroke Play.

— Greg Condon of the southern Colorado town of Monte Vista shared stroke-play medalist honors in the U.S. Senior Amateur, while Scott Sullivan of Grand Junction advanced to the match play round of 16.

(Note: This story was updated on Jan. 2)

Brandt Jobe has won so much in Colorado over the years, but on the biggest of stages, he’s had to settle for being heart-wrenchingly close.

It happened at the PGA Tour’s International at Castle Pines in 2005, when he led by nine points early in the final round in the modified Stableford format, only to finish second for one of the four times he did on golf’s top tour. And as it turned out, Jobe never did win on the PGA Tour.

Then on Sunday, Jobe, who was back in the state where he lived from 1970 to ’99, was tied for the lead at the U.S. Senior Open with three holes left at The Broadmoor in Colorado Springs. Alas, a bogey on the 15th hole — his only one in the final dozen holes — foiled his chances. The 52-year-old Colorado Golf Hall of Famer shot an even-par 70 on Sunday and tied for fifth place at 1-under 279, two strokes behind champion David Toms.

“It would have been cool” to win in his old home state, Jobe said. “That was my goal. That would have been so cool. Two unbelievable chances (this and the 2005 International). It was out there for me. As well as I was putting — which was crazy because I putted so bad the first two days — but I putted so good the last two days. I guess it wasn’t meant to be. It wasn’t my day.”

Jobe (pictured) has won a Colorado Open, three CGA Match Plays and a CGA Amateur in Colorado, in addition to some state junior titles. And, coincidentally, his first two CGA Match Play victories came at The Broadmoor, on what was then known as the South Course.

And it looked like he might notch another victory at the resort on Sunday, albeit of a much bigger variety. After making numerous par saves and sinking a 35-foot downhill breaker for birdie on No. 8 and a 5-footer at No. 1, Jobe shared the lead on the 15th tee.

There, though, he pulled his 2-iron tee shot into a fairway bunker that was 290 yards out. His next shot finished in the rough short of the green, and after a nice pitch, he missed a 6-foot par putt, taking a bogey. With playing partner Paul Goydos making a birdie on the same hole, Jobe was quickly two behind. And he couldn’t catch up.

“It feels like a lost opportunity,” said Jobe, who has one PGA Tour Champions win, but was looking for his biggest title.

“The 15th hole was my undoing,” he said. “It kind of took me out of it. I hit my 2-iron this week unbelievable. But there I pulled it. I didn’t think it got to the bunker, which would have been alright because I only had a wedge in. It was the worst 2-iron I hit all week, which was surprising.

“They fluffed (the sand in) the bunkers and I had no chance. I was in the middle of the bunker and it should have been at least a decent lie to have a chance. I’ve got nothing. It was either blade it into the grandstands or chunk it down front (so he did the latter). I hit a great chip and hit a good putt but misread it.”

Jobe was trying to become the third player to win the U.S. Senior Open after growing up in Colorado, following Dale Douglass (1986) and Hale Irwin (1998 and 2000).

“There are going to be guys losing sleep over this championship,” FS1 analyst Paul Azinger said, speaking of several contenders.

On the positive side, Jobe notched his seventh top-10 finish in senior majors. He’s been third and fifth in the U.S. Senior Open, second and fourth in the Senior Players, third and eighth in the Senior PGA, and fifth in the Senior British Open.

“At the end of the day, I guess I was maybe fortunate to have a chance because I didn’t play as well as I would have liked to,” said Jobe, who was competing in Colorado for the first time in a dozen years. “Whenever you’re that close, you’ve got to kind of take it. And I didn’t.”

But it was “a great week. I enjoyed it. They did a great job. That was how it should be. It was so hard it drove us crazy. But at the end of the day, good players are going to win.”

Low Am Wilson Matches Giles’ Feat: Jeff Wilson of Fairfield, Calif., became just the second player ever to claim low-amateur honors at both the U.S. Open and the U.S. Senior Open by hitting the mark in the latter on Sunday. He joined Vinny Giles in that elite club after having been the top amateur in the 2000 U.S. Open at Pebble Beach.

“He was a great amateur player and to be mentioned in the same light as that, that’s terrific,” Wilson said of Giles. “I haven’t really thought about it. I was really trying to kind of just finish. You can’t get ahead of yourself or bad things could happen real quick. But that’s awesome.”

Wilson finished 31st overall at 10-over-par 290 after a final-round 73. Mike Finster was second among amateurs at 293.

Notable: Among those watching the action again Sunday at The Broadmoor was Broncos general manager John Elway (left, in striped shirt), the honorary chairman of the U.S. Senior Open. … Jerry Kelly, who led after the first three rounds and finished second on Sunday, said his son is attending school in Boulder, at the University of Colorado, and that the family is considering buying a home in the Centennial State. … On a blustery day, only three players shot under par on Sunday — Duffy Waldorf (68), Miguel Angel Jimenez (69) and Paul Broadhurst (69). That’s the fewest in the final round of a U.S. Senior Open since 1991 at Oakland Hills in Bloomfield Township, Mich., where there were two.
 

Less than 15 minutes after The Broadmoor’s eighth USGA championship concluded on Sunday, the USGA announced that No. 9 is on the way.

Before David Toms was handed the U.S. Senior Open trophy on the 18th green of the East Course on Sunday evening, the crowd was told that the Senior Open will return to the resort in 2025. Specific dates that year have yet to be determined.

It will mark the fourth U.S. Senior Open held in Colorado, and the third at The Broadmoor, which did the honors in 2008 and this year. Cherry Hills Country Club hosted the event in 1993, when Jack Nicklaus won.

“Beginning with the U.S. Amateur in 1959 (when Nicklaus also prevailed), The Broadmoor has been a gracious and wonderful host and a valued partner to the USGA, helping us to showcase the world’s greatest players on the game’s grandest stages,” USGA CEO Mike Davis said in a statement. “This has been a tremendous week of golf and a great celebration of the game, and we are excited to bring the championship back to Colorado Springs in 2025.”

