Utahn Carson Lundell shines again in Colorado, winning the CO Open, but only after barely fending off big-time rally by AJ Ott of Denver, who took 2nd despite breaking his hand 2 months ago; visionary Mark Passey receives prestigious Kirchner Award
By Gary Baines
DENVER — It’s been well over a decade since the Inspirato Colorado Open has produced three consecutive winners born in the Centennial State. And for much of the day on Sunday, it appeared there was little chance of a Colorado trifecta, even after Davis Bryant had won the tournament in 2024 and fellow Colorado product Jim Knous last year.
But AJ Ott, who was raised in Fort Collins and now lives in Denver, apparently wasn’t going to let an opportunity to extend the local streak end so easily.
The former Colorado State University golfer, just two months removed from breaking his right hand playing pickup basketball, was well behind the leader while Ott was in the middle of his back nine on Sunday at Green Valley Ranch Golf Club.
But quicker than you can say “that guy is scorching hot on a 100-degree day”, Ott finished his round with five consecutive birdies and was tied for the lead. A Colorado three-peat was definitely a possibility.
But a golfer from Alpine, Utah who played plenty of college golf with Ott had other ideas. Carson Lundell birdied the 14th hole to take back sole possession of the lead, saved par on 15 and carded three more consecutive pars to close out his round and put the wraps on the premier achievement of his golf career. And, by the way, he receives a cool $50,000 for the accomplishment.
Sunday’s win marked Lundell’s fourth straight top-6 appearance at the Colorado Open.
“This is definitely the biggest” for me, the 28-year-old former BYU golfer said. “I’ve been knocking on the door every year I’ve been here. And I just felt like it was a matter of time before I got it done. I’m just happy to do it. This is a great tournament, a prestigious event, and it draws a great field. So I’m just super happy and honored to be a champion. … This means everything. I love this event and love the course.”
And, for full-time golfers playing mini tours and state opens — with plans to tee it up in PGA Tour/Korn Ferry Tour Q-school — a $50,000 payday is no small matter. That will pay a lot of bills along the way.
“It frees you up a little bit,” Lundell said. “Obviously, it takes a lot of funds and financials to play professional golf and to do what we do. And anytime you can help support that yourself — especially with such a big check like this one — it just helps, and I’m super grateful for it.”
Though Lundell is a Utahn, he seems to have made the Colorado Open his personal playground in recent years. Since 2023, his finishes at event have gone sixth, sixth, third and first.
An awkward shot from the sand on No. 8 Sunday led to Lundell’s only bogey of the weekend.
In fact, Colorado has treated Lundell pretty darn well in general as, in addition to his Colorado Open showings, he won the 2020 Rocky Mountain Amateur at Colorado National Golf Club, and earlier this month at the same course he was co-medalist in Monday qualifying into the Korn Ferry Tour event at TPC Colorado.
“Colorado’s been good to me,” he said. “It’s funny. A couple of my buddies were here when I played the Monday (qualifying for the TPC Colorado stop). One of them was like, ‘You know, he always plays well here. I guarantee you he gets into the Korn Ferry event because he’s won at Colorado National (the qualifying site). It’s just funny. Colorado’s been great to me, and I’m happy to accept it.”
AJ Ott of Denver, seen after his 7-wood second shot to the 18th green, has finished third and second in the last two Colorado Opens.
But Ott — who also has a stellar record in the Colorado Open in recent years — almost took the title from Lundell. The Coloradan — coincidentally 28 years old like Lundell and a third-place finisher in last year’s Colorado Open like Lundell — used those five straight birdies to end his round to shoot an 8-under-par 63, which tied for the low round on Sunday.
As it turned out, Ott had an eagle attempt at 18 that would have forced a playoff — even though he finished his round roughly 45 minutes before Lundell did. But after hitting a 7-wood from 285 yards on the par-5 18th hole to 25 feet, Ott couldn’t get the eagle attempt to drop. He had to settle for second place, a shot behind Lundell.
“I didn’t look at a leaderboard all week, and as I was reading that putt on 18, I had a feeling that I needed to make it,” Ott said. “I guess I should say I wanted to make it to try to get close to the lead, but I didn’t look at the leaderboard. But it still feel great, you know? It’s the first event I’ve had in (two months) and first full tournament since March, since I’ve been just playing Monday qualifiers. So I’m still happy with it. The result is the result. I felt like I gave it my all.
