BERTHOUD – Neal Shipley got his win in Colorado this time.

Shipley shot a final-round 64 to come back from seven shots back to claim the title at The Ascendant presented by Blue at TPC Colorado in Berthoud with an 18-under score. In his other appearance in Colorado, Shipley finished runner-up at the 2023 U.S. Amateur at Cherry Hills Country Club.

“Obviously I feel comfortable out here in Colorado and I love being out here,” Shipley said. “I know how to deal with this elevation and the type of golf that you have out here.”

And Shipley, who played at Cherry Hills last week to get ready for TPC Colorado, dealt with this type of golf just fine.

He started out with three straight birdies before making a par on the fourth hole. After another birdie on the fifth, Shipley eagled the sixth hole and was off and running.

He made one more birdie on the ninth to go out in 29 and vault up the leaderboard.

“I got off to a great start. I hit a great second shot into No. 1, had a really good two-putt. No. 2, just made a nice 20-footer, and then a really good up-and-down on 3 and kind of off to the races, do what we’re supposed to do from there on,” he said. “Hit No. 5 in two and two-putted for birdie, and then on No. 6 got a little bonus with the chip-in.”

After another birdie at the 10th, disaster seemed to strike Shipley. He made a double bogey on the 757-yard par-5, 13th hole that dropped him from the lead. But he was not affected by the tough result.

He responded by making a birdie on the par-3, 14th before going on to get one more at No. 18 to end the day with a “Tiger Woods like” first pump and spot on top of the leaderboard.

“I knew that putt was huge,” he said. “I figured it may give me a chance to win, if not lock up a solo second, and I knew if I could get a solo second, my PGA Tour card would pretty much be locked up, or close to it.

“It was great to dodge those two guys coming in the clubhouse and not have to deal with a playoff.”

Kevin Dougherty and Jorge Fernández Valdés had chances to join Shipley at 18-under. Both players missed birdie putts on No. 18. Fernández Valdés’ putt came about an inch short to putting himself into a playoff with Shipley.

Shipley’s run in the 2023 U.S. Amateur ended in the finals with a loss to two-time PGA Tour winner Nick Dunlap. He had one of the most famous shots of the tournament when he spun back a shot on the 17th hole island green to a few inches in the semifinals for a birdie to advance to the final.

“It’s great memories honestly. It’s cool to relive some of those moments,” Shipley said of preparing for this week’s tournament with his round at Cherry Hills. “I was there with my host from the amateur; they hosted me there. It’s such a cool golf course, a special place, and definitely has a special place in my heart.”

The Ohio State graduate moves to fourth place in the Korn Ferry standings after his second win of the season. He also won the LECOM Suncoast Classic in April to put him on the verge of being on the PGA Tour. Shipley played in the 2024 Masters, where he was paired with Woods, and the 2024 U.S. Open.

“It’s awesome. It’s nice kind of coming in this six-week stretch, I knew 300, 400 more points I’d have a good chance and to do it all in one chunk is awesome,” Shipley said. “Now we have an opportunity coming down the stretch, we’ve got a lot of golf courses that I’ve heard are great for my game.”

Colorado State alum Connor Jones finished his Korn Ferry debut with a 71 on Sunday to finish in a tie for 24th place. His finish was high enough to qualify for the tour’s event next weekend.

After firing 67s on the first two days and holding the lead going into Saturday, Air Force graduate Tom Whitney did not have the weekend he was hoping for. Whitney followed his third-round 74 with a 73 to finish in a tie for 37th at 7-under.