It’s unusual for a U.S. Senior Open site announcement seven years in advance. In fact, the courses for the 2023 and ’24 events haven’t yet been set. But the USGA obviously was sold on all that The Broadmoor brings to the table.

“It’s amazing how well Colorado supports these things,” said Russ Miller, The Broadmoor’s longtime director of golf. “It’s been proven over and over and over. That’s exciting.”

The 2025 U.S. Senior Open will be the 34th USGA championship held in the Centennial State. In the interim, Colorado Golf Club in Parker will be the site of the 2019 U.S. Mid-Amateur, with those dates set for Sept. 14-19.

The fans came out in force this week at The Broadmoor. The USGA announced the attendance for the 39th U.S. Senior Open was 134,500. That’s 5,786 more than the weeklong number for the 2008 Senior Open at The Broadmoor.

“It far exceeded what I anticipated,” Miller said of the attendance during The Broadmoor’s 100th anniversary celebration. “That’s a tremendous success.”

The 134,500 was the most for the Senior Open since the 157,126 in Omaha, Neb., in 2013. The record for a Senior Open came in Des Moines, Iowa in 1999, when more than 200,000 people attended.

The figures this week include 102,600 during the four championship days — Thursday through Sunday. It went 19,700 on Thursday, 23,200 on Friday, 28,700 on Saturday and 31,000 on Sunday.

“The fans were tremendous,” said Toms, an LSU alum. “Now I know why all these LSU people come here to get out of the heat.”

This week’s U.S. Senior Open was all the more impressive considering a hailstorm that hit the area two weeks before the championship. Large hailstones damaged the greens quite severely. But by the time the Senior Open began on Thursday, it was barely noticeable.

“We were less than two weeks out,” Miller said. “The maintenance staff took 15 guys and took ball repair tools and went to every green and did thousands on every green. I could take a golf ball and it went down in (the hailstone marks).

“It’s not like a divot. When hail hits, it splits the turf. They fixed them by hand, we verti-cut again — which we weren’t going to do — but that was a great decision by Freddie Dickman (director of golf course maintenance at The Broadmoor). And now you’d never know anything happened.

“It was about 10 days (after the storm) before you couldn’t tell anything. In practice rounds, it looked like little bruises almost. The last couple of days it’s perfect. You can’t tell a thing. (The nearby two of) Fountain had baseball-size hail, so we got very lucky — I guess.”

Overall, it turned out to be quite a week for The Broadmoor. Besides the attendance, there were no weather delays, which is no small matter this time of year along the Front Range. And while the East Course caused the players fits, few complained about the test.

“It was a perfect U.S. Open setup,” said Rocco Mediate.

Added Jerry Kelly: “Those of you who know me know I don’t like to give the USGA that much credit, but they got it right this week. It was a fantastic job. The golf course got firm, tough, fast (and still) extremely playable. It was a great championship.”

That’s the overall tenor of the feedback Miller heard this week.

“I think the golf course held up great,” he said. “A lot of the players are saying it’s very difficult but very fair. You can’t get lucky. You’ve got to manage the course. That’s what an Open championship is all about. I’ve heard no negatives on the golf course. And the weather has been perfect.”
 

David Toms hadn’t won on the PGA Tour or PGA Tour Champions in more than seven years. Perhaps it was appropriate that the drought ended in a state where he earned one of his 13 PGA Tour victories.

In addition to the biggest win of his lifetime — the 2001 PGA Championship in the Atlanta area — Toms took home the trophy from the 1999 Sprint International at Castle Pines.

And as he came down the stretch of his U.S. Senior Open victory Sunday evening at The Broadmoor in Colorado Springs, Toms thought about both those tournaments.

“I always try to draw on those positive experiences,” the 51-year-old from Louisiana said. “I thought a lot about The International this week. … In fact, what I thought about over the last putt that I had on 18 (today) was that year that I won The International. I had a two-putt to win and I had a downhill, right-to-left breaking putt just like I had (today). And I actually made it in ’99.

“I thought about both (The International and the PGA) the last two holes. So you can tell that I was always trying to draw on something positive from the past.”

And it certainly seemed to work.

Toms drained a 15-foot birdie on the par-3 16th to break out of a large tie and take the solo lead, then sank a 20-foot par putt on the par-4 17th after driving it into the lip of a fairway bunker. Then he two-putted from 15 feet on No. 18, looking up to the sky and noticeably exhaling after stroking a 2-foot par putt into the right side of the hole for the win.

“I think if it was 3 feet, it wouldn’t have gone in because I didn’t hit it in the middle,” Toms said of his final putt. “I hit it on the right side and it’s moving right. If it’s 2 1/2 feet, it probably wouldn’t have gone in. But it went in and I’m here (in the winner’s press conference), so I’m happy.”

Toms (above in a USGA photo and at left in a CGA photo) emerged from a wild day in which at least a half-dozen players seemed to be on the brink of taking control at various times.

As it was, Toms shot an even-par 70 for a 3-under-par 277 total and a one-stroke victory over three players — Jerry Kelly, who had led after each of the first three rounds; his college teammate Tim Petrovic, who had to qualify just to make the field; and Spaniard Miguel Angel Jimenez, who played his last four holes in 2 under par. Jimenez, who putted off the green and took a double bogey on No. 8, then bogeyed 9, shot a 69.

“It’s painful because I threw away the tournament there” on 8 and 9, said Jimenez (left).

Petrovic posted a 70 and Kelly a 72.

While Jimenez and Petrovic birdied 18 to finish where they did, Kelly could have forced a playoff by making a long birdie putt from in front of the green there. But he left his ball less than a foot short.

“This one is going to motivate me in a big way,” Kelly said. “We’ve got two (more) majors in a row coming up, and I’m ready to tee it up tomorrow morning. I hit fantastic shots on the back side, but the bounces did not go my way when the ball landed on the green. That’s golf.”

Sharing fifth place were two other players who were in the lead on the back nine on Sunday — Colorado Golf Hall of Famer Brandt Jobe and playing partner Paul Goydos — along with Englishman Paul Broadhurst.

Toms earned $720,000 for the victory, but it took an unusual week to get there. On Thursday, the first day of the championship, his caddie, Scott Gneiser, had to go to the hospital because of a heart condition.

