Jones finishes 16th at Compliance Solutions Championship to earn spot in next week's Korn Ferry Tour event
NORMAN, Okla. — BYU’s Cooper Jones shoots 13-under to finish 16th in his first start on the Korn Ferry Tour on Sunday after receiving an exemption to the Compliance Solutions Championship.
“This week was amazing,” said Jones. “Just to get into my first Korn Ferry event and play well enough the first two days to make the cut was a surreal experience and felt really good. The golf course got harder on the weekend and was a bit of a grind, but I kept myself in it and was able to finish in the top 25 which gets me into next week. I’m driving to Illinois right now to play in next week's event which is really special.”
Jones posted rounds of 66-66-71-72—275 for a 13-under-par total to earn a 15th-place finish in just his first professional start on the Korn Ferry Tour.
The rising sophomore, who is set to serve a mission for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in Peru beginning in September, made 15 birdies in his first two rounds to post back-to-back 6-under 66s and earn a spot on the weekend.
By making the 36-hole cut, Jones joined a select group of active BYU Cougars to play the weekend in a Korn Ferry Tour including Tyson Shelley who took 12th at last year’s Utah Championship and Daniel Summerhays who won the 2007 Nationwide Children's Hospital Invitational as a sophomore. On Saturday, Jones carded three birdies and two bogeys for a 1-under 71 and his third-straight sub-par round to sit in a tie for third entering Sunday’s final round.
“It's pretty cool to be in select company with a guy like Daniel Summerhays who has played on the PGA Tour and competed for major championships,” said Jones.
The Highland, Utah native began his final round with a pair of bogeys before making an eagle on the par-5 fifth hole to return to even par for the day. Jones bogeyed the par-4 ninth hole to turn in a 1-over 37. On the back nine, Jones recorded eight pars and a birdie to post an even-par 72 to finish in a tie for 15th.
With his top-25 finish in Oklahoma, Jones has earned a spot in next week’s Memorial Health Championship presented by LRS at Panther Creek Country Club in Springfield, Illinois on June 27-30.
“Now that I’ve shown myself that I can finish in the top 25, it definitely changes my expectations for next week,” Jones said. “Obviously golf is really hard, so realistically the goal is still to make the cut. However, if I can play well the first two days and make it to the weekend, another top 25 finish would be definitely be the new goal so I can continue riding this wave of making it into the next week’s event.”
Former Cougars Peter Kuest and Daniel Summerhays also teed it up in Oklahoma alongside Jones. Kuest matched the sophomore with a 16th-place finish with rounds of 65-69-69-72—275 for a 13-under total. Summerhays shot 9-under-par to finish in a tie for 43rd with rounds of 67-72-71-69—279. Kuest and Summerhays will also compete in next week's event in Illinois.
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