2022 Colorado PGA Assistant Professional Championship

Four-Time Champion, Geoff Keffer, Adds a Fifth to His Record

Thorncreek Golf Course in Thornton, Colorado, played host to the 2022 National Car Rental Colorado PGA Assistant Professional Championship on August 15th and 16th. The top three finishers, and three alternates, in this two-day, 36-hole tournament qualified for the 46th National Car Rental PGA Assistant Professional Championship.


On day one of the two-day Championship, 2021 defending Champion Ben Lanting, PGA, Bear Creek Golf Club, continued his dominant play in Section tournaments. With six birdies, Lanting finished the day with a 2-under-par 70. Tied with Lanting was Andrew Connell, Ridge at Castle Pines North. Connell managed only two bogeys in a round with five birdies, earning him 2-under 70. Another notable round came from Camile Enright, The Club at Ravenna, who won the Colorado PGA Women’s Championship just last week at Vail Golf Club, finishing 1-over for the day. Rounding out the day was Robert Grall, Colorado National Golf Club, finishing the day atop the leaderboard. Grall carded an impressive 4-under 68!

Day two of the Assistant Professional Championship began with a dramatic start. With only two groups having the chance to tee off, a thunderstorm rolled in with heavy rain and lightning in the area. A stoppage of play was called, and we were under a delay for roughly two hours. Once the bulk of the storm passed, a modified shotgun with tee times for the four leading groups went off at 10:30 am, starting on hole 10.


In a very competitive and close round, the winner couldn’t be identified early in the day. Some impressive rounds came from Behrod Keshtavar, Justin Carlock, and Jeff Carter. From Meadow Hills GC, Carter carded a 68 for day two following his T7 day one finish. His two-day score of 143 landed him a playoff spot for the final alternate position along with Lanting and Christopher Hyten, Castle Pines GC. Lanting won the 3-way playoff to earn that final alternate position! Carlock, RainDance National, finished the tournament 2-under solo fifth, earning himself the second alternate spot. Following his day one 71, Keshtavar, Todd Creek GC, stayed competitive in round two. Finishing tied at 3-under with Grall, the two headed to a playoff to battle for the final qualifying spot. Keshtavar pulled ahead, claiming the third and final qualifying spot!


Connell and Geoff Keffer, Lakewood CC, stayed neck and neck for most of the tournament. Keffer’s round one landed him T2 with Connell after 18, both carding 2-under 70’s. Playing similarly to day one, Connell carded five birdies and only two bogeys in search of the Championship title. The two stayed tied at 6-under for most of the round. It wasn’t until the last few holes that Keffer pulled ahead; Connell finished with a 3-under 69, 139 two-day total. Paired with Keffer’s day-one 1-under, his remarkable day-two 5-under 67 earned him his fifth Colorado PGA Assistant Professional Championship title! Reflecting on his fifth Championship win, the current record, Keffer jokes, “Just means I’m old! I’ve been in the same job for a long time. Ben [Lanting] was making a run at my record, so I had to put that a little further out”. Keffer also shared that his putting and “taking care of the par fives' ' made all the difference today; “yesterday, I didn’t make a single putt. So seeing a couple go in early made all the difference today”.

Final Results Photo Gallery

Thank you to the PGA Team at Thorncreek GC, including Head Professional Ryan Bakken, PGA, superintendent Doug Fisher, and their staff. We thank our national presenting partner, National Car Rental, and our supporting partners, the PGA Tour, John Deere, and Srixon/Cleveland/XXIO, for their support and continued partnership with this Championship.


The Top-4 qualifiers from this championship qualified for the 46th National Car Rental Assistant PGA Professional Championship, set to be played on November 17th-20th in PGA Golf Club (Wanamaker Course) in Port St. Lucie, Florida.