“I’m scrambling around,” Toms said. “My wife says Carter (their son and a golfer at LSU, David Tom’s alma mater), he’s ready to go, he’s going to caddie for you. He’s never caddied before in his life.

“… But he did an unbelievable job. He really kept me in there, especially on Friday where I was 3 over par early in the round. He was so positive. It was like me talking to him when he’s going to play.”

Then Gneiser returned for the weekend, when Toms went 66-70.

“I just have to figure out now what percentage (fee) each of them gets,” Toms said. “That should be interesting.”

Toms managed the confounding Broadmoor greens better than most, particularly on Sunday. He hit just eight greens in regulation in the final round, but needed just 26 putts, the lowest number for Sunday. And the ones on 16 and 17 with the tournament on the line, those were pivotal.

“If you’re going to win championships, that’s what you have to do,” Petrovic said. “You’ve got to make the big putt at the right time — and he did.”

Said Toms of the putt on 17: “Just an unbelievable putt I made for par. Certainly that was the key to victory. … To make the two putts on 16 and 17 with the greens they were late in the day, I guess it was meant to be.”

Through the final 36 holes, Toms made just two bogeys, which was no small feat as tough as the East Course was playing.

For the final scores from the U.S. Senior Open, CLICK HERE.

One streak ended for Jerry Kelly on Saturday, but another remained intact.

The 51-year-old from Madison, Wis., saw his impressive run of subpar rounds on PGA Tour Champions snapped at 16 as he shot a 1-over-par 71 at The Broadmoor’s East Course.

Nevertheless, Kelly (left in a USGA photo) finished his third straight day of the U.S. Senior Open with the outright lead.

One more and he’ll be hoisting the trophy on Sunday.

Kelly, a three-time winner on PGA Tour Champions and that circuit’s money leader in 2018, gave back three strokes on the first three holes of the back nine Saturday but steadied the ship to finish with six consecutive pars. He stands at 4-under 206 through 54 holes.

Kelly led by three strokes midway through his round, but a bogey on No. 10 and a double bogey at No. 12 — where he three-putted from 2 1/2 feet — cost him significantly.

“That one sticks in your craw a little bit,” he said, later adding, “I’m very disappointed. I could have put some distance (between himself and the next-best player), no question.

“I’m a jumpy putter. I’m a very good putter, but those types of things happen to me. I understood what I did. Pick the putter up, bang it down on the ball and it squirts in a different direction. So I know it and then I could just move on after that. Now, did it unnerve me a little bit? Yeah, absolutely. So hanging in there after that, that next up-and-down was fantastic.”

Kelly will take a one-stroke lead into Sunday’s final round. Closest on his heels is David Toms, winner of the 2001 PGA Championship and the 1999 International at Castle Pines, who matched the best round of the day with a bogey-free 4-under-par 66. Sharing third place are Kirk Triplett, who lost in a playoff at this event last year, and Tim Petrovic, who was a college teammate of Kelly at the University of Hartford.

Kelly entered the media center during Petrovic’s interview on Saturday, and requested that the latter sing the University of Hartford fight song.

“Well, since the University fo Hartford does not have a football team, I don’t think we have a fight song,” Petrovic said. “Do you know the fight song? Did you have go Hartford by the way?

Said Kelly: “I went to the school. I just didn’t go to class.”

And so it went.

That wasn’t the only amusing/odd moment of the day for Petrovic. On the 17th hole, he flared his tee shot to the right, with the ball running down the cart path. Once it finished up in the rough, a youngster slid in on the grass and picked up the ball. Petrovic was later given a free drop and made bogey on the hole, part of a stretch in which he went 3 over par in his final four holes en route to a 71.

“I just found out that (the boy) actually slid like he was sliding into second base, trying to fight his brother for the golf ball and actually picked it up,” Petrovic said. “And then when I got to the ball, it looked like he was about to lose it; he was really upset. I just made a comment, ‘Hey, next time you do that, why don’t you just kick it back toward the fairway instead?’ And he thought that was pretty funny, so that kind of put the fire out. … I just wanted to make him feel like it’s not the end of the world. It’s only a major, no big deal (laugh).”

Three other players round out the seven golfers who are under par, sharing fifth place at 209. That includes Colorado Golf Hall of Famer Brandt Jobe (See Related Story), who fired a 66 on Saturday; Miguel Angel Jimenez (73) and Paul Goydos (66).

Also still within striking distance are World Golf Hall of Famers Davis Love III (210) and Colin Montgomerie (211).

“I think there’s so many people that will have a chance tomorrow,” said Toms (left in a USGA photo). “I look forward to it.”

Added Petrovic: “It’s going to be fun tomorrow. It’s going to be a little dogfight.”

Elway Duly Impressed By Performances at Broadmoor: FS1, which is televising the Senior Open, had the tournament’s honorary chairman — and Pro Football Hall of Famer — John Elway on the air during Saturday’s telecast.

Elway, of course, tried to qualify at The Broadmoor for the Senior Open. He came up short, shooting an 80, finishing in 18th place out of a field that originally numbered 84.

“It was tough,” the former Broncos quarterback said. “I will tell you this: If I had to play golf in those conditions every day, I probably wouldn’t play golf, that’s how hard it is. That’s why you look at what these guys are doing and how impressive it is and the way that they play. So it’s fun to watch them play … You don’t appreciate it on TV nearly as much as when you get a chance to see them swing.”

Langer Thinks He’s Too Far Back: Bernhard Langer, who owns more senior major titles than anyone (10), shot a 4-under-par 66 on Saturday, but at 4-over-par 214 and eight out of the lead he doesn’t feel he has a realistic shot at the title on Sunday.

“Every place forward is better,” the 60-year-old said. “Gets more money, more Schwab Cup points, but I don’t think I’m going to have a chance to win.”

On Friday, Langer had an unusual experience of losing his ball in standard rough of an area populated by spectators. That was on his first shot of the day, which went left on the par-4 first. “There were hundreds of people around. Nobody saw it,” said Langer, who posted a double bogey on the hole. “Pretty weird.”

