Missed Opportunity

First PGA Tour win proves elusive for Denver native Mark Hubbard as he places second in Myrtle Beach after leading with 3 holes left; Becca Huffer, Scott Vincent also notch top-10s in tour golf

By Gary Baines 

Denver native Mark Hubbard came thisclose on Sunday to winning a PGA Tour event for the first time in his career.

… And wrapping up PGA Tour exempt status for 2027 and ’28.

… And landing a spot in next week’s PGA Championship.

… And becoming one of the relatively few golfers with strong Colorado ties to be able to say he’s claimed a PGA Tour title.

Alas, it was all there for the taking coming down the stretch on Sunday at the Myrtle Beach (S.C.) Classic. But bogeys on two of the last three holes — Nos. 16 and 18 — made the difference between all the above and finishing solo second. That matches Hubbard’s best showing ever in a PGA Tour event, but a consolation prize wasn’t his goal.

“I mean, super bummed,” Hubbard said regarding his initial reaction coming off the course. “I definitely felt like it was going to be my day.”

Hubbard, a Colorado Academy graduate and 2007 CJGA Player of the Year, led by two in Myrtle Beach late in the front nine, and was one ahead after making three birdies in four holes (12-15), where he sank putts of 22 feet, 14 feet and 22 feet.

But the 36-year-old three-putted from 36 feet for bogey, lipping out a 6-foot par attempt on No. 16. Then on 18, where he was tied for the lead with veteran Brandt Snedeker, Hubbard’s tee shot strayed right and he opted to pitch back out to the fairway. With 126 yards left to the hole on the par-4, he left himself with a 25-foot par putt to force a playoff. But he missed it left, with Snedeker taking advantage to earn his 10th PGA Tour victory.

While matching his best PGA Tour finish — a runner-up at the 2019 Children’s Houston Open — and earning $436,000 in the process, Hubbard had something bigger in mind. With 274 PGA Tour starts, only one active golfer has played more PGA Tour events without a victory (Patrick Rodgers, with 326).

“I felt like I played really solid all week,” Hubbard said. “… I feel like I was definitely nervous both days, and I feel like internally I handled it really well. So I was proud of that. I just got ahead of two drives on 15 and 18, and that cost me.”

The good news is that it was by far Hubbard’s best showing on the PGA Tour in quite a while. In fact, his last top-10 finish was a third place at the Wyndham Championship on Aug. 3, 2025. Prior to Sunday, his best 2026 result was 23rd place. He came into the week 159th in the World Golf Rankings and moved up to 114th. His best world ranking is 66th.

“Right now I feel a lot better than I would have in past situations (where he was in contention),” he said. “Just overall throughout the week I had a lot more fun out there. I just felt a lot more calm and less stressed, and that was really nice.”

Overall this week, Hubbard went 66-67-64-70 for a 17-under-par total. It was Hubbard’s second straight top-10 showing at the Myrtle Beach Classic — an opposite-field event on the PGA Tour — as he placed seventh last year.

In his PGA Tour career, Hubbard now has two second-place finishes, four thirds, 10 top-5s and 18 top-10s.

Despite not great results on the PGA Tour in 2026 before Sunday, Hubbard has gotten to the point that his mindset is working in his favor.

“Honestly it sounds weird, but I feel like this is the first time in my life I’ve felt like it was OK to fail and mess up. It’s kind of given me some relief,” Hubbard said on Saturday. “I am someone who puts a ton of pressure on myself, and it’s been too much this year to start. I’m just kind of giving myself some slack for the first time maybe ever.”

SCORES

— Elsewhere on Sunday for players with strong Colorado ties in major tour golf …

Two-time Colorado Women’s Open champion Becca Huffer of Monument tied for fifth on Sunday at the Epson Tour’s Reliance Matrix Championship in Las Vegas. It was Huffer’s highest Epson finish since a T5 in September. This week, Huffer went 69-71-62-70 for a 16-under-par The performance was worth $8,443. SCORES

Part-time Coloradan Scott Vincent recorded his second straight top-10 finish in LIV Golf, ending up tied for eight on Sunday in Virginia. A third-round 10-under-par 62 led to a 15-under total. Coming on the heels of a $1 million LIV payday last month, Vincent earned $457,500 on Sunday. SCORES

Colorado Golf Hall of Famer Jennifer Kupcho posted her third consecutive top-13 finish on the LPGA Tour by tying for 12th in the Mizuho Americas Open in West Caldwell, N.J. She carded rounds of 70-69-74-71 for a 4-under-par total. SCORES

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