With recent tear by Wyndham Clark, it’s time to re-rank the most accomplished tournament golfers of all time with Colorado roots
By Gary Baines
A little more than five years ago, we went through an exercise that now needs an update.
Specifically, we ranked the most accomplished tournament golfers of all time who spent their formative years in Colorado. With Denver native Wyndham Clark winning his second U.S. Open on Sunday — and second PGA Tour title in a month — that obviously changes the rankings some. And there have been plenty of other big-time accomplishments for a variety of local players over the last five-plus years.
And for this exercise, we need to note a couple of key parameters for the rankings. First, we’re not including players who spent a very brief time in Colorado during their youth. For instance, that includes Mike Reid, who lived in the state for just 18 months during his high school days. Instead, we’re looking for graduates of Colorado high schools and/or golfers who lived in the state for at least five years as a youngster/teenager.
Second, this ranking doesn’t include the many accomplished golfers who moved to Colorado as adults — in many cases after doing their top work as golfers as residents of other states. That includes players such as Babe Zaharias, David Duval, Justin Leonard, Craig Stadler, Martin Laird, Chris DiMarco, Gary Hallberg and Mark Wiebe, as well as part-time resident Hollis Stacy.
As far as ranking these players, we’ll look at their entire careers, not just the time they spent in Colorado. And, obviously, wins on the PGA or LPGA Tours are weighted more heavily than ones in amateur golf, based sheerly on strength of field.
Without further ado, here’s Colorado’s all-time best of the best:
TOP MEN
1. Hale Irwin
— Age: 81.
— Alum of which high school: Boulder H.S.; also graduated from the University of Colorado.
— Pro highlights: 20 PGA Tour victories, including three U.S. Open titles. Also, 45 PGA Tour Champions wins (second all-time on that circuit), with seven senior major championships. $5,966,031 in career PGA Tour earnings, plus $27,158,515 on PGA Tour Champions. Inducted into World Golf Hall of Fame in 1992 and also is a Colorado Sports Hall of Famer and a Colorado Golf Hall of Famer. Competed in five Ryder Cups and the inaugural President’s Cup, where he also served as captain.
— Amateur highlights: Won 1967 NCAA national individual title — while a CU golfer — and the prestigious Broadmoor Invitation that same year. Captured three consecutive CGA Amateurs, one CGA Match Play, one CGA Junior Match Play and one state high school individual title.
T2. Wyndham Clark
— Age: 32.
— Alum of which high school: Valor Christian.
— Pro highlights: With Sunday’s victory, he’s now won two U.S. Opens in the last four years and five PGA Tour titles overall. With two major championships, he’s vaulted up these rankings, now trailing only Irwin, Colorado gold standard as a player. Clark is the only player in PGA Tour history to have won two or more Tour events after shooting final rounds of 60 or under. He shot a course-record 60 at Pebble Beach Golf Links en route to his victory at the 2024 AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am, and a 60 last month as he won the CJ Cup Byron Nelson. Thanks in part to the inflated purses in recent years, Clark has now earned $38,426,799 in official PGA Tour earnings, which leaves him 38th on the career list. He represented the U.S. at the 2023 Ryder Cup. Is a Colorado Golf Hall of Famer.
— Amateur highlights: Won the 2017 Pac-12 Conference individual and team titles at Boulder Country Club, where he also captured the 2010 CGA Stroke Play crown (now known as the CGA Amateur) at age 16. It was the third individual victory of Clark’s senior season in college. He was a rare college player who was named player of the year in two separate conferences — the Big 12 (while at Oklahoma State) and the Pac-12 (Oregon). Clark was one of the top junior players in the country and won the 2009 Colorado Junior Amateur by 11 shots and two state high school titles.
Steve Jones won the U.S. Open 30 years ago.
T2. Steve Jones
— Age: 67.
— Alum of which high school: Yuma H.S.; also attended the University of Colorado.