Notable: Jeff Wilson of Fairfield, Calif., the low amateur in the U.S. Open in 2000, is going for the career Open/Senior Open low-am sweep, trying to become the second to manage the feat, joining Vinny Giles. Wilson shot an even-par 70 on Saturday to check in at 7-over 217, one better than fellow am Mike Finster. “If I was to be the low amateur, that would be awesome,” Wilson said. … Tee times for Sunday’s final round will start at 9:41 a.m., with the top two players after three rounds — Jerry Kelly and David Toms — going off at 2:45 p.m.

For scores from the U.S. Senior Open, CLICK HERE.

For Sunday’s pairings at The Broadmoor, CLICK HERE.
 

It wasn’t quite Babe Ruth’s “called shot” from the 1932 World Series, but it was nevertheless an impressive example of an athlete noting what needed to be done, then going out and flat doing it.

After Friday’s second round of the U.S. Senior Open at The Broadmoor, Colorado Golf Hall of Famer Brandt Jobe was eight strokes out of the lead, but said, “You shoot a 66 or 65, you’re back in the tournament.”

Twenty-four hours later, Jobe walked off the East Course in his old home state with a nifty 4-under-par 66 — which matched the best round Saturday — that vaulted him into fifth place and just three strokes out of the lead going into Sunday’s final round.

Reminded Saturday of his words from a day earlier, Jobe chucked and said, “I delivered.”

It’s the second straight year that Jobe has gone low in the third round of the U.S. Senior Open to land a spot on the leaderboard. A year ago in Peabody, Mass., Jobe tied the U.S. Senior Open single-round scoring record by shooting an 8-under-par 62 in round 3. That one put him within six strokes of the lead.

“Saturdays have been good,” he noted this time around. “These last two Saturdays (at the Senior Open), if I could make the Saturdays the rest of the week, I’d be in a little better shape.”

At The Broadmoor, Saturday’s 66 and 1-under-par 209 total left Jobe with half the 54-hole deficit he faced last year as Jerry Kelly leads at 206, 2001 PGA Champion David Toms is in second place at 207 and 2017 Senior Open runner-up Kirk Triplett and Tim Petrovic share third at 208.

“I’ve got to go out there and probably shoot another 66” on Sunday to have a realistic chance to win, Jobe said. “I’ve got a lot of good players ahead of me obviously.”

Many local fans will be rooting for Jobe, who lived in Colorado from 1970 to ’99. During that time, he won a Colorado Open, three CGA Match Plays, one CGA Amateur, one CGA Junior Amateur and one CGA Junior Match Play. (Coincidentally, his first two CGA Match Play wins came at The Broadmoor, on the South Course.) The Kent Denver graduate also finished second in The International at Castle Pines in 2005 after having a healthy lead going into the final day. His mom, dad, brother, sister and brother-in-law still live in Colorado.

Jobe never won on the PGA Tour — he finished runner-up four times. And so far in his PGA Tour Champions career, the 52-year-old Jobe has won once — last year’s Principal Charity Classic in Des Moines, Iowa.

But Jobe is leading the PGA Tour Champions in driving distance this year, and often seems to do well in senior majors.

He’s posted six top-10 finishes in those events, which is notable considering he didn’t play in his first one until 2016. He’s been second and fourth in the Senior Players, third in that 2017 U.S. Senior Open where he shot the third-round 62, third and eighth in the Senior PGA, and fifth in the Senior British Open.

“My length, it’s huge out here,” he said. “Even (playing partner Bob Estes) is fairly long for out here and I was hitting it 30 (yards) by him. And the harder the course, the fewer people that can hang in there. The difficulty and the length helps me.”

So does playing four rounds in senior majors vs. three in regular PGA Tour Champions events.

“Four rounds always helps, no doubt about it,” he said. “Putting four rounds together vs. three, the guy that’s playing the best is going to continue to rise. It’s not as much of a sprint when you play four rounds. In three-round (events), if you don’t get it going (early) you kill yourself. I’ve gotten used to it. I’ve learned a lot out here.”

On Saturday, Jobe switched putters to a virtually identical model with perhaps a little less loft, which seemed to turn things around after what he called “horrible” putting days Thursday and Friday. He birdied three of his first six holes, making a couple of 15-footers and saving a par from 5 feet on 4, and finished with five birdies and one bogey on the day.

“I’ve had the (old) putter for a year and there’s something wrong with it,” he said. “It got bent in the hosel. They fixed it, but now it looks like it’s doing it again, so I said, ‘I’m not going to putt with it anymore.'”

Jobe now lives in Texas and will soon be moving to Oklahoma City. But the Kent Denver graduate explained on Saturday why he left Colorado 19 years ago after living in the state for nearly three decades, mostly recently in Castle Rock.

“I finally kind of realized it’s tough,” he said. “Even coming back here I laugh because the ball does so many different things than it does (at sea level). It’s just different golf here.

“It’s hard to do this kind of altitude and the way the ball goes when every week (on tour) we’re at sea level. That’s kind of why I made the change. And also just to get somewhere where the winters weren’t so difficult.”

For scores from the U.S. Senior Open, CLICK HERE.

For Sunday’s pairings at The Broadmoor, CLICK HERE.

Who knew they’d hold the U.S. Senior Open at The Broadmoor, and a Hartford Hawks reunion event would break out?

On the day The Broadmoor turned 100 years old, two former University of Hartford golf teammates celebrated by both being among the top three players on the leaderboard after 36 holes of the Senior Open at the resort.

Jerry Kelly continues to lead the way at the championship, and Tim Petrovic, his teammate for three years at Hartford, is in third place, with Spaniard Miguel Angel Jimenez sandwiched in between.

“Yeah, I kind of know him,” a smiling Petrovic said of Kelly.

Asked if there were any good Jerry Kelly stories, Petrovic noted, “We’ve got plenty of those stories. But we better talk about golf today.”

OK, if you insist.

Kelly, the leading money winner on PGA Tour Champions this year, sat atop the leaderboard on Thursday night and didn’t move as the Senior Open moved to its halfway point. The 51-year-old has gone 66-69 for a 5-under-par 135 total at the East Course, good for a one-stroke lead over Jimenez and a two-shot margin over Petrovic.

