3 months ago
SOUTH OGDEN — Perhaps the person most surprised that Derek Hitchner won the Korn Ferry Tour's Utah Championship on Sunday at Ogden Golf & Country Club was Hitchner himself.
"I've been floundering all year," the 26-year-old from Minnesota said on the 18th green after winning a five-way playoff on the first playoff hole with a 6-foot birdie putt. "This is kind of a surprise, and a huge blessing."
It was the first tournament win as a professional for Hitchner, a Pepperdine graduate who turned pro in 2023.
"This is as good as it gets," he said.
The five-man playoff tied for the largest playoff field in Korn Ferry Tour history. After Hitchner and four others — Tommy Morrison, Cole Hammer, Mason Anderson and Travis Trace — tied at 21-under through 72 holes in blistering hot conditions in South Ogden, the fivesome headed out to the 18th tee in the sudden-death playoff.
#hitchner #korn
"I've been floundering all year," the 26-year-old from Minnesota said on the 18th green after winning a five-way playoff on the first playoff hole with a 6-foot birdie putt. "This is kind of a surprise, and a huge blessing."
It was the first tournament win as a professional for Hitchner, a Pepperdine graduate who turned pro in 2023.
"This is as good as it gets," he said.
The five-man playoff tied for the largest playoff field in Korn Ferry Tour history. After Hitchner and four others — Tommy Morrison, Cole Hammer, Mason Anderson and Travis Trace — tied at 21-under through 72 holes in blistering hot conditions in South Ogden, the fivesome headed out to the 18th tee in the sudden-death playoff.
#hitchner #korn