“I’m super pumped for Carson. We played a lot of college golf together — and a lot of pro golf. I’m obviously bummed (to fall short of winning), but I’m very excited for him. He’s a great player.”
Ott chips to the eighth green on Sunday.
After playing the 18th hole conservatively — hitting 4-iron off the tee — and just needing a two-putt par from 14 feet to secure the title, Lundell shot a 5-under-par 66 for the second straight day to finish at 20 under par. His only bogey of the entire weekend came on the par-3 eighth hole, where he had an extremely awkward shot from the edge of the greenside bunker, and couldn’t get his ball up and down.
Placing third, two back of Lundell, was Brendon Jelley of Tulsa, who closed with a 64 despite a double bogey on the 10th hole. Joe Garber of Petosky, Mich., was fourth, at 17 under, after matching Ott’s 63 thanks to a closing-hole eagle.
Four-time PGA Tour winner Sean O’Hair notched a fifth-place finish.
And rounding out the top five was the most accomplished player in the field, four-time PGA Tour winner Sean O’Hair, who checked in at 16 under after a second straight 66.
“I’m happy with the week,” said the 44-year-old O’Hair, who has won more than $25 million on the PGA Tour. “I’m grateful for playing halfway decent. I feel like if the putter was just a little bit hotter, it would have been a really good week. But I had a lot of good opportunities and played solid.
“I haven’t really been playing a whole lot. It’s kind of pleasant surprise (to finish that high against a strong field), I guess you would say.”
By halfway through Sunday’s round, it seemed to be shaping up as a two-man contest for the title as Lundell and Zander Winston of Scottsdale and Dallas were tied for the top spot, three ahead of the next-best player. But Winston double bogeyed the two par-5s on the back nine and finished 10th.
Before Ott went on his late-round run, Lundell was ahead by three. But the Coloradan, who played his last 55 holes of the tournament without a bogey, changed things. The former CGA Player of the Year was playing decently for the day at 3 under par through 13 holes, but he wasn’t in contention for the title. However, he chipped up to a foot for the first birdie of the run on the drivable par-4 14th. Then he drained a 20-footer on No. 15, a 25-footer on No. 16, a 10-footer on No. 17 and two-putted from 25 feet on No. 18. Just like that, five straight birdies.
Ott made plenty of putts down the stretch on Sunday, but couldn’t coax in an eagle attempt on No. 18.
All, in all, it was quite a performance for a guy who didn’t play his first full round of golf in almost two months until the Sunday before the Colorado Open.
“I honestly was just trying to stay in my process and just play very athletically and free and just trying to hit the right spots on the greens,” Ott said. “And I know I was putting well, and the greens were so good, so I just figured if I could just get some good reads a few putts might go in. It ended up working out.”
Ott attributed his good play in part to having his girlfriend, Carli, caddie for him for the first time.
“On (hole) 14, I said something to her like ‘If I can just make a bunch of birdies coming in, it’ll turn the day around a little bit,’” Ott said. “So I think that helped us kind of being a little more free.
“I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t worried about being rusty for this event (because of the down time after breaking his hand). But in the same breath, I think I felt very fresh, and I tried to let that overpower the worry about being rusty, This is the first time my girlfriend has caddied for me ever. So I was teaching her and we just had the best time. I felt like there was more than 50 percent of the time out there, I wasn’t even really thinking about golf. I was just trying to teach her and we were cracking jokes and it was just great. So she definitely helped keep me stay very relaxed and free. I just had a great time.”
The bottom line is that Ott now has finished in the top 10 in each of the last three Colorado Opens, placing ninth in 2024, third last year and second this time.
“The more you play this course, the more comfortable you are,” Ott said. “Some people, it could add a little more pressure (playing in your home state). But I just feel comfortable here, and it’s just such a nice event, I sleep in my own bed, which is awesome because we’re on the road so much.”
The title hopes for former CU golfer Hunter Swanson were derailed by three straight bogeys on the front nine.
GVR First Tee Graduate Hunter Swanson Places Sixth in Pro Tourney Debut: Hunter Swanson — who grew up playing the golf course at Green Valley Ranch more than 600 times, and being a member of GVR’s First Tee program for 13 years — would have loved a storybook ending on Sunday for his first full-on tournament as a pro. Alas, after two early birdies got the former University of Colorado golfer within a stroke of the lead, the 22-year-old from Superior was derailed by three consecutive bogeys starting on No. 6 Sunday. That run ended his streak of 56 consecutive holes without a bogey at the Colorado Open.