It should be noted that Kelly and Jimenez played the first two rounds together and will do so again for Saturday’s third round (1:50 p.m. tee time).

“Always it’s nice when you play with people who are playing good,” said Jimenez, a five-time winner on PGA Tour Champions. “It’s like a transmit, you know.”

And, of course, the Hartford boys like to see each other do well. Both were relatively late bloomers to PGA Tour-level golf — Kelly first played a full schedule on Tour at age 28 and Petrovic at 34 — but they’re in contention now for arguably the top title in senior golf.

“He’s always been an extremely good player,” Kelly said of Petrovic. “It’s tough to make it out there. It’s easier to make it once you get out there than it is to get out there. It took me until I was 28. It just took him a hair longer. And then once he got there, he knew he could do it — especially after watching me.”

Kelly has won three times each on the PGA Tour and PGA Tour Champions, while Petrovic has claimed one PGA Tour title.

Kelly made four birdies, including via chip-in on the 18th hole (his ninth), and three bogeys on Friday. (He’s pictured above celebrating his chip-in in a USGA photo.)

Jimenez (below in a USGA photo) did something that’s proving very difficult — putting together a bogey-free round at The Broadmoor — to shoot a 68 and trail Kelly by one. He hit 17 greens in regulation on Friday.

Petrovic carded the low round of the championship so far — a 5-under-par 65 — to vault into third place at 137. The 51-year-old has had quite a journey in golf, to say the least.

“I always joke around: I say the book is coming out some day,” said Petrovic, who in the middle of his pro career sold cell phones, delivered pizzas and worked at the YMCA. “If I could tell you where I started, and to end up on the PGA Tour … To get out there and be able to have the career I did from here I came from, it’s pretty much an uphill climb. But I never gave up and I always kind of saw the light at the end of the tunnel.”

On Friday, Petrovic shot a 6-under-par 30 on his final nine (the front) and the only blemish on his card was a bogey on No. 13 (his fourth hole).

Among the five players who share fourth place at 1-under 139 is World Golf Hall of Famer Davis Love III, who is playing his first senior major this week. He’s only competed once since early May, but is still in contention after matching Jimenez’s bogey-free 68.

“I’m still a little jumpy and get a little quick every once in a while,” the 54-year-old said. “I hit some really, really good ones and then once in a while I’ll hit one that’s really bad.

“It’s a little bit of anxiousness. When you put USGA in front of an event, the nerves go up a little bit.”

One of the most unique rounds of the day from among the leaders came from Paul Goydos. Starting on the ninth hole, he went birdie, bogey, double bogey, par, birdie, eagle, birdie en route to a 67 and a 139 total. His eagle on the 418-yard, par-4 14th came via a 9-iron hole-out.

“Those are the scorecards that when you’re checking it to sign it, you check it 27 times because you’re not sure it’s right.”

Jobe Lone Local Player to Make Cut; Rohrbaugh, Johnson Miss By 2, Rohrbaugh Despite Spectacular Finish: Just one of the golfers with strong Colorado ties competing in the U.S. Senior Open will be around to play the weekend.

Colorado Golf Hall of Famer Brandt Jobe shot a 3-over-par 73 on Friday and shares 17th place at 3-over 143, trailing leader Jerry Kelly by eight.

The field was cut to 60 players after two rounds, and Colorado PGA members Doug Rohrbaugh of Carbondale and Chris Johnson of Castle Rock fell two shots shy of advancing to the weekend, both finishing at 10-over-par 150.

Rohrbaugh, the medalist in qualifying at The Broadmoor for this event, finished birdie-eagle to shoot a second-round 72, holing a 30-foot pitch on No. 9 for the eagle.

“You never want to miss the cut and I felt good going into this event, but (a finish like that) puts you in a much better mood, no doubt about it,” Rohrbaugh said.

Jobe, who shot 70 on Thursday, was 4 over par after five holes on Friday after running the gauntlet by starting on No. 10.

With tough pin placements — Jobe particularly wasn’t a fan of the one at the par-3 fourth — and gusting conditions, “I was hitting good shots and making bogeys,” Jobe said. “I couldn’t hit two better shots on 11 and still made bogey. It was just really difficult.”

But he played his final 13 holes in 1 under par to remain in the hunt. And don’t count Jobe out. After all, he shot a third-round 62 in this event a year ago.

“Today, I played well but didn’t get a lot out of my round,” he said. “It’s not perfect, but it’s good. So you never know. You shoot a 66 or 65, you’re back in the tournament. Jerry (Kelly) is 5 under. He’s going, ‘If I go out and shoot under par each day I win this golf tournament.’ But that’s not easy to do.

“There’s more pressure on (the leaders). I’ve got to kind of do what I did last year. I don’t know if a 62 is out there, but a good round will go a long way toward giving you a chance. If you get within five (going into the last round), you’ve got a chance.”

Johnson, the 2010 Colorado PGA Professional Champion playing in his first U.S. Senior Open, posted a second-round 76 on Friday.

“I struck the ball twice as good as I did yesterday (a 74),” he said. “I ended up three-putting three times on the front nine. That was really my undoing. You get those down in two and it’s a whole different game. You just can’t give away strokes on this golf course because they’re hard to get back.”

Rohrbaugh, the 2013 CoBank Colorado Senior Open champion, put on a big-time rally at the end of his round.

Wrapping up his day on the front nine, he hit it to 6 feet on No. 6 and to 5 feet on 7, though he missed both putts. He made a birdie from a foot on 8 and eagled 9 with the pitch-in.

“I’ll bet I had 15-plus friends and family out there watching,” he said. “My wife had all these hats made up with ‘One Putt’ on them — that’s my nickname. All my friends and family had them on, and they all flipped them backward as I’m walking down 6 (making them rally caps). So I flip mine on backward.

“I (later) thought, ‘Damn, we should have done that sooner.”

