Caleb VanArragon got caught in a hail storm of birdies on Sunday, not to mention a holed 8-iron shot by Patrick Welch on the final hole of the Simmons Bank Open, but the former Minnesota State Amateur and State Open champion managed to make enough birdies himself to shoot a 4-under-par 66 at the Vanderbilt Legends Club in Franklin, Tenn., and secure a top-5 finish. And with that, he moved up from 65th to 43rd on the Korn Ferry Tour points list.
Now all he needs to do is come up with another couple of high finishes in the last four events on the 2025 Korn Ferry calendar. Or he could do what Zach Bauchow did, and claim his first victory in professional golf's highest minor league.
Bauchou, a former Oklahoma State All-American, played almost flawless golf, after starting the day in first place. The result was a third consecutive 6-under-par 64, which gave him a 72-hole total of 257 (-23) and a two-stroke victory, not to mention $270,000.
But the main thing for Bauchou was that he lifted himself up from 30th place on the Korn Ferry points list to seventh. So he's guaranteed to be in the top 20 in the final standings -- and the top 20 will all move up to the PGA Tour for the 2025 season. (Bauchow is sixth on the money list with $479,727.)
For a whole Sunday afternoon, it seemed as if Bauchou was hitting every one of his approaches to within 10 feet, and then making the birdie putt. And Austin Hitt was doing pretty much the same thing.
Hitt shot 65 and finished secoond, two behind Bauchou at 259.
It appeared that VanArragon was going to finish in third place, but Welch crashed the party by holing his 8-iron second shot on the 487-yard 18th hole. His valedictory eagle 2 gave him a 63 for the day and a 261 for the tournament -- 19 under. He thereby leap-frogged VanArragon, who was 18 under at the time.
Playing behind Welch, VanArragon proceeded to bogey the 18th hole (he had to get up and down from a greenside bunker just to salvage the bogey). So he finished two shots out of third at 263, tied for fourth with Johnny Keefer, the leading money-winner -- and points accumulator -- on the Korn Ferry Tour. Keefer also closed with a 66.
Simmons Bank was the first of the four tournaments that make up the Korn Ferry Finals. The top 156 on the points list were eligible for this one. Next up is the Nationwide Children's Hospital Championship, at the Ohio State Scarlet Course. It will have a field of 144. Then the Compliance Solutions Championship in Owasso, Okla., with a field of 120.
The 2025 schedule will conclude with the Korn Ferry Tour Championship, for the top 75 players on the points list. It will be played in French Lick, Ind.,, Oct. 9-12.
Last year, the top 30 from the points list moved up to the PGA Tour. That number was reduced to 20 this year.
The PGA Tour Americas, which is one step below the Korn Ferry, is also winding down, with only two tournaments left. For the guys on that tour, the primary goal is to graduate to the Korn Ferry -- and you have to finish in the top 10 for that.
Nevertheless, another former Minnesota State Amateur champion, Derek Hitchner, has been up to the task, and he virtually assured himself of being in that Gang of 10 over the weekend, by finishing second in the ATB Classic at Northern Bear Golf Club, which is in Alberta, Canada.
Hitchner was tied for the lead with Michael Brennan going into Sunday's final round, and he birdied two of the first three holes. But Brennan birdied all three, and that turned out to be the difference.
They each played the last 15 holes in 1 under. So Brennan, a former Wake Forest All-American, ended up with a 4-under 68 and a 72-hole total of 269 (-19).
Hitchner's 69 put him at 270.
The second-place finish was worth $24,300, which moved Hitchner up from 19th on the money list to ninth, with $61,385. More important, it elevated him into the No. 10 spot on the Fortinet Cup standings (the PGA Tour Americas points list).
If he can play well enough in the last two events -- the Times Colonist Victoria Open (Sept. 18-21) and the Fortinet Cup Championship (Sept 25-28) -- to hang on to his spot in the top 10, he'll be on his way to the Korn Ferry for 2026.
Brennan, by the way, got $40,500 for first, which is icing on the cake for him. He's No. 1 in both money ($185,375) and points on the PGA Tour Americas this year.
KORN FERRY TOUR
Simmons Bank Open
At Vanderbilt Legends Club
Par 70, 7,197 yards
Franklin, Tenn.
Final results
1.Zach Bauchou $270,000 65-64-64-64--257
2. Austin Hitt $135,000 66-61-67-65--259
3. Patrick Welch $90,000 62-67-69-63--261
T4. Caleb VanArragon $62,250 66-63-68-66--263
T4. Johnny Keefer $62,250 67-66-64-66--263
PGA TOUR AMERICAS
ATB Classic
At Northern Bear Golf Club
Par 72, 7,352 yards
Strathcona County, Alberta, Canada
Final results
1. Michael Brennan $40,500 61-66-74-68--269
2. Derek Hitchner $24,300 66-65-70-69--270
T3. Davis Lamb $13,500 65-68-70-68--271
T3. Riley Lewis $13,500 65-70-70-66--271
Missed cut --- 139
Gunnar Broin 73-72--145
Thomas Longbella 77-68--145