Qualifiers, in order:

1. Geoff Keffer, Lakewood CC: 71-67–138

2. Andrew Connell, Ridge at Castle Pines North: 70-69–139

T3. Behrod Keshtavar, Todd Creek GC: 71-70–141


Alternates, in order:

T3. Robert Grall, Colorado National GC: 68-73–141

5. Justin Carlock, RainDance National Golf Resort: 72-70–142

T6. Ben Lanting, Bear Creek GC: 70-73–143

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Chris Kennedy, of Murphy Creek Golf Course, Captures West Chapter Championship of First Playoff Hole

By Steven Bartowski • October 1, 2025
Vail, Colo. - September 30, 2025 - In a thrilling conclusion to this year's Colorado PGA West Chapter Championship, Chris Kennedy of Murphy Creek Golf Course emerged victorious after a tightly contested battle that needed to be settled via a sudden-death playoff. Kennedy posted rounds of 68 and 71 to finish at 1-under-par (139), securing the win on the first playoff hole over Justin Carlock of Eaton Country Club, who matched the same two-day total after a brilliant second round of 4-under-par 66, the lowest round of the tournament. Carlock’s charge up the leaderboard showcased clutch shot-making and nerves of steel, but Kennedy’s consistent play across both days proved enough to edge out the win. “Today is my Dad’s birthday, and he passed away 2 years ago, so to win this championship today makes it extra special,” Kennedy said. Kennedy’s final round consisted of three birdies and four bogies to finish at 1-under-par for the 36 holes and dead even with Carlock. Finishing in a tie for third were John Gorell, Associate Professional, and Chris Johnson, PGA, General Manager, both from The Country Club of Woodmoor, who both finished at even par for the 36 holes. Johnson was the 2010 West Chapter Champion. Finishing in solo fifth place was 2025 Section Champion, Geoff Keffer, PGA Assistant Professional at Lakewood Country Club, after firing rounds of 71-70 for a two-day total of 1-over-par. Capturing victory in the Senior Division was PGA General Manager Chris Johnson. Johnson fired rounds of 68-72 to post an even par total and a five-shot victory. A huge thanks to all of our partners for the West Chapter Championship. Tom Bauerle, Drew Hunter, and Reed Tomlinson of Colorado Golf & Turf and Club Car, Chris Garton and Jake Coldirons of Creative Travel Brands, Ryan Helin of 2nd Swing Golf, Chase and Derby McGee of Links & Peaks, Kevin Neff of Sterling Cut Glass, Dylan Toups and Jeff Wood of Perry Weather and Lara Burchfield of CMC Designs for their support of this championship and the Colorado PGA West Chapter. Last but certainly not least is our fantastic host facility, Vail Golf Club, and its dedicated staff. PGA Director of Golf, Trey Johnson, PGA Head Golf Professional, Andrew Villescas, Golf Course Superintendents Andy Beske, and Dan McFadden, and their entire grounds staff for having the course in peak championship condition for the entire tournament. Colorado PGA West Chapter Championship Final Leaderboard 1. Chris Kennedy (Murphy Creek Golf Course) —68-71—-139 (-1) 2. Justin Carlock (Lakewood Country Club) —73-66—139 (-1) T3. John Gorell (Country Club at Woodmoor) —71-69—140 (E) T3. Chris Johnson, PGA (Country Club at Woodmoor) —68-72—140 (E) 5. Geoff Keffer, PGA (Lakewood Country Club) —71-70—141 (+1) 6. Ben Lanting, PGA (Bear Creek Golf Club) —70-73—143 (+3) 7. Glen-Michael Mihavetz (Red Sky Golf Club) —72-72—144 (+4) T8. Kirk Trowbridge, PGA (MetaGolf Learning Center) —74-71—145 (+5) T8. Mike Weingartner, PGA (Colorado Golf Academy) —73-72—145 (+5) T8. Shaun Wright, PGA (Red Sky Golf Club) —72-73—145 (+5) T8. Doug Rohrbaugh, PGA (River Valley Ranch Golf Course) —71-74—145 (+5)

Geoff Keffer, PGA, of Lakewood Country Club Fires Final Round 66 to Capture His Third Colorado PGA Professional Championship Title of His Career

