Globetrotting Knutzon Comes by Nomadic Golf Lifestyle Naturally

Jason Knutzon is all smiles after capturing the Asian Tour’s 2007 Motorola International Bintan event in Indonesia.

Chances are, if any given country has hosted a professional golf tournament, Jason Knutzon has probably teed it up there.

After all, the former Iowa State Cyclone star figures he has played professional golf tournaments in nearly 40 different countries, logging more than 1.8 million miles through the air to get there.

Now headquartered out of Altoona, IA., the 49-year-old Knutzon sat down with “Up and Down the Iowa Golf Scene” recently to reflect upon a remarkable golf career that has taken him to all levels of the game and all parts of the globe, including Russia and China. A handful of American pros compete internationally in select DP World Tour (formerly known as the European Tour) and Asian Tour events. Fewer yet choose to make a career like Knutzon did for a 15-year span (2003-2018).

And play he did, Knutzon may arguably have been one of the highest ranking, least known Americans out there, ascending to a World Golf Ranking of 254th and spending the majority of his career ranked somewhere between the 400th and 500th best player in the world.

“Not many American players go down this path, and I certainly have no regrets,” Knutzon remarked. “I’ve made a good living, got to experience so many different cultures, traveled to so many countries and developed friendships with so many notable international players, including major champions.”

Following standout collegiate and amateur careers, Knutzon turned professional in 1999 and played various mini tours, including The Dakotas Tour, a summer circuit based primarily in South and North Dakota. He later advanced through PGA Tour qualifying school far enough to earn status on the 2001 Buy.Com Tour, now known as the Korn Ferry Tour. In his first event, the Buy.Com Louisiana Open, Knutzon registered a tie for 10th and appeared to be on his way. Instead, he struggled for the rest of the season, making seven cuts in 19 events and won $27,299 in earnings to finish 118th on the money list, ultimately losing his card.

Knutzon had reached a crossroads early in his pro golf career.

“I actually gave some thought to quitting the professional game to become a pilot, like my father, who was a Lt. Colonel in the Air Force and flew F16’s for a living,” he said. “I didn’t want to grind it out on the mini tours but still loved to play. I went over to Asia because the purses were competitive, and it was a pathway to a major (European) tour.”

He advanced through the Asian Tour qualifying school and became eligible for the 2003 season

What followed was a highly successful international playing career. Knutzon spent 15 consecutive seasons on the Asian Tour, finishing high enough on the Order of Merit to retain playing privileges. The pinnacle of his career came with victories in the 2004 Macau Open in China and the 2007 Motorola International event in Indonesia. He defeated none other than three-time major champion Padraig Harrington by three shots in China, firing a 16-under-par 268. In all, Knutzon had 226 starts on the Asian Tour, charted 21 top ten finishes along with his two victories and registered more than $1.7 million in earnings. In 2014, he finished 14th on the Order of Merit and had a career-high $209,121 in winnings.

“I had some early success on the Asian Tour and was able to pick my starts, playing 15-20 weeks per season and allowing me to spend more time at home in the states,” he said.

The Asian Tour schedule led Knutzon to places like Malaysia, Indonesia, Qatar, Thailand, Myanmar, Korea, Singapore, Philippines, India, Hong Kong, Vietnam, United Arab Emirates and more. Among the many adjustments of international golf include the rugged travel and the food.

“The first few years I really struggled with the food,” he said. “I kept ordering the American club sandwich and the spaghetti Bolognese. I quickly learned the native dishes were rather good after all.”

There were other challenges. Aside from the occasional poisonous snake or wild animal meandering across the fairway, Knutzon also witnessed the group ahead of him being attacked by a swarm of hornets, suspending play and forcing the players to disrobe and head for the nearest water hazard to seek relief.

“My journey’s been a wild one, to say the least,” he said.

Knutzon found time to play a handful of events on the European Tour (now DP World Tour) from 2003-2010 and then a regular schedule from 2011-2016, emerging through qualifying school three times. In all, he played in 138 European Tour events, making 77 cuts and charting six top ten finishes. He earned $532,905 in euros with his top finish being a tie for fourth in the 2015 True Thailand Classic, finishing ahead of current PGA Champions Tour star Migel Angel Jimenez by a shot.