— Pro highlights: Despite some major injuries and medical issues during his career, Jones chalked up eight PGA Tour victories, including the 1996 U.S. Open. He also won the 1988 Colorado Open and finished second — in a playoff — as an amateur at that championship in 1981. $6,519,451 in career PGA Tour earnings, along with $1,252,959on PGA Tour Champions. Member of Colorado Sports Hall of Fame and Colorado Golf Hall of Fame.
— Amateur highlights: Won 1980 CGA Match Play and 1981 CGA Amateur, and advanced to semifinals of the 1976 U.S. Junior Amateur at Hiwan Golf Club in Evergreen.
Dale Douglass claimed a U.S. Senior Open title in 1986.
4. Dale Douglass
— Age: Died in 2022 at age 86.
— Alum of which high school: Fort Morgan H.S.; also attended the University of Colorado. Lived in Castle Pines.
— Pro highlights: Three PGA Tour wins and 11 victories on PGA Tour Champions, including the 1986 U.S. Senior Open. Earned $577,950 on PGA Tour, along with $7,019,089 on PGA Tour Champions. Won the 1978 Jerry Ford Invitational in Vail; the 1983 Frontier Airlines Pro-Am at The Broadmoor Golf Club, where he beat PGA Tour veterans Billy Casper and Don January; the 1983 Colorado PGA Professional Championship; and the 1965 Arizona Open. Member of Colorado Sports Hall of Fame and Colorado Golf Hall of Fame.
— Amateur highlights: Owned a 30-9 record in dual matches at CU.
T5. Kevin Stadler
— Age: 46.
— Alum of which high school: Kent Denver. Lives in Denver part time.
— Pro highlights: Won 2014 Waste Management Phoenix Open on the PGA Tour. Has earned $9,759,661 in PGA Tour career. Also owns four victories on the Korn Ferry Tour, a victory on the European Tour and at the 2005 Argentine Open. Claimed the 2002 Colorado Open title in his pro debut and won a PNC Championship with dad Craig. Will be inducted into the Colorado Golf Hall of Fame this year.
— Amateur highlights: Won the CGA Match Play twice, the IMG Academy Junior World Championship in 1997, and a state high school individual title, also in ’97. Was Pac-10 Player of the Year as a senior at Southern California.
T5. Jonathan Kaye
— Age: 55.
— Where resided in Colorado as a youth: Denver part-time after being born in the city; lived in Phoenix during the school year. Went to college at CU. Lives in Boulder part-time.
— Pro highlights: Won twice on the PGA Tour. Also won the Colorado Open twice — 21 years apart — and the Colorado Senior Open. $10,597,848 in career PGA Tour earnings.
— Amateur highlights: Beat Phil Mickelson in a playoff to win the 1992 Ping Intercollegiate as a CU golfer. Won the 1992 CGA Public Links title.
7. Bob Byman
— Age: 71.
— Alum of which high school: Fairview H.S.
— Pro highlights: Won once on the PGA Tour, the 1979 Bay Hill Citrus Classic. Also captured four titles on the European Tour, along with the New Zealand Open. A member of the Colorado Golf Hall of Fame.
— Amateur highlights: Claimed a national championship at the 1972 U.S. Junior Amateur and played in the U.S. Open at Pebble Beach that year. Helped Wake Forest win two NCAA national team titles in the mid-1970s. While still in high school duplicated Hale Irwin’s feat of a decade before by winning three consecutive CGA Amateurs (1971-73). He also captured a state high school title in 1973.
8. Brandt Jobe
— Age: 60.
— Alum of which high school: Kent Denver.
— Pro highlights: Two PGA Tour Champions victories, along with four runner-ups in 337 starts on the PGA Tour, where he won more than $9 million. Has also captured a dozen times internationally, 10 coming in Asia. And Jobe also claimed the championship in the 1992 Colorado Open. Member of the Colorado Golf Hall of Fame.
