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Seven Utah Players. Four State Amateur Champions. One Big Opportunity at the Utah Championship

The path to professional golf’s biggest stages rarely follows a straight line.

For former Utah State Amateur champion Mitchell Schow, it has been built through Monday qualifiers, mini-tour events, long travel days and an unwavering belief that one great week can change everything.

Beginning Thursday, Schow gets another opportunity.

Mitchell Schow fine-tunes his game during Tuesday’s practice round at Ogden Golf & Country Club ahead of this week’s Korn Ferry Tour Utah Championship.

The 2020 Utah State Amateur champion headlines a group of seven homegrown Utah players competing in the 35th Korn Ferry Tour Utah Championship presented by Zions Bank and Intermountain Health at Ogden Golf & Country Club. Joining Schow in the field are sponsor exemption recipient Connor Howe, Monday qualifiers Carson Lundell, Zac Jones and Barry Schenk, along with Korn Ferry Tour members Daniel Summerhays and two-time Utah State Amateur champion Preston Summerhays.

Among the Utah contingent, Schow, Jones, Daniel Summerhays and Preston Summerhays have all won the Utah State Amateur championship, with Daniel and Preston each winning Utah’s premier amateur championship twice in consecutive years.

For Schow, the sponsor exemption represents another chance to accelerate a professional career that has taken a different route than many of his peers.

The former University of Utah standout turned professional in 2023 after a five-year collegiate career. Now rather than pursuing full-time status on PGA TOUR Americas, Schow has focused on Monday qualifiers, believing they provide the quickest path toward the Korn Ferry Tour and ultimately the PGA TOUR.

“If you get hot and play well on a Monday, you can parlay that into some type of status, which will ultimately push you toward the goal of being on the PGA TOUR,” Schow said.

That approach nearly paid off in 2024 when Schow won the Reno Open to earn a start in the PGA TOUR’s Barracuda Championship. Playing alongside some of the world’s best players, he tied for 17th in only PGA TOUR start.

The experience only reinforced what he already believed.

“You just have to control your nerves,” Schow said. “After that, you’re just playing golf. There’s nothing different to it.”

Schow credits the Tony Finau Foundation mentoring program with helping keep his professional dream alive.

“If it wasn’t for him, I wouldn’t be able to play as much as I’m doing,” Schow said. “I’d probably just be playing Q-School at the end of the year.”

His goals this week are simple.

“I’d love to win, get some status and hopefully buy a house,” said the newly-married Schow. “If there’s any pressure, that’s it.”

Schow (left) and Connor Howe share a moment during Tuesday’s practice round at Ogden Golf & Country Club, where a strong week at the Korn Ferry Tour Utah Championship could prove pivotal for both Utah professionals. (Photo courtesy of Sean Walker/KSLCom Sports)

While Schow’s journey has been built around chasing opportunities, Howe arrives in Ogden with considerable momentum.

The former Weber High School standout and Georgia Tech All-American returns to his hometown course after one of the strongest stretches of his young professional career. A full-status member of PGA TOUR Americas, Howe has recorded three top-10 finishes this season and sits 17th on the season-long points list after tying for third last week at the Osprey Valley Open at TPC Toronto.

“I’m super honored to be here,” Howe said. “It’s super special playing a Korn Ferry event on the course I grew up on in my hometown.”

Having played Ogden Golf & Country Club countless times, Howe believes familiarity should be an advantage.

“Making the cut is always the goal, especially at a hometown event,” Howe said. “A top-25 would be a success because it gets me into next week’s event. But I know this course better than anyone. A win is definitely the goal.”

Howe’s exemption into this week’s Utah Championship comes at an ideal time as the PGA TOUR Americas takes a three-week break in its schedule.

His brother and caddie, Hunter Howe, believes Connor’s breakthrough is coming.

“He’s gotten better every year,” Hunter said. “He works harder than anybody I know. It’s only a matter of time.”

Three more Utah players earned their way into the championship through Monday qualifying.

Former BYU standout Carson Lundell arrives fresh off winning last week’s Colorado Open before shooting 9-under-par 63 in Monday qualifying at Glen Eagle Golf Club. Former BYU golfer and Utah State Amateur champion Zac Jones and Weber State alumnus Barry Schenk also shot 63 to claim spots in the championship field.

Daniel Summerhays, the 2000 and 2001 Utah State Amateur champion, and his nephew Preston Summerhays, winner of the 2018 and 2019 championships, round out one of the strongest Utah contingents in recent tournament history.

The Utah Championship will be contested July 30-Aug. 2 at Ogden Golf & Country Club. One of only three tournaments remaining from the Korn Ferry Tour’s inaugural 1990 season, the championship features a $1 million purse and a field that includes eight players ranked inside the Official World Golf Ranking’s top 200.

Local Player First-Round Tee Times (Thursday)

• 8:50 a.m. — Daniel Summerhays
• 9:05 a.m. — Preston Summerhays
• 9:15 a.m. — Connor Howe
• 9:15 a.m. — Carson Lundell
• 2:30 p.m. — Barry Schenk and Zac Jones
• 2:30 p.m. — Mitchell Schow