Jason Schultz shoots lowest final round in tournament history — and breaks his own overall scoring record — en route to his second Colorado Senior Open title; Littleton’s Brian Guetz earns low-am honors, collecting his 5th Colorado Open championship trophy
By Gary Baines – 8/29/2025
DENVER — A total of 1.25 inches of rain fell Thursday evening at Green Valley Ranch Golf Club.
But the real deluge came on Friday. A flood of birdies — along with an eagle — from the player who went on to win the Inspirato Colorado Senior Open, that is.
Jason Schultz of Dallas made six birdies and an eagle in his first 12 holes en route to the lowest final-round score in CSO history — a bogey-free 8-under-par 64. And he matched the low Colorado Senior Open single-round score period — with Schultz having now shot two 64s at GVR.
Oh, and by the way, all that resulted in a victory for the 52-year-old.
Schultz became the third two-time winner of the Colorado Senior Open, joining Greg Bruckner (2012 and ’15) and Harry Rudolph (2020 and ’21). And he broke his own tournament scoring record by finishing at 17 under par, one better than his total from two years ago.
“At this stage, I’m pretty proud of these (two CSO victories) because of the (limited) amount of (multi-day tournament) golf I actually play,” Schultz said. “The fact that I can still compete … But winning is pretty special. It doesn’t happen a lot in this game unless you’re Scottie (Scheffler). I’ve won a couple of bigger events, but to win the same event twice, I’ve never done that, I don’t think. It’s a big deal.”
Schultz had plenty to smile — and laugh — about on Friday with his second CSO victory.
Even though Schultz is a Texan, he’s certainly taken a shine to playing golf in Colorado. Not only has he won two Colorado Senior Opens, but he advanced to the semifinals of the 2019 U.S. Mid-Amateur at Colorado Golf Club. The former University of Missouri golfer also won the 2005 Chattanooga (Tenn.) Classic on what is now known as the Korn Ferry Tour. He’s turned pro twice in his career and has competed in 53 PGA Tour events.
On Friday — with mark, lift, clean and place rules in effect for the third straight day due to the wet course conditions — Schultz rallied from two out of the lead to win by two. When he hit a 3-wood from 260 yards to 2 feet on No. 12 and made the eagle putt, he was 8 under for the round with six holes remaining.
“I hadn’t made a birdie yet (on that par-5), and then I accidentally make an eagle,” Schultz said. “I was just trying to get it up there around the green. It was kind of lucky. ‘Oh, OK. I’ll take that.’”
From there, he and Brian Cooper matched pars, with Schultz finishing two ahead of the Pittsburgh resident, who plans to move to the Denver area in April and become a director of instruction.
Friday’s victory, Schultz’s first since the 2023 CSO, was worth $15,000 out of the $80,000 purse.
The 64 Schultz shot on the final day matched the second-round score he posted in 2023 en route to victory.
“One of my most impressive rounds was my second round I played here two years ago when I won,” he said. “It was windy and firm. Those two rounds — I don’t know if they’re my best ever, but they’re up there for sure.”
Brian Cooper, who plans to move to the Denver area in April, opened with a double bogey on Friday but bounced back to shoot a 68 and take second place.
Despite hitting his opening tee shot out of bounds and making a first-hole double bogey after holding the 36-hole lead, Cooper rallied to shoot a 68 and post a 15-under total. For the week, he made 21 birdies.
“If someone had told me I’d shoot 15 under and lose, what can I say?” said Cooper, a full-time player on PGA Tour Champions in 2023. “It’s good playing and you take your hat off to Jason. He played stellar today obviously in the final round. So you’ve got to take your hat off to him and congratulate him. That’s a hell of a final round of golf. No hard feelings from me in respect to the way I played.”
Jay Jurecic of Caspian, Mich., eagled the final hole to share third place at 13 under par with Mark Walker of Celina, Texas. Former PGA Tour veteran Omar Uresti of Austin, Texas placed fifth at 12 under.
Matt Schalk (pictured) and Brian Guetz were the top Colorado finishers, tying for eighth place.
The top Colorado finishers were Matt Schalk of Erie and amateur Brian Guetz of Littleton, both of whom closed with 67s to share eighth place at 9 under. Four-time Colorado PGA Professional champion Micah Rudosky of Cortez, who briefly shared the lead early in Friday’s round, struggled to a 40 on his final nine and place 14th at 8 under.