Also locally speaking, former University of Colorado golfer Mikael Hogberg and former Castle Pines resident Esteban Toledo — both at 156 — missed the cut, as did two-time champion and former Buff Hale Irwin (164)
 

Smoltz Improves By 8 Shots: Baseball Hall of Famer John Smoltz, who was mic’d for his first U.S. Senior Open, made some amusing comments during his two-day stay at the U.S. Senior Open.

“I feel like Mike Tyson has punched me here, here, here and here,” he said at one point.

But the former Cy Young Award winner got hit a little less on Friday than he did on Thursday. He followed up an 85 with a 77, leaving him at 22-over-par 162, 14 strokes above the 36-hole cut line.

“I’ve learned a lot,” he said. “I learned my game wasn’t ready” to compete at this level. … “It took too long for me to get comfortable.”

Smoltz made two birdies on Friday, including pitching in on No. 12.

“I told them in the (FS1 TV) booth that … I want to see that in between innings” of a baseball game he broadcasts on Fox.

Locals Lend a Hand: Among those helping with rulings and scoring on Friday were more than a handful of people with strong Colorado ties.

Included were former USGA Executive Committee members Jim Bunch and Christie Austin, who along with Bob Austin and Greg With were serving as referees for round 2. Among those handling the scoring areas off holes 9 and 18 were CGA executive director Ed Mate and Colorado-based former USGA regional affairs director Mark Passey.

And former CGA staffer Thomas Pagel, the USGA’s senior director of the Rules of Golf and amateur status, was a general Rules rover and is on the Rules Committee for the championship.

Notable: Due to Saturday’s weather forecast, FS1 shifted its U.S. Senior Open telecast window to 1-6 p.m., one hour earlier than originally schedule. Tee times for Saturday will run from 8:46 a.m. to 1:50 p.m. … Among the notable players to miss the 36-hole cut on Friday were World Golf Hall of Famers Mark O’Meara (149), Tom Kite (152) and Hale Irwin (164); Baseball Hall of Famer John Smoltz (162); plus Corey Pavin (149), Mark Calcavecchia (149) and Tom Lehman (150). … Three amateurs made the cut, with Jeff Wilson and Mike Finster being low ams so far, at 147. … Jay Haas, 64, made his 14th consecutive cut in the U.S. Senior Open and stands at 139, four out of the lead. … Friday’s scoring average was 75.28. Thursday’s was 75.78.

For all the scores from the U.S. Senior Open, CLICK HERE.

For Saturday’s tee times, CLICK HERE.
 

Hale Irwin called it “the worst round I’ve ever had as a professional.”

And that’s saying something considering the World Golf Hall of Famer and former University of Colorado athlete has played in 1,132 events between the PGA Tour and PGA Tour Champions in his 50-year pro career.

Following up a first-round 79 at the U.S. Senior Open — his highest score ever in a USGA championship — Irwin shot an ever-so frustrating 15-over-par 85 on Friday at The Broadmoor, where he won the Broadmoor Invitation 51 years ago while still a Colorado resident.

To put that into perspective, not only did the 85 feel like his worst round as a pro to Irwin, it was indeed the highest score he’s ever shot in a PGA Tour or PGA Tour Champions event.

His previous highs were an 84 on the PGA Tour (first round of 1990 USF&G Classic, ironically less than two months before winning his third U.S. Open) and two 82s on PGA Tour Champions (both in 2015).

“Coming into this event there was a lot I was doing. This has been a crazy week,” the 73-year-old said in an interview with coloradogolf.org. “I was ill-prepared for this for a variety of reasons. I haven’t played in an individual tournament since March and Wes Short and I played in the Legends (team event) in April. I haven’t played, and it showed — big time.

“My priorities this week are my family. I don’t get to see them all the time. That has made my week, so everything else is (secondary). It sounds a little trite — I don’t mean it to be — but that’s from my heart. What I wanted to see more than anything was my family together. That’s where my life is now. It isn’t necessarily predicated on, will I play golf. The golf really came secondary (here), and it showed.

“I just didn’t have it — and maybe I don’t have it. But I’m not going to continue playing like this. Unless I see something happen in the next month or two. …”

Even before going 79-85, missing the cut and finishing at 24-over-par 164 on a demanding Broadmoor East course, Irwin had said this “could be” his final U.S. Senior Open, and therefore his final USGA event. That’s definitely notable considering he’s won five USGA championships — three U.S. Opens and two U.S. Senior Opens.

Irwin, who grew up in Colorado and played golf and football at CU, has now competed in 23 U.S. Senior Opens in addition to 34 U.S. Opens. Only fellow former CU golfer Dale Douglass (26) and Arnold Palmer (25) have played in more U.S. Senior Opens.

Asked again after his round on Friday if this is his last U.S. Senior Open, he said, “I don’t know. The odds say yes, but I don’t know. If I can help push the needle in the direction of positive golf — not my golf (but golf in general, like) USGA golf, junior golf, golf — I’m happy to do that. And that might be where my role is. I don’t know. We’ll have to sit back and analyze how much playing is left in 2019.

“I’ll play out my plans (in 2018). Whether I play the Senior Players in Chicago (in two weeks), I don’t know. I need to make that decision. I will play the Senior British (next month at the Old Course at St. Andrews, where his son Steve will caddie for him) and probably The First Tee event (in late September) because I really enjoy being with those kids out at Pebble Beach. That’s fun.

“You got me at a down time and kicked me — or maybe I kicked myself.”

Irwin, named the male player of the century in Colorado during the CGA’s centennial year festivities in 2015, has won a record 45 times on PGA Tour Champions and 20 on the PGA Tour. But he’s only competed in eight PGA Tour Champions events each of the past two years and five so far in 2018.

Between age taking an ever-increasing toll on his game, and wanting to spend more time with his family, competitive golf obviously is not near the priority it used to be.
 
That was apparent in his very un-Irwin-like round on Friday. He made just two pars on the day and was playing bogey golf through 11 holes. He didn’t make a birdie until finishing up with one on the ninth hole, his 18th — at least going out this week on a minor high note.

“I was just way off on my golf game,” Irwin said. “There was nothing, nothing. On this golf course where you have rough like this and you’re not driving it well … And my irons — oh my gosh — I bet I didn’t hit four or five greens all day. I didn’t get it up and down. I had three-putts all over the place. I made two really good putts to keep from four-putting this week, so I felt really good about that.”

