Utah golf in the spotlight with 3 top tournaments in 2-week stretch in August

SALT LAKE CITY — After crowning champions in two of the longer running continuous amateur championships in the country at the 128th Utah men’s state amateur championship and the 120th women’s state amateur, Utah golf will be in the spotlight as the pros descend for two highlight weeks in the month of August.

Here’s a look at what is on the line as the Utah Championship, Utah Open and Utah Women’s Open appear on the horizon.

Utah Championship

The 35th anniversary of the Utah Championship on the Korn Ferry Tour, known by many names over the year, tees off Thursday at Ogden Golf and Country Club.

Launched in 1990 as part of the inaugural Ben Hogan Tour, the tournament that began as the Utah Classic before being rebranded to the Utah Championship in 2006 has become one of the most recognizable stops on the top development tour beneath the PGA Tour.

“This tournament has built a legacy over 35 years that few events can match,” said Utah Sports Commission CEO Jeff Robbins in a statement. “As one of the longest-running stops on the PGA’s Korn Ferry Tour, the Utah Championship has consistently delivered memorable moments, produced world-class champions, and played a meaningful role in establishing Utah as the state of sport.”

After playing at Riverside Country Club in Provo, Willow Creek Country Club in Sandy, Thanksgiving Point Golf Club in Lehi and Oakridge Country Club in Farmington, Ogden became the tournament’s northernmost site when the event moved there in 2025.

Exemptions for this year’s tournament will include a local flair to the Ogden area, bringing Weber High graduate Connor Howe and Ogden native Mitchell Schow home for the latest edition.

Howe, who helped lead Georgia Tech to two ACC championships before turning pro in 2023, is back in his hometown after making the cut in each of the past two years in the event including a bogey-free 64 in his final round in 2024.

Schow, who prepped at Park City High School before starring at the University of Utah and winning the Utah state amateur title in 2020 and Salt Lake City Open three years ago, made the cut as a Monday qualifier at the 2025 Utah Championship en route to a tie for 54th.

“I am super excited to receive a sponsor exemption into this year’s Utah Championship,” Howe said. “To have the Korn Ferry Tour in my hometown, competing at the course I grew up and learned the game at, is a dream come true, and I am honored and excited to be a part of it.”

"Having the opportunity to play in Ogden in front of friends and family is something I hold very special. The Ogden community has always supported me, and I'm very excited to represent them in the Korn Ferry Tour event!"
– Mitchell Schow pic.twitter.com/7Ucg3PWiH1

— Utah Championship (@UTChampionship) July 17, 2026

Utah Women’s Open

The Larry H. Miller Utah Women’s Open will close out its first decade Aug. 3-4 at TalonsCove Golf Club in Saratoga Springs.

The tournament brings together top professional and amateur women’s golfers from Utah and the surrounding region on the 5,782-yard, par-72 course on the west side of Utah Lake.

Currently registered golfers for the 2026 tournament include six-time Utah women’s state amateur champion Kelsey Chugg, rising star Ali Mulhall, and UGA girls’ junior amateur champion Navy Hubbs, the Salem Hills standout who is committed to Boise State.

Former Texas golfer Emilee Hoffman, a fifth-year Epson Tour pro from Folsom, California, is the defending champion last year shortly after moving to Salt Lake City from Scottsdale, Arizona.

Admission to the tournament, as well as the men’s counterpart, is free and open to the public.

Utah Open

The Larry H. Miller Utah Open will celebrate 100 years of championship golf Aug. 14-16 at Riverside Country Club in Provo, with an additional pro-am challenge and short-game challenge in partnership with Special Olympics Utah for more than two decades.

BYU rising sophomore Kihei Akina, the former Lone Peak High star, is the defending champion after becoming one of the youngest winners in tournament history a year ago. He joined a list of some of the biggest names in Utah golf to win the event, including PGA of America hall-of-fame selection George Schneiter (1936, 1941, 1943), former BYU golfer and PGA Tour winner Mike Reid (1983, 1985), former Utah State golfer and 1980 NCAA champion Jay Don Blake (1988), and Jimmy Blair (1981) and Zac Blair (2023).

The Blairs are believed to be the only father-son duo to win both the state amateur and state open in Utah golf history — and possibly in the country, according to Utah Golf Radio host Paul Pugmire and Fairway Media’s Kurt Kragthorpe.

“The Utah Open’s 100th year is a significant moment for golf in Utah,” said Larry H. Miller Company chairman Steve Miller chairman of the board of the Larry H. Miller Company said in a statement. “Few events endure this long, and that history reflects a championship that has mattered to generations across our state. A milestone like this is a fitting moment to admire what came before, and to look ahead to the players and fans who will carry this championship forward.”