Former Iowa State linkster Jason Knutzon played the Asian Tour for 15 years. In his second season in tour, he captured the 2004 Macau Open in China, defeating Paidraig Harrington, among others.

He’s played with major champions like Ernie Els, Cameron Smith, John Daly, Fred Couples, Ian Woosnam, YE Yang and Steve Elkington and current international players Thongchai Jaidee, Richard Green and Ricardo Gonzalez, who are now making a name for themselves on the PGA Tour Champions. He competed collegiately and on the Iowa golf circuit with Zach Johnson, and the two have remained good friends.

In addition to competing in more than 350 Asian Tour and DP World Tour events, Knutzon has other significant golf achievements. He qualified for the 2003 US Open contested at Olympia Fields and the 2011 Open Championship at Royal St. George’s Golf Club. He also played two PGA Tour events late in the 2014 season, the CIMB Classic in Malaysia and the World Golf Championship HSBC event in Shanghai.

“It would have been easier playing stateside, competing on the PGA or Korn Ferry Tours,” Knutzon remarked. “But when you are playing tournament golf, you are away from home, whether across the world or across a few states. I never spent any off weeks on the road, always flying back home to be with family.”

Knutzon and his wife, Rustina, and two children Landon and Libby, now 16 and 13 respectively, would occasionally join him in Europe.

Born in Lubbock, TX., into a military family, being on the go was par for the course growing up as Knutzon says “we moved every couple of years.” His father Kip served the U.S. Air Force as an F16 pilot and was stationed state-side and internationally. Prior to his senior year, Knutzon moved from Virginia to live with his grandparents in Eagle Grove, IA.

There, he caught the attention of former Iowa State golf coach Dale Anderson and played four successful seasons for the Cyclones, posting 18 top ten finishes, and setting the school’s single season stroke average as a senior, a record that stood for 11 years. He dominated the 1998 Iowa Golf Association schedule by capturing titles at Fort Dodge Amateur, Iowa Masters, and Northwest Amateur.

Today, Knutzon operates the Golf Barn in rural Altoona, a multi-purpose facility equipped with a golf simulator, putting green and the latest swing technology to assist players of all levels, ages, and abilities. Although he has not competed much over the past five years, the fires still burn. In 2023, Knutzon received a former champion exemption into the Asian Tour’s SJM Macao Open, where at age 47 he fired a 17-under par 267 and tied for sixth.

He’s a year away from being eligible for the PGA Tour Champions. To earn status, he’ll have to gain entry through the qualifying school or advance through various Monday qualifiers. His advice for younger players?

“The farther you advance in the game, the more you have to treat it like a business,” Knutzon said. “You have to develop a game where you can hit the ball on the button, on the number, repetitively and with control. When you’re under pressure, swing mechanics and fundamentals have to take over. At the same time, have the inner confidence to love the game, smile and just go play.”

Now living in rural Altoona, Knutzon operates The Golf Barn where he gives lessons and analysis of golf swings for beginners, high school and college players and adults alike. His competitive fires still burn, and Knutzon looks forward to playing opportunities on the PGA Tour Champions in 2026, when he reaches 50 years of age.

“Up and Down” the Iowa Golf Scene

A regular feature column written by IGA Foundation board member Mark Gambaiana, Up and Down the Iowa Golf Scene is designed to take the reader beyond the headlines and scoreboards to share stories of those who help make Iowa golf so rich and rewarding. Profiles will spotlight those who advance the game through volunteerism, service, extraordinary achievement, competition, human interest and the many other dimensions of golf in Iowa.

Click the links below to read previous Up and Down features
– IGA Rules Official Sean Flanders
– R&A, USGA Champion Gene Elliott
– Nervig Reflects on Decades of Service to The Iowa Masters
– Arseneault Finds Fulfillment in Life’s Next Chapter After Competitive Golf
– Ivan Miller remembers the days of the Minnows
– Kinney adjusts to life on tour
– Standard Golf’s roots run deep
– Pettersen sets sights high
– McCoy, Norton Put Iowa Stamp on Florida Senior Golf
– Moreland Reflects on his Extraordinary Club Pro, Playing Career
– From Sibley to the LPGA Tour – Barb Thomas Whitehead Fulfills Her Dream
– At 88 Years Young, Cleo Brown Remains a Fixture at the Principal Charity Classic, IGA Events
– Love of the Game, Service to Others Propel Charlie Taylor to IGA’s 2023 George Turner Award
– The Calling Card for Ottumwa’s Matthew Walker in Quest to Reach Golf’s Highest Level
– Following the Rules Leads Katelynn Hogenson Down a Path Through Magnolia Lane
– State Golf Champions Gather, Reminisce, 50 Years after Surprise Title
– High-Level Competition, Boatwright Internship Preps Hoffman for Career in Golf