But Swanson rebounded with three birdies on the back nine to shoot a 2-under-par 69 and finish 15 under, five behind champion Carson Lundell. And his first tournament as a pro will go down as a sixth-place showing out of the 144-man field. It earned the soon-to-be part-time CU men’s golf assistant coach $5,890 of the week.
“My whole goal coming here was just to have fun, enjoy my pro debut, enjoy being at my home track, enjoy having one of my best friends (Jeff Nelson) on the bag,” Swanson said. “I did that completely to the fullest, and I can’t complain with that. Winning would have been great. But at the end of the day, for this being my first pro event, I’d say it’s a pretty good start.”
Swanson reacts to a putt that wouldn’t fall on Sunday.
As for his bogey-free streak ending on Sunday after 56 holes — with a three-putt on No. 6 — Swanson said, “Bogeys just kind of sneak up on you quickly. At least that’s kind of how it felt today. But the rest of the round after that, I played pretty solid.”
Swanson said he plans to play the Sinclair Rocky Mountain Open in Grand Junction next month, then will tee it up at Q-school in the fall.
Sam Renner (right) played with PGA Tour veteran Sean O’Hair for the final two rounds.
Sam Renner Savors Low-Am Experience: It proved to be quite a week for Sam Renner of Bend, Ore.
Just because of how the scores lined up, he played both the third and fourth rounds at GVR with Sean O’Hair, winner of four PGA Tour events.
And, after being urged by his former college coach, 2006 Colorado Open champion Dustin White from Pueblo West, to play in the tournament, Renner claimed low-amateur honors on Sunday.
The former Washington State University golfer fended off a challenge from Coloradan Matt Zions — and overcame a double bogey on the second hole on Sunday — to finish low-am by two strokes. Renner went 67-69-66-70 for a 12-under-par total. Zions, also the amateur runner-up last year at the Colorado Open, checked in at 10 under after rebounding from an opening-day 75 with scores of 64-67-68. Zions is a reinstated amateur who once won a tournament on the European Tour.
Renner with his low-amateur trophy.
“It was definitely one of my goals” to be low-am this week, Renner said. “Obviously, you go into a tournament wanting to win, but, based on it being a pro event and I play it as an amateur, it’s kind of playing at a new level for me now. I wanted to learn as much I could — especially playing with a former Tour player like Sean O’Hair. That was really special to watch, and I definitely learned a lot this week. I was stoked to be paired with him for two days.
“And I just so happened to be low am.”
Renner, who won two college individual titles during his days at Washington State, will tee it up at the U.S. Amateur next month and plans to go to Q-school in the fall.
Mark Passey (left) receives congratulations on Sunday from CGA CEO/executive director Ed Mate.
Visionary Mark Passey Accepts Prestigious Kirchner Award: A past winner of the prestigious Robert M. Kirchner Award — given to individuals who have contributed greatly to the game of golf in Colorado — introduced the 2026 honoree on Sunday after the Colorado Open concluded.
CGA CEO and executive director Ed Mate (the 2009 award recipient) had the honor of giving the Kirchner honor to Mark Passey, a former longtime director of regional affairs in the area of the country that included Colorado.
The Kirchner Award was first presented in 1992 to Kirchner, a founder of the Colorado Open. It’s been given out over the years to the likes of Judy Bell, Jack Vickers, Kent Moore, Mate, George Solich, Les Fowler, Joan Birkland, Pat Hamill and Myron Craig, among may others. It’s awarded by the Colorado Open Golf Foundation.
Passey was a former executive director of the Utah Golf Association — he’s now a member of the UGA Hall of Fame — before spending 27 1/2 years with the USGA. The Highlands Ranch resident retired from that role in 2017. In recent years, he’s served as vice president of the Colorado Golf Hall of Fame, and he played a pivotal visionary role in the creation of a new Hall of Fame Museum that opened in 2023 at The Broadmoor in Colorado Springs.
“We have the best state golf museum in the country — there is no doubt,” Mate said. “And it’s all because of Mark. It was his vision (that led to it coming to fruition).”
Passey, never one to toot his own horn, instead praised the previous recipients of the Kirchner Award.
“They made sure others had the opportunity to excel,” he said.
Scoring: For all the scores from the Colorado Open, 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