Littleton’s Chris Korte excited for home crowd at The Blue Championship | Golf Insider
The Korn Ferry Tour’s annual stop at TPC Colorado in Berthoud gives golfers with Colorado ties a chance to compete on a big stage.
Last year, Westminster’s Connor Jones, who starred at Colorado State, finished in the top 25. The year before, former CU-Boulder star Jeremy Paul finished in a tie for fifth on his way to being promoted to the PGA Tour.
This year, former University of Denver player and Littleton native Chris Korte looks to continue that tradition when The Blue Championship starts July 9 in Berthoud.
When players get a chance to compete in their home state, it means a lot.
“I would say the first one that I ever went to, which actually kind of sparked my interest in golf, was The International at Castle Pines,” Korte said during the Korn Ferry Tour media day. “So seeing what that did for me as a young player and seeing hopefully a lot of young fans who will be coming up to this one and interacting with players.”
Korte played at DU from 2014-17. Before that he was a state champion at Regis Jesuit High School. He has bounced around the mini tours since turning pro in 2018.
On the Korn Ferry Tour this season, the 29-year-old has made five of nine cuts and carved out a second-place finish in February in Argentina. Since that tie for second, Korte has had no better finish than a tie for 40th.
He sits 46th in the Korn Ferry Tour standings. The top 20 get their PGA Tour cards for next season.
“There’s a ton of pressure, first of all, (because) you’re planning for your living. It’s 100% performance-based. So there’s no guaranteed salary,” Korte said. “There’s actually a potential of losing money throughout the year if you’re not really playing your game. So financially, there’s definitely pressure. Earning the PGA Tour card, which, as I mentioned, is the ultimate goal. And that’s why people play the Korn Ferry Tour is to make it to the PGA Tour.”
This will be the third appearance at The Blue Championship for Korte. His previous times, he had to Monday qualify for the event in his home state. He feels he will have plenty of excitement to play in front of friends and family but also knows what to expect.
“I think one of the things that’ll maybe calm me down or help me feel a little bit more prepared is that I have Monday qualified into this event twice,” he said. “I believe it was 2021 was my first time, which was my first Korn Ferry Tour event of my life.
“It’s incredibly exciting to come back to one of my favorite places and be playing for pretty high stakes.”
Another local golfer will be part of the field. Fort Collins’ Dillon Stewart received an exemption last week.
Stewart, 25, is a graduate of Fossil Ridge High School and a former standout at Oklahoma State. Stewart won the 2025 Bromont Open on the PGA Tour Americas Tour. This will be Stewart’s first start at The Blue Championship and 14th start on the Korn Ferry Tour.
“Any time you get to compete close to home, it is special,” Stewart said. “Northern Colorado has played a big role in my development as a golfer. Being able to return and compete at TPC Colorado in front of so many familiar faces means a lot. I am grateful to The Blue Championship and Blue Federal Credit Union for the opportunity.”
Another exemption was given to recent Fairview High School graduate Miles Kuhl. It will be his Korn Ferry Tour debut.
The Blue Championship begins July 9 with tickets available here.
Clark ends June with another high finish
Denver’s Wyndham Clark had quite a June on the golf course.
He won the U.S. Open at Shinnecock Hills, finished in solo third place at The Memorial and in a tie for 11th at the RBC Canadian Open.
And last weekend he had another chance to win at the Travelers Championship, fell just short and finished in a tie for fifth.
His new putter has been a big reason for his recent strong play. On Sunday, he made 105 feet of putts and had just 20 putts total, which is a record for the Travelers Championship.
After winning the U.S. Open, it was expected for Clark to withdraw from the Travelers to get rest before the Open Championship, but the 32-year-old stayed true to his commitment.
“They gave me my first start here, so I feel obligated to do the right thing for Travelers,” Clark said. “Yeah, I just love being here. I also have tons of time (off) coming up after this week and then after the Open Championship, so I’m looking forward to that.”
What they’re saying
“I think as we’ve heard for a while now, getting the best guys together more often is a big thing for fans. I think this system’s going to do that.”
— Patrick Cantlay on the new-look PGA Tour schedule for 2028
Skins game
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Ben Griffin +1500
Chris Gotterup +1600
Jackson Koivun +2200
Keegan Bradley +2200
Keith Mitchell +2200
J.T. Poston +2700
Jacob Bridgeman +2700
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