The Iowa Golf Hall of Fame will add four members in 2025, bringing the total number in the Hall of Fame to 105. Those four include Nate Dunn, Whitey Barnard, Jeff Schmid and Tom Verrips. Read more about each inductee below.

Nate Dunn

Nate Dunn’s golf career is a tale of quality, not quantity.

He doesn’t play in as many Iowa Golf Association-sponsored events as many others, but he’s still found the kind of success that has earned him a spot in the Iowa Golf Hall of Fame’s Class of 2025.

“When he does play, you know he’s going to be on the leaderboard,” Iowa Golf Hall of Famer Gene Elliott said. “He raises his game when it counts.”

Dunn is one of 11 players to win the prestigious Iowa Amateur at least three times. He also won an Iowa Amateur Match-Play crown, an Iowa Junior Amateur and was the IGA Player of the Year in 2007.

“Those tournaments are how you gauge yourself against the best,” Elliott said. “Nate’s very deserving of the Iowa Golf Hall of Fame.”

Dunn joined Jon Brown and Jerry Smith as the only players to win an Iowa Amateur and Iowa Match-Play Championship in the same season (2014). He also won the Iowa Amateur in 2004 and 2016.

He’s qualified for eight United States Golf Association championships, including three U.S. Amateurs (2002, 2007, 2011). He qualified for match play at the 2005 U.S. Mid-Amateur, reaching the round of 32.

He teamed up with Justin Schulte to win the 2019 IGA Four-Ball at Bos Landen. Dunn also won the Lake Creek Amateur in 1997, the Riverboat Days Amateur in 2007 and 2019 and has captured the Amateur Division of the Cedar Rapids Open multiple times.

A 1994 graduate of West Delaware High School, Nate was named president and CEO of Farmers & Merchants Bank in 2018. He is the third member of his family to lead the regional financial institution.

Dunn’s first big victory came in the summer of 1993, when he won the Iowa Junior Amateur at Jester Park. He was a runner-up medalist to Ben Pettitt of Carroll at the State Class 3A high school championship in 1994.

Dunn played his college golf at Cal State-Stanislaus for legendary coach Jim Hanny. He played in three NCAA championships for the Warriors, was an honorable mention all-American in 1997 and a second-team selection in 1998, when he won the Pacific Coast Intercollegiate and was named the school’s Athlete of the Year. Dunn was enshrined in the Warrior Athletics Hall of Fame in 2011.

Dunn stayed in Florida and took a shot at professional golf, but regained his amateur status in 2002. He was 28 years old when he won his first Iowa Amateur title at Crow Valley Golf Club in Bettendorf in 2004, finishing a shot in front of the threesome of Brady Schnell, Jon Brown and Luke Miller.

After missing the entire 2013 season following back surgery to repair a herniated disc, Dunn played in just two events in 2014. He won the Iowa Amateur Match-Play Championship at Amana Colonies golf course, and added the Iowa Amateur at Finkbine in Iowa City.

Dunn got off to a dream start at Finkbine, starting his first round birdie-birdie-eagle-birdie and posting a 7-under 29 on the front nine. He went on to beat George Qian of Bettendorf on the second hole of a sudden-death playoff.

His third title came at Sunnyside Country Club in Waterloo in 2016, edging Broc Everett and Cody Holck by a shot.

That victory put Dunn in some exclusive company, joining Henry Ferguson, Bill Sheehan, Art Bartlett, Rudy Knepper, Bob McKee, Denmar Miller, John Jacobs, Bob Leahy, Mike McCoy and Gene Elliott as the only players to win Iowa’s most prized amateur title at least three times.

Whitey Barnard

Franklin “Whitey’ Barnard’s history with golf covers a lot of ground. And a lot of achievements. The latest comes as a member of the Iowa Golf Hall of Fame’s Class of 2025.

Barnard was a good player. He was captain of the Davenport High School golf team in 1939. One of