Coloradans Dillon Stewart and Connor Jones advance through pre-qualifying at PGA Tour Q-school
By Gary Baines – 9/20/2024
Two Colorado residents, including this year’s Sinclair Rocky Mountain Open champion and the 2024 men’s Elite Amateur Series winner, overcame the first hurdle in the PGA Tour Q-school process on Friday.
Dillon Stewart of Fort Collins, the RMO champ last month, and 2024 Elite Amateur Series winner Connor Jones of Westminster advanced through the pre-qualifying tournament held in Newton, Kan.
With the top 33 finishers and ties — out of a field of 73 — advancing to the “first stage” of Q-school, Stewart placed fourth and Jones 21st.
Stewart, a former Oklahoma State golfer who won the 2023 CGA Amateur, posted scores of 71-72-70 for a 3-under-par total at Sand Creek Station Golf Course and finished seven strokes behind medalist Vicente Marzilio of Irving, Texas. Stewart carded 10 birdies and seven bogeys for the tournament.
Jones, the former Colorado State University golfer and the 2022 CGA Player of the Year, was outside of the top 33 going into the final round in Kansas, but closed with a bogey-free 3-under-par 69 to make it to the first stage. Jones shot 76-74-69 for a 3-over-par total. He posted nine birdies, 10 bogeys and a double bogey for the tournament.
Another Coloradan, Kyle Rademacher of Englewood, missed advancing by one stroke, placing 36th. After he shot back-to-back 70s in the first two rounds, he carded an 83 on Friday, bogeying his final hole to finish at 7 over par overall.
Former Dallas Cowboys quarterback Tony Romo also competed in Kansas but failed to advance, shooting 83-79-75 and ending up in 63rd place.
First-stage tournaments in PGA Tour Q-school will be held next month at 13 sites across the U.S. Those who advance to the second stage will compete either in November or early December at one of five courses. At the final stage, set for Dec. 12-15 in Ponte Vedra, Fla., five PGA Tour cards (plus ties) will be up for grabs, with the next 40 finishers and ties earning some exempt status on the Korn Ferry Tour, and the remaining players landing conditional status on the KFT.
For all the scores from the Kansas pre-qualifier, CLICK HERE.
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. The University of Colorado Evans Scholar alum was inducted into the Colorado Golf Hall of Fame in 2022. He owns and operates ColoradoGolfJournal.com