At least Irwin can still joke about it.

And he used the circumstances on Friday as a life lesson of sorts for grandson Dylan Meyer, who was caddying for him at The Broadmoor. (The two are pictured at left.)

“It’s like I told my grandson when we were playing 18: ‘This is the time it would be so easy to quit and walk right in, but we don’t quit. We’re going to finish it off.'” Irwin said.

An experimentation with new irons definitely didn’t help this week. In an effort to conteract the effect of age, Irwin went with lighter irons with different shafts.

“They’re lighter thinking I’ve lost some of my strength. But I can’t feel the club,” he said. “You don’t come into a U.S. Senior Open and play new irons. Well, I did.”

That certainly didn’t help, but Irwin by no means blames his poor play primarily on that.

As to what the future holds as Irwin devotes ever-less time to tournaments, there are some business matters, and he still does some course design/redesign work. That includes helping out with the new course at City Park Golf Course in Denver. And he’s ready to start a project in the Los Angeles area where an old 18-hole course that has gone to seed will be made into a new 12-hole course with a modernized practice facility, with much of the rest of the land being developed. And there’s a possiblity of another project in the Bahamas.

“There’s not that many jobs around, but I’d like to do a couple to help absorb my time and competitiveness,” he said. “I want be the best designer. There’s some things out there I’d still like to do.

“You always try to contribute, then you’ll always be competitive — whatever that word means. I’ve not known something different than being competitive.”

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For all the essentials regarding this week’s U.S. Senior Open at The Broadmoor, CLICK HERE.

It was a big day Thursday for the two Colorado PGA professionals competing in this week’s U.S. Senior Open at The Broadmoor in Colorado Springs.

Years from now, Doug Rohrbaugh will be able to tell family and friends that he had the distinction of being the first player to tee off at the third U.S. Senior Open held in his home state.

The Carbondale resident and Colorado PGA member led the way for the field of 156 by hitting first in the 7 a.m. threesome off the first tee Thursday at The Broadmoor’s East Course.

“That was cool, no question,” said Rohrbaugh, the 2013 CoBank Colorado Senior Open champion and a three-time winner of the Colorado PGA Professional Championship. “That was on my mind, it was.

“That’s kind of a cool deal to kick the thing off. I had my mom and dad sitting there, and a bunch of friends. I’m not going to lie — it kind of got to me a little. I got a little emotional about it. Then I regrouped. I didn’t catch (the tee shot) solid, but I kept it in the first cut, put it on the green and two-putted (for par). Then I birdied 2, and I’m thinking, my nerves are fine and I’m ready to go.”

Meanwhile, Chris Johnson (above) of Castle Rock was competing in his first U.S. Senior Open round ever, and he acquitted himself quite nicely. The 2010 Colorado PGA Professional champion was just 1 over par through 13 holes after playing the toughest stretch of the course (10-13) in 1 under. And even though he endured back-to-back holes where he went double bogey (tree issues after a blocked tee shot) then bogey, he sank a 15-foot par putt on 18 to shoot a 4-over-par 74, which left him in 58th place after round 1.

“I’ve been playing solid golf for a few months now,” Johnson said. “My expectations are to play a really good round of golf tomorrow. Without a doubt, I’m striking it well enough, I’m putting well enough. That’s not going to change.”

Earlier in the day, at least for a while, things went just fine for Rohrbaugh, who was medalist in the qualifying at The Broadmoor on Memorial Day, shooting a 1-under-par 69. He was even-par through seven holes. But a double bogey on No. 8 — where he hit it in the front bunker, thinned his sand shot over the green and missed a 5-foot par putt — and six bogeys on the back nine led to an 8-over-par 78.

“I was feeling really good how I was playing through 7 considering the mishits,” Rohrbaugh said. “But my driver just left me. I’ve been hitting the driver so well. Then I couldn’t find the center of the face. It was heel, toe, heel …”

Rohrbaugh (left), who’s competing in his fourth U.S. Senior Open and eighth senior major, had been hoping to play in the championship as he did in the qualifying tournament.

“I said at the qualifier, ‘I’ll take four 69s right now,'” he said. “And so far, it sounds like that won’t be bad. If you’re driving it well, it’s there to shoot 1 or 2 under. If you’re not driving well — like I didn’t — no.”

Both Colorado PGA members in the field have sons caddying for them, with Cooper doing the honors for Johnson and Tristan for Rohrbaugh. And, of course, both are getting considerable support from family and friends.

“I’ve been in the golf industry here for 30 years,” Johnson said. “They came out in droves today, and I was a little surprised honestly. It was awesome.”

Meanwhile, as for other golfers with strong Colorado connections, Colorado Golf Hall of Famer Brandt Jobe posted an even-par 70, leaving him tied for ninth place. (See related story.)  

Three-time U.S. Open champion and former University of Colorado athlete Hale Irwin opened with a 79 after making two double bogeys and three bogeys on the back nine. That’s the highest single-round score the two-time champion has recorded in 23 U.S. Senior Opens.

Former CU golfer Mikael Hogberg recorded an 80, while former Castle Pines resident Esteban Toledo had an 81.

Smoltz Roughed Up in First U.S. Senior Open Round: Baseball Hall of Famer John Smoltz was very complimentary of PGA Tour Champions players on the eve of his first U.S. Senior Open. And, if anything, he understated just how talented they are, based on how round 1 went for the former Cy Young Award winner.

Smoltz, who qualified for the Senior Open in a playoff, made no birdies and just five pars en route to a 15-over-par 85, which left him in 150th place out of 156 competitors.

“If I had to go back (and think about it), I had three bad shots. That’s it,” he said. “And I shot 85. So it just tells you, from an amateur standpoint, people sitting at home, I don’t know if you can tell how hard the course played. But that’s how great these players are.”

Smoltz was 10 over par through his first 10 holes. He finished with 12 bogeys and a triple bogey. He was mic’d up for the round by Fox, for whom Smoltz works as a baseball analyst. “Can’t call in a reliever,” was one of his comments mid-round.

