Farmington • Former BYU golf teammates Patrick Fishburn and Rhett Rasmussen will hit some of the first and last shots of the Utah Championship’s opening round Thursday at Oakridge Country Club.
Fishburn, a Korn Ferry Tour rookie, tees off at 7 a.m. and Rasmussen, a Monday qualifier, plays at 2:15 p.m.
Daniel Summerhays, another ex-Cougar, tees off at 1:05 p.m. in a return to his home course, where he lost in a three-way playoff for the title last summer. Summerhays, who’s mostly retired as a touring pro, spent the 2020-21 school year as a Davis High teacher and coach and is now pursuing other career interests, including private golf instruction.
“I’m trying to keep my expectations in check, but it’s difficult to do,” said Summerhays, who has made one 36-hole cut in his four Korn Ferry Tour starts in the past 13 months.
Fishburn is No. 82 in the season standings and needs to make the top 75 in the next two weeks to qualify for the three-event Korn Ferry Tour Finals, offering his only opportunity to advance to the PGA Tour’s 2021-22 schedule.
“It’s definitely been a little stressful,” he said. “It’s probably something I’ve thought about too much. I think it’s affected my play a little bit.”
Rasmussen has gone 0 for 4 in cuts made on the Forme Tour, this year’s modified U.S. version of the Mackenzie Tour-PGA Tour Canada. But he earned one of the eight qualifying spots for the Utah Championship by shooting a 64 on Monday at Talons Cove Golf Course in Saratoga Springs and finishing in a six-way tie for third place.
The Utah Championship presented by Zions Bank is being staged for the 30th time at a fourth venue in the state. This is the tournament’s fifth year at Oakridge. The club is contracted with the host Utah Sports Commission through 2023, commission CEO Jeff Robbins said.
Golf Channel will produce four days of taped coverage from Oakridge, beginning Friday morning.