As for Schultz, with his brother/caddie Ryan living in Colorado Springs and with all the success Jason has had in the Centennial State, he might think of Colorado as a home away from home. And he particularly enjoys Green Valley Ranch GC.
“I like it here obviously,” said Schultz, a partner in a synthetic turf business in Dallas. “I can drive a couple of (par-4) holes. There’s lots of opportunities; today all my birdies and eagles were close putts. It wasn’t like I was making a lot of putts. But I’m able to (score) like that because I can get to most of the par-5s (in two) and can knock it on (the green) on a couple of par-4s.”
Schultz was 8 under par through his first 12 holes on Friday.
While he’s won twice at GVR, it was in wildly different conditions, with the 2023 CSO featuring a firm and fast course, while this one was very wet.
“The course was completely different this time compared to last time,” Schultz said. “I think I played better last time because the course was so firm so you had to control your ball a lot more. I played great today — don’t get me wrong — but the greens were so firm (in 2023) that you had to be precise in where you hit shots and how you hit shots, how you flighted it and how you controlled the spin and all that.
“I played it a little different this year because it was so soft. I hit a lot longer clubs off a lot of tees than I normally do. I couldn’t get to some par-5s this year. But that’s part of adapting.
“Today, I knew you had to go low. But very seldom when you try to shoot low do you shoot low. So I was just trying to give myself chances. If I have chances, things happen, and it just goes from there. And as you start making some, you get more confident and more relaxed. It’s kind of like the lower you go, the more comfortable you become.”
Schultz’s 260-yard 3-wood on the par-5 12th set up a pivotal 2-foot eagle putt.
Meanwhile, given that he lost by two, does Cooper look back and think “what if” regarding his OB on the first hole, where his tee shot soared far further than expected and past the white stakes?
“No,” he said. “Yesterday I made a double and two days ago I made two bogeys that were absolutely horrendous. There were four (over-par) holes all week — where I made two bogeys and two doubles. I don’t think if I go back in that same situation I make those same mistakes. I literally feel like I should have this entire week bogey-free. That’s how good I was hitting it.”
Regarding that first tee shot on Friday, Cooper said, “I hit a ball right where I wanted to, but adrenaline got the best of it, and it went a little bit further than they have been this week and I hit it out of bounds. Considering hitting it out of bounds on the first hole and coming back strong the rest of the day — 6 under from that point — that’s pretty cool and I’m good with that. It shows my character and what I’m made of to bounce back. A lot of people, that ends them. Their day is over if they do that on the first hole of the final round. But I showed some resilience and battled back and managed to get it to 15 under. I thought 15 was going to be pretty close if not take it.”
Micah Rudosky of Cortez, who was in second place entering the final day, struggled on the back nine on Friday.
Indeed, Cooper made four straight birdies in the middle of the round to briefly tie Schultz for the lead before the latter made his eagle on No. 12.
“I thought I was running the show at that point — that I was right there in the lead.” Cooper said. “But honestly I didn’t look at the leaderboard until I hit my tee shot on 17. I saw (Schultz was 17 under) and thought, ‘Oh, he played some good golf today.’ There’s nothing I could do.”
And with that Cooper now has two runners-up (Colorado and Pennsylvania) and a third place (Arizona) in state senior opens this year.
“I’m not super thrilled about that,” he said. “But then again, how many people can say they finished second (or third) in three state opens?”
The water approaching the ninth green submerged the cart path — and then some.
Water Galore: Given all the water that fell on Green Valley Ranch Golf Club on Thursday evening, some of the players were amazed that the final round of the CSO was able to be held on Friday.
On the final day of play, a bridge or two on the course were just staying above the rushing water of streams, the cart path leading up to the ninth green looked like a small lake, and there was certainly some standing water in spots in the fairway and rough. But all in all, with the mark, lift, clean and place rules in effect, the conditions were very workable, all things considered.
“It’s amazing we’re playing,” said competitor Brian Guetz, who joked that the ninth-hole cart path featured “class 5 rapids.”
Said Jason Schultz, the overall champion: “How they got it in such good shape is amazing to me.”
Brian Guetz of Littleton finished strong the final two days to claim low-amateur honors.
Make That Five for Brian Guetz: Plenty of elite-level golfers have trophy cases to display all that they’ve accomplished in the game. Brian Guetz of Littleton, if he so desired, could have one devoted strictly to Colorado Open championships.