By Scott Minta • September 18, 2025
Seven Others Qualify to Join Keffer at Bandon Dunes Next April at the 2026 PGA Professional National Championship Colorado Springs, CO, September 17, 2025 - The final round of the 68th Colorado PGA Professional Championship was pushed back two hours from the scheduled 7:30 am start time due to the second round not being completed the night before. The second round resumed at 7:30 am on Wednesday morning and concluded at 8:35 pm. The cut was made at +9, and final round tee times were off and running at 9:30 am, with the leaders teeing off at 11:00 am. That final group included two-time Colorado PGA Professional Champion Geoff Keffer, PGA Assistant Professional at Lakewood Country Club. Keffer began the day with a one-shot lead and was determined to hoist the Ralph “Rip” Arnold Memorial Award Trophy for a third time. After birdies on one and four and an eagle on five, Keffer had jumped to 11-under-par and held a five-shot lead over his closest competitor. Keffer had seven pars, two birdies, and two bogies over his next 11 holes. “Knowing where I was at, just tried to make low stress pars the whole way,” Keffer said. Then, after low-stress golf over the last 11-hole stretch, Keffer stood on the 17th tee with the golf tournament pretty much won. He could very easily lay up and secure his par, which he did the exact opposite of. Knocking a mini driver on the green to 30 feet and rolling in the eagle putt to jump to 13-under-par. “Getting that one to go in on 17 was just a bonus,” Keffer stated. After a par at the last, Keffer posted a final round 66 and an eight-shot victory in a truly dominant wire-to-wire finish. Keffer captures his first section championship triumph since he won the trophy back in 2020 at Valley Country Club. “We have so many great players in this section that anytime I can be around the top, it is always great,” Keffer said. This win is Keffer’s seventh for the Colorado PGA tournament season, and extends his lead atop the Dow Finsterwald Player of the Year List to 1,548 points with only the Pro-Assistant, Masek Match Play Finals, and the West Chapter Championship left on the 2025 Colorado PGA tournament calendar. Keffer’s win qualifies him for the 2026 PGA Professional Championship, his seventh consecutive PPC. Along with Keffer, seven others will join him at Bandon Dunes Golf Resort on April 26-29, 2026. Finishing in a four-way tie for second place, with a 54-hole total of 211, 5-under-par, were Henry Bernard, PGA Assistant Professional at TPC Colorado; Matt Schalk, PGA General Manager at Colorado National Golf Club; Caine Fitzgerald, PGA Head Professional at Meadow Hills Golf Course, and Ben Lanting, PGA Assistant Professional at Bear Creek Golf Club. Joining those five at Bandon Dunes next April will be solo sixth finisher and four-time section champion, Micah Rudosky, PGA Head Professional at Conquistador Golf Course, who fired rounds of 71-69-72 for a three-day total of 212, 5-under-par. A huge thanks to all of our partners of the Colorado PGA Professional Championship. Tom Bauerle, Drew Hunter, and Reed Tomlinson of Colorado Golf & Turf and Club Car, Chris McCallum of Titleist, and Anthony Gabriel of Footjoy, Steven Vigil of Nike Golf, Shaun Haberstroh, Chris Brown, Sam Marley, and Chris Kurth of Taylormade Golf, and Mike Marsilli and Marcus Gregory of Callaway Golf. To our local partners, Chase & Derby McGee of Links & Peaks, Dr. Little of The Golf Clinic, Erin Bates of Liquid Death, Taylor Erkman of Strackaline, Samantha Masciarelli of 1st and 10th tee bars, Zach Ledvina of Maui Jim, and Kelly Jobe of Sterling Cut Glass, for their support of this championship and the Colorado PGA. Last but certainly not least is our fantastic host facility, Flying Horse North, and its dedicated staff. PGA General Manager, Glenn Wallace, PGA Director of Golf, Jacob O’Dell, PGA Head Golf Professional, Mack Borowicz, and Golf Course Superintendent, John Doncilovich, and his entire grounds staff for having the golf course in peak championship condition for the entire week. In the solo seventh position was Chris Hyten, PGA Assistant Professional at Castle Pines Golf Club. Hyten shot rounds of 71-67-75 for a three-day total of 213, 4-under-par. Hyten qualified for his fourth PGA Professional Championship and first since 2022 at Todd Creek. The eighth and final qualifier for Bandon Dunes is Bill Hancock, PGA Assistant Professional at Meadow Hills Golf Course. Hancock defeated Dan Sniffin in a one-hole playoff after making a birdie on the par-5 5th hole. Hancock fired a final round of 75 after rounds of 71 and 68 on days one and two.