— Amateur highlights: Helped UCLA win the NCAA national team title in 1988. Won three CGA Match Plays, one CGA Amateur, a CGA Junior Stroke Play and a CGA Junior Match Play in the 1980s.
9. Mark Hubbard
— Age: 37.
— Alum of which high school: Colorado Academy.
— Pro highlights: Finished second at 2026 Myrtle Beach Classic and tied for second in the 2019 Houston Open, marking his best PGA Tour finishes to date. Has played in 277 PGA Tour events, earning $13,119,559. Also has won once on the Korn Ferry Tour and once on PGA Tour Canada.
— Amateur highlights: Won the individual title at the inaugural Mark Simpson Colorado Invitational in 2010 as a senior at San Jose State. As a junior golfer, won the boys 16-18 Optimist International title in 2006, and swept the CGA Junior Match Play and Junior Stroke Play titles in 2007.
10. Bill Loeffler
— Age: 69.
— Alum of which high school: Cherry Creek H.S. Lives in Castle Pines.
— Professional highlights: Has won two PGA of America national titles — the 1992 PGA Assistant Professional Championship and 2007 Senior PGA Professional Championship. Has the distinction of winning the Colorado Open at three different courses (Hiwan, Inverness and Green Valley Ranch), plus the 2009 Colorado Senior Open. Only Dave Hill (four victories) has won the Colorado Open more times. Loeffler has also triumphed in three Colorado PGA Professional Championships and one Rocky Mountain Open. Member of the Colorado Golf Hall of Fame.
— Amateur highlights: Won the 1986 U.S. Mid-Amateur title and played in the 1987 Walker Cup and the 1988 Masters. In Colorado, claimed titles in the 1976 CGA Amateur and the 1973 state high school tournament.
Men’s Honorable Mention
— Babe Lind: Played in 1947 Masters, was a Trans-Miss runner-up and won three CGA Amateurs and one CGA Match Play during the 1940s, along with three Colorado junior state titles in the late ’30s. Also won four conference titles while at the University of Denver.
— R.W. Eaks: Won four times on PGA Tour Champions, three times on the Korn Ferry Tour, one Arizona Open and one Colorado Senior Open. Also played in 77 PGA Tour events, placing in the top 10 twice.
On the Verge?
— Davis Bryant: Competing on the DP World Tour for the last year and a half, he’s currently No. 161 in the World Golf Rankings. He’s posted two runner-up finishes on the DPWT in 2026. Won the 2024 Inspirato Colorado Open. As a junior golfer, won all four Junior Golf Alliance of Colorado majors in which he competed in 2017 and ’18, claimed the 5A state title in 2017 and was named the 2017 JGAC Boys Player of the Year. In 2018 he helped Colorado win the Junior America’s Cup team title for the first time ever. He went on to claim the 2019 CGA Amateur and earn CGA Player of the Year that season. He also won one individual title while at CSU and twice captured the Southwestern Amateur championship.
TOP WOMEN
Jennifer Kupcho after her major championship victory in 2022.
1. Jennifer Kupcho
— Age: 29.
— Alum of which high school: Jefferson Academy.
— Professional highlights: Has captured four victories on the LPGA Tour, including one major title — the 2022 Chevron Championship. She’s earned $7.2 million in official LPGA money. She’s represented the U.S. in three Solheim Cup competitions. Captured her first pro title at the 2020 Colorado Women’s Open. Was inducted into Colorado Golf Hall of Fame in 2024.
— Amateur highlights: Won the inaugural Augusta National Women’s Amateur in 2019 and the NCAA Division I national title in 2018 after being the college runner-up in 2017. Was the No. 1-ranked amateur in the world for 34 weeks before turning pro in late May 2019. Won nine individual titles while competing for Wake Forest. Represented U.S. on winning teams at the Curtis Cup, Arnold Palmer Cup and women’s World Amateur Team Championship (2018), finishing second individually in the world event. Won the Canadian Women’s Amateur in 2017. Played in two U.S. Women’s Opens as an amateur, placing 21st in 2017. In Colorado, captured three CWGA Stroke Play championships — with winning margins of 21 shots, 19 shots and 13 shots — and two CWGA Match Plays. Won two state high school individual titles and four major junior titles in the state.
