More than 20 golfers with strong Colorado ties set to tee it up in first stage of PGA Tour Q-school
By Gary Baines
It’s kind of a misnomer, but the “first” stage of PGA Tour Q-school starts on Tuesday, and 22 players with significant Colorado ties are scheduled to tee it up in one of the 14 first-stage tournaments that will be held over a period of three weeks. Each of those competitions will be 72-hole affairs.
We call it a misnomer because there’s already been a stage of Q-school held this fall as pre-qualifying was conducted in late September and early October at five sites. Among the Colorado “locals” who advanced through that stage were University of Colorado part-time men’s golf assistant coach Hunter Swanson of Superior (fourth place in Lipan, Texas); former Colorado Christian University golfer Xavier Bighaus (ninth in Lipan, Texas); Bo Wardynski of Berthoud (32nd in Lipan, Texas); and former CU golfer Tucker Clark (32nd in La Quinta, Calif.).
So, essentially, there are four stages of Q-school, even if some have misleading names. Regardless, the prize at the end of the rainbow for contestants is earning one of the five available 2027 PGA Tour cards available through Q-school, with the next 40 finishers at final stage landing Korn Ferry Tour membership. But there’s a long ways to go before that. In addition to pre-qualifying for some of the competitors, there’s first stage, second-stage tournaments at five sites Dec. 1-4, and the final stage Dec. 10-13 in Ponte Vedra, Fla.
Among the golfers in first stage with strong Colorado connections are former CGA Players of the Year Connor Jones, AJ Ott, Jake Staiano and Derek Fribbs. Ott, by the way, has finished third and second in the last two Inspirato Colorado Opens. And former University of Colorado golfer Yannik Paul won an event on the DP World Tour in October 2022. Also, former Golden resident Andy Svoboda has made 82 PGA Tour starts in his career.
The exact number of players who will advance from each first-stage site to second stage will be revealed after play begins, but typically about the top 20 finishers and ties — give or take a few — move on from each tournament.
Here’s a rundown of the players with significant Colorado ties who are competing in the first stage of PGA Tour Q-school over the next three weeks:
Lincoln, Neb. Oct. 20-23
Connor Jones, Westminster
AJ Ott, Denver
Albuquerque, N.M. Oct. 20-23
Former part-time Coloradan Dan Erickson
Derek Fribbs, Aurora
Former CU golfer Adam Matteson
Former CU golfer Yannik Paul
Jake Staiano, Englewood
Hunter Swanson, Superior
West Palm Beach, Fla., Oct. 27-30
Former Golden resident Andy Svoboda
Newton, Kan., Oct. 27-30
Former CSU golfer Gunnar Broin
Rhett Johnson, Littleton
Bermuda Run, N.C., Oct. 27-30
Former CU golfer Dylan McDermott
Abilene, Texas Oct. 27-30
Former Colorado Christian University golfer Xavier Bighaus
Cheyenne native and former CU golfer Josh Creel
Former DU golfer John Sand
Tucson, Ariz., Nov. 3-6
Former CU golfer Tucker Clark
Former Fort Collins resident Matt Liringis
Lakewood Ranch, Fla., Nov. 3-6
Dillon Stewart, Fort Collins
Bo Wardynski, Berthoud
San Jacinto, Calif., Nov. 3-6
Griffin Barela, Lakewood
Former CU golfer Michael Feuerstein
Roberto Lebrija, Vail
For results from all 2026 PGA Tour Q-school tournaments, 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