It was just two weeks ago that Brandt Jobe lost his fully-exempt status on the PGA Tour. The Colorado Golf Hall of Famer failed to make enough money in his first 10 tournaments of the year to meet the terms of his medical extension from the Tour.
But what the former Coloradan did on Monday no doubt eased the sting. Jobe qualified for his 13th U.S. Open — and just his second since 2008 — by tying for sixth place in the 36-hole Sectional Qualifying tournament in Columbus, Ohio.
Fifteen players out of a field of 120 advanced from that Sectional to next week’s U.S. Open, and Jobe avoided an 11-man playoff by one stroke. He shot rounds of 68-67 for a 9-under-par 135 total. Charley Hoffman was the medalist at 133 in a Sectional that featured many PGA Tour players.
Jobe (pictured) came to the qualifier a day after finishing 41st in the nearby Memorial Tournament. Though Jobe no longer is fully exempt on the Tour, he does have veteran members’ status and can receive sponsor exemptions.
Jobe, a 47-year-old who now lives in Argyle, Texas, was a Colorado resident from 1970 to ’99. As an amateur, he won three CGA Match Play titles and one Stroke Play. After turning pro, the Kent Denver High School alum claimed the title at the 1992 Colorado Open, and he won a dozen international championships, mostly in Asia. Though he’s never earned a PGA Tour title, he’s placed second four times and third twice. One of his runner-up showings came at the 2005 International in Castle Rock.
Jobe, who finished 18th in the 2008 U.S. Open, is one of 57 players who advanced through 11 Sectional Qualifying tournaments on Monday to earn berths in the U.S. Open, which will be played June 13-16 at Merion Golf Club in Ardmore, Pa.
A total of 24 players with strong Colorado ties — out of more than 800 overall — competed on Monday. The Sectionals are the second stage of U.S. Open qualifying. All told, 9,860 players entered this year’s Open.
Joining Jobe in earning a U.S. Open berth on Monday was onetime Golden resident Andrew Svoboda, who survived a playoff in the Sectional Qualifying in Memphis, Tenn. Svoboda, a PGA Tour rookie this year, will be going to his fourth U.S. Open, having missed the cut in 2006 and 2009, and placing 71st in 2008.
Svoboda carded rounds of 66-73 for a 4-under-par 139 total, which landed him in a three-man playoff for the final two U.S. Open berths available in Memphis. There, at Colonial Country Club, he and Australian Alistair Presnell prevailed over Scott Stallings.
In addition, Wil Collins of Albuquerque, N.M., the 2005 HealthOne Colorado Open champion, was the medalist at the Sectional Qualifying in Cle Elum, Wash., where two players punched their tickets to the U.S. Open. He shot rounds of 70-68 for a 2-under-par 138 total. Collins, a former PGA Tour player, will be competing in his second U.S. Open, having missed the cut in 2005.
Here’s how all the local players fared in Monday’s Sectional Qualifying (a-indicates amateur):
Columbus, Ohio (120 players for 15 spots) — 6. Colorado Golf Hall of Famer Brandt Jobe 68-67–135; 106. Dustin Mills of Arvada 82-75–157; 119. Kent Denver High School graduate Kevin Stadler 74-WD.
Memphis, Tenn. (112 players for 9 spots) — 8. Onetime Golden resident Andrew Svoboda 66-73–139; 45. David Duval of Cherry Hills Village 71-75–146; 45. Derek Tolan of Highlands Ranch 73-73–146; 75. Former Fort Collins resident Riley Arp 79-74–153.
Rockville, Md. (122 players for 8 spots) — 32. Mark Hubbard of Denver 71-69–140.
St. Louis, Mo. (42 players for 2 spots) — 8. Former UNC golfer Stephen Bidne 72-75–147; 15. Former CU golfer Justin Bardgett 75-75–150; 27. Former CU golfer Tom Kalinowski 81-74–155.
Dallas (68 players for 4 spots) — 22. a-Air Force Academy golfer Kyle Westmoreland 69-73–142; 26. Barry Milstead of Castle Rock 74-69–143; 41. a-Wyndham Clark of Greenwood Village 71-75–146.
Newport Beach, Calif. (102 players for 5 spots) — 14. Jim Knous of Basalt 68-74–142; 59. a-Michael Harrington of Colorado Springs 77-73–150; 59. Former Arvada resident Tony Aguilar 77-73–150; 77. a-Steve Irwin of Arvada 81-72–153; 77. Jason Preeo of Highlands Ranch 73-80–153; 82. a-Drew Trujillo of Boulder 80-74–154; 98. a-CSU golfer Brett Wilson 80-81–161; 102. Former DU golfer Daniel Wax 76-WD.
Cle Elum, Wash. (34 players for 2 spots) — 15. a-CU golfer Kraig McLeod 73-78–151; 24. Former Colorado Springs resident Tom Glissmeyer 71-84–155.
Springfield, Ohio (39 players for 2 spots) — no local players.
Purchase, N.Y. (79 players for 4 spots) — no local players.
Ball Ground, Ga. (51 players for 3 spots) — no local players.
Bradenton, Fla. (56 players for 3 spots) — no local players.
