As 2024 tour seasons gear up, there’s no lack of pros with major Colorado connections ranked among the world’s top players; 3 golfers born and raised in the Centennial State are in the top 100
By Gary Baines – 1/9/2024
The PGA Tour just completed its 2024 season opener at The Sentry in Maui, but tour schedules will really crank up in the next couple of weeks, on both the men’s and women’s side of things.
As the action gets going full bore, more than two dozen players with strong Colorado ties are now competing on the world’s top tours. By that we mean the PGA Tour, LPGA, LIV Golf, DP World Tour, PGA Tour Champions, Korn Ferry Tour and Ladies European Tour.
And, of those two-dozen-plus, a few go into the new year ranked in the top 100 in the world golf rankings on the men’s or women’s side — including three players born and raised in Colorado. And quite a few more golfers with local ties are in the top 500.
For the men, Denver native and Valor Christian graduate Wyndham Clark is 10th after a year in which he won twice on the PGA Tour, including the U.S. Open, earning $10.76 million in the process. Also in the top 100 — OK, let’s make it 101 — are Denver native and Colorado Academy grad Mark Hubbard (97th) and former University of Colorado golfer Yannik Paul (101st).
All told, here’s the rundown of players with strong Colorado connections in the top 600 men in the World Golf Rankings:
10. Wyndham Clark (Denver native and Valor Christian graduate; 2-time winner on PGA Tour)
97. Mark Hubbard (Denver native and Colorado Academy grad; PGA Tour veteran)
Mark Hubbard.
101. Yannik Paul (former CU golfer; 1-time winner on DP World Tour)
168. Martin Laird (Denver resident and former Colorado State golfer; 4-time winner on PGA Tour)
300. Tom Whitney (former Air Force Academy golfer and ex-Fort Collins resident; PGA Tour rookie)
339. Scott Vincent (Denver-area resident and LIV Golf regular)
461. Gunner Wiebe (Colorado resident and Kent Denver graduate; second-year player on DP World Tour)
506. Jeremy Paul (former CU golfer; Korn Ferry Tour)
533. Sam Saunders (Fort Collins resident; Korn Ferry Tour)
541. Kyle Westmoreland (former Air Force Academy golfer and ex-Broomfield resident; Korn Ferry Tour)
Jennifer Kupcho. (Photo: Jennifer Kupcho on X)
On the women’s end, Littleton native and Jefferson Academy graduate Jennifer Kupcho is No. 39 in the Rolex Women’s Golf Rankings after once being as high as No. 9 in the world. A three-time winner on the LPGA Tour in 2022 — including a major championship — Kupcho’s best showing in 2023 was a runner-up in a playoff at the Mizuho Americas Open.
Here are the golfers with strong Colorado ties in the Rolex top 500:
39. Jennifer Kupcho (Littleton native and Jefferson Academy golfer; 3-time winner on LPGA Tour)
333. Robyn Choi (former CU golfer; LPGA Tour)
343. Eleanor Givens (former DU golfer; veteran on Ladies European Tour)
415. Jenny Coleman (former CU golfer, LPGA Tour)
437. Becca Huffer (Monument resident; LPGA Tour)
For the record, here are the upcoming season openers for the various major tours:
— Korn Ferry Tour: Bahamas Great Exuma Classic, Jan. 14-17
— LPGA Tour: Hilton Grand Vacations Tournament of Champions in Orlando, Jan. 18-21
— PGA Tour Champions: Mitsubishi Electric Championship at Hualalai, Jan. 18-20
— LIV Golf: Mayakoba, Mexico, Feb. 2-4
— Ladies European Tour: Magical Kenya Ladies Open, Feb. 8-11
As for the tours that have already begun their seasons, next up are:
— PGA Tour: Sony Open in Hawaii, Jan. 11-14
— DP World Tour: Dubai Invitational, Jan. 11-14
About the Writer: Gary Baines has covered golf in Colorado continuously since 1983. He was a sports writer at the Daily Camera newspaper in Boulder, then the sports editor there, and has written regularly for ColoradoGolf.org since 2009. He was inducted into the Colorado Golf Hall of Fame in 2022. He owns and operates ColoradoGolfJournal.com