Jill McGill has won three different USGA titles, including the U.S. Senior Women’s Open in 2022.
2. Jill McGill
— Age: 54.
— Alum of which high school: Cherry Creek H.S.
— Professional highlights: In 2022, won her third different USGA championship — the U.S. Senior Women’s Open. She’s one of just six players to earn titles in three different USGA championships, joining Jack Nicklaus, Tiger Woods, Arnold Palmer, JoAnne Carner and Carol Semple Thompson. Won $2,341,941 in a long LPGA Tour career, recording 24 top-10 finishes in 365 starts. She finished second twice and third twice on the world’s top women’s golf circuit, along with placing runner-up in the 1995 Women’s British Open.
— Amateur highlights: Won two USGA individual amateur national championships, the U.S. Women’s Amateur in 1993 and the U.S. Women’s Amateur Public Links in 1994, and she finished runner-up in the ’94 U.S. Women’s Am. Played on the U.S. Curtis Cup team in 1994. Posted two top-10 individual finishes at the NCAA national championships (fourth and ninth) while playing for Southern California. In Colorado, won the 1988 CWGA Junior Match Play and the first sanctioned Colorado girls state high school tournament (1990).
3. Lauren Howe
— Age: 67.
— Alum of which high school: St. Mary’s H.S. in Colorado Springs.
— Professional highlights: After turning pro at age 18 — and winning the LPGA’s Q-school tournament — Howe’s long LPGA Tour career was highlighted by a victory in the 1983 Mayflower Classic. She also lost in a playoff at the 1986 Mazda Hall of Fame Championship. All told, Howe notched five top-10 finishes in 172 LPGA starts, earning $236,084.
— Amateur highlights: At age 15, Howe finished second — to Nancy Lopez — at the 1974 U.S. Girls’ Junior. She was the stroke-play co-medalist in the same event in 1975. Qualified for the U.S. Women’s Open at 17 and finished 39th. That same year — 1976 — Howe won the Mexican Women’s Amateur. The next year, she claimed the title in the Women’s Western Amateur. In Colorado won the CWGA Stroke Play at age 16 in 1975, the same year she captured the CWGA Junior Match Play. Girls high school golf in Colorado wasn’t an officially sanctioned sport until 1990, but Howe was the No. 1 player on the boys team at St. Mary’s in Colorado Springs for the three years she spent in high school.
4. Becca Huffer
— Age: 35.
— Professional Highlights: This year became the first three-time champion of the Inspirato Colorado Women’s Open. She’s currently a regular on the Epson Tour. Played semi regularly on the LPGA Tour in 2019 and ’24, with a best finish of 61st.
— Amateur Highlights: As a 15-year-old, claimed the CWGA Match Play in 2005, the same year she won the CWGA Junior Stroke Play. Won two state high school individual titles, with the second one coming by 13 strokes. Also earned one individual college victory while at Notre Dame.
Women’s Honorable Mention
— Kim Eaton: Among Eaton’s record 30 CGA women’s titles are four Stroke Plays and one Match Play. The former professional is a four-time quarterfinalist in the U.S. Senior Women’s Amateur. Has twice won senior titles in the prestigious Ione D. Jones/Doherty national women’s amateur championship. Eaton has also claimed a plethora of state championships in Arizona and one in California.
— Dana Howe: Won the prestigious Broadmoor Ladies Invitation in 1982, when she beat the NCAA champion. Represented the U.S. in the 1984 Curtis Cup competition and played on the LPGA Tour. Claimed three college individual titles at the University of New Mexico. Won two CWGA Stroke Plays and one CWGA Junior Match Play.
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