“I thought I hit a lot of good shots that just didn’t get good results,” he said. “… I never expected to get that many bad lies.

“… I don’t have enough game for this course yet. … Never in my wildest dreams did I think I’d shoot 85. … My family and friends, I would have left if I was at the ninth hole. They stuck around.”

Lightweight: Rocco Mediate, who shot a 2-under-par 68 on Thursday, is a shadow of his former self — not golf-wise but physically — these days. He said he’s lost roughly 40-50 pounds in the last year.

“I’m half the size I was last year,” he said. “I’m way stronger (and the club is moving) way faster.”

Douglass the Record Holder: He sat there, unrecognized for the most part, on a bench next to the entrance to The Broadmoor Golf Club on Thursday morning, waiting to meet someone during the first round of the U.S. Senior Open.

It was none other than Dale Douglass, the 1986 U.S. Senior Open champion and the man who has played in more U.S. Senior Opens than anyone in history (26).

“I’m one ahead of Arnie (Palmer), so he’s not going to catch me,” Douglass said with a smile.

The part-time Castle Pines resident, winner of three PGA Tour events and 11 on PGA Tour Champions, is a member of the Colorado Sports Hall of Fame and the Colorado Golf Hall of Fame.

An 88 Despite Ace: Stan Souza of Kailua, Hawaii made a hole-in-one with a 7-iron on the 175-yard fourth hole Thursday, marking the eighth ace of his lifetime. Ironically, the eagle was the last score of par or better Souza would have until hole 18. That’s right: After the ace, he made nothing but bogeys or double bogeys for 13 holes, until parring 18. Despite the ace, Souza played bogey golf for the day, posting an 18-over-par 88. That left his in next-to-last place for players who completed the the first round.

“The course just absolutely ate me alive,” he said. “It was rough, but what a thrill.”

Notable: Denver native Tommy Armour III withdrew after nine holes of his first round Thursday due to “altitude-related illness,” according to the USGA. Armour was 8 over par after nine holes as he double bogeyed each of his first three holes. … Tim Hogarth, the 1996 U.S. Amateur Public Links champion, leads the low-amateur competition by two strokes after shooting an even-par 70 on Thursday. … The field will be cut to the low 60 players and ties after Friday’s second round.

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For all the essentials regarding this week’s U.S. Senior Open at The Broadmoor, CLICK HERE.

Three players finished under par the last time the U.S. Senior Open was contested at The Broadmoor, in 2008. Three years later, three golfers were subpar at the end of the U.S. Women’s Open at the Colorado Springs resort.

After Thursday’s first round of the 39th Senior Open at The Broadmoor, no one would be surprised if the trend continues.

Though eight golfers finished round 1 in red figures, that total is likely to go down as the championship progresses and the conditions get (even) tougher.

And on the other end of the spectrum on Thursday, roughly half the field — 76 players — posted scores of 6-over-par 76 or higher.

“It’s playing tough. It’s hard,” said Colorado Golf Hall of Famer Brandt Jobe, who managed an even-par 70 and shares ninth place. “The (Robert Trent) Jones greens, they’re all backing up. When you go across the street, those are all bouncing 10 yards. Then you come to 18 and it plugs in the fairway and it plugs on the green. And they’re out watering it before we’re playing. It was hard to have consistency.

“Then the breeze — one minute it was in (to the players), one minute it was left to right, one minute it was right to left. It would just go in a circle. That kind of made it tough.”

But on a day with all that and temperatures approaching 100 degrees, Jerry Kelly (pictured in USGA photo) was a bit of an anomaly. The PGA Tour Champions money leader in 2018, Kelly was bogey-free going into 18 — the only player who could say that at that point — but three-putted from 47 feet to make bogey on the last. Despite that, and a 2 1/2-foot miss for birdie on No. 9, he shot a 4-under-par 66, good for an two-stroke lead.

“I was pretty disappointed with that three-putt on the last hole,” said the 51-year-old from Madison, Wis.. “I misjudged the (approach shot). But (the course) gave me a lot today.”

Indeed, Kelly birdied four of his first six holes and added another one on 13.

“I hit the ball really well today,” said Kelly, who still also has status on the PGA Tour. “My coach and brother-in-law, Jim Schuman, is playing in the tournament as well (and shot 80 Thursday). So he really helped me and got me squared away. It’s a new/old move type thing and I just kept it up all day and felt really comfortable with it. Shots were coming out where I wanted them to. So it was a fun round.”

Four players share second place at 68, including the most interesting man in golf, Spaniard Miguel Angel Jimenez, who was paired with Kelly and holed out for eagle on the 331-yard second hole. Also at that figure was Rocco Mediate, who 10 years ago barely lost a playoff to Tiger Woods in the U.S. Open. Joining them at 68 were Kevin Sutherland and Deane Pappas.

The only other players to break 70 were two-time U.S. Open champion Lee Janzen, Billy Mayfair and Scott Parel, who matched 69s.

“The golf course played just like we wanted it to,” Mediate said. “If you miss (a fairway), you pay. If you hit it in the fairway, you could still pay because the greens are tough. It’s a perfect U.S. Open setup, in my opinion. I love it.”

Said Sutherland: “I thought (the USGA) did a great job of setting up the course. It was tough but it was playable.”

Jobe (left), who lived in Colorado from 1970 to ’99, is among those in the top 10.

Jobe was 2 over par for the first five holes, but went bogey-free the rest of the way and birdied both par-3s on the back nine for his 70. His 2-under score was the best on the back nine on Thursday.

“To shoot par, I didn’t have my best stuff, so that was good,” he said. “I made some good putts and I haven’t been doing that, so I kind of ended on a positive note the way I see it.

“If you can keep it at par … there aren’t going to be a lot of guys under par at the end of the day. Look at how few there are the first day. And it’s going to get tougher tomorrow afternoon for us. Par is going to be a heck of a score, which is how it should be. I like that. It drives you crazy, trust me, but that’s how it should be.”

For all the scores from the U.S. Senior Open, CLICK HERE.
 

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For all the essentials regarding this week’s U.S. Senior Open at The Broadmoor, CLICK HERE.