Earlier in life, Guetz collected four Colorado Open trophies — two for the overall championship, in 1994 as an amateur and in 2008 as a pro, and in ’94 and ’97 for claiming low-amateur honors.
And on Friday, the now-51-year-old added a fifth Colorado Open championship trophy as he earned low-am status for the Colorado Senior Open.
“They’re in a closet somewhere and I don’t know how many I have,” Guetz initially said of his trophy haul related to these championships. “They look exactly the same. That’s one of the coolest trophies and I hope they don’t change it. You can’t tell one 25 years old versus one that’s presented today. They’re just great trophies.
“They should be displayed proudly, but they’re stuck in a closet somewhere. This makes me tempted to put them out somewhere to display.”
Guetz lines up a birdie putt he would sink at the seventh hole on Friday.
After posting a first-round 72, Guetz went 68-67 the final two days to finish at 9 under par. Not only did that earn him the top spot among amateurs — with fellow Columbine Country Club member Sean Crowley (75-67-68) taking second — but he placed eighth overall in the championship.
“You think that you can do this kind of thing,” said Guetz, who was competing in just his third multi-round tournament of the year (he won the Columbine CC club championship for the second time). “But reality and what you expect are different. So it was nice to get them closer together — where expectations and reality kind of met today.
“I thought (possibly claiming low-am honors) was a realistic goal. I knew Sean was in the field, and if I could beat him that would be good because he’s a really good player. So I set that out; it’s always good to have little goals and see if they’re attainable. Obviously winning (the overall title), that’s not going to happen. It was fun to get competitive again. You don’t get to do this very often.”
Guetz made seven birdies in the final round and 13 for the last two days.
His overall showing was the highest by an amateur at the CSO since Jon Lindstrom finished fourth and Richard Bradsby seventh in 2021.
“This event, being close to home, was always one I looked forward to,” Guetz said of the Colorado Open championships. “There’s some sort of enthusiasm and excitement drawing on past performances — albeit a long time ago. It’s always been a special tournament to me and one I hold in high regard.
“It’s a storied event. People know the Colorado Open far and wide. Personally, it’s one I’ve always looked forward to. Coming to this was totally different since I don’t play much competitive golf (anymore). I think I was able to draw on past experiences. There’s always good vibes and good feelings around here. It’s nice to compete with my peers — instead of versus the young guys.”
Guetz (left) chats with playing partner Robert Sowards.
Though Guetz is 51 years old, he didn’t play in last year’s CSO. In fact, a snowmobile accident kept him from playing golf at all in 2024. But he got back on the horse in the spring.
Guetz and younger brother Bret own and operate car washes for a living.
Notable: Jim Bebbington, the content director then editor of Colorado AvidGolfer magazine for the last two-plus years, was presented the Ralph Moore Golf Journalism Award during Friday’s post-tournament festivities. The honor, which is dedicated to “forwarding the pursuit of excellence in golf reporting,” is presented by the Colorado Open championships and was first awarded in 1989. Moore was a longtime sports writer at the Denver Post, with one of his main beats being golf. He’s a member of the Colorado Golf Hall of Fame. … 61-year-old Steve Schneiter of Sandy, Utah, winner of both a national PGA Professional Championship and a national Senior PGA Professional Championship, won the CSO’s super-senior competition for players 60 and older. Schneiter, who played in the U.S. Senior Open at The Broadmoor earlier this summer, went 66-72-68 for a 10-under-par total, which was three strokes better than runner-up and former PGA Tour veteran Jim Carter. Schneiter earned $1,000 for the super-senior win to supplement his $2,750 payday from the overall competition, where he tied for sixth place. … Part-time Boulder resident Jonathan Kaye, the defending overall champion at the CSO, tied for 37th place this week after finishing at 1 under par (68-74-73). … Shane Bertsch of Parker, coming off a 12th-place showing last week on PGA Tour Champions, ended up 19th on Friday (70-72-68). … Friday marked the end of Inspirato’s run as title sponsor of the Colorado Open championships. Tournament organizers are in the midst of seeking a new title sponsor for 2026 and beyond.
For all the scores from the Colorado Senior Open, CLICK HERE.
While a wet golf course presented some problems, some wildlife seemed to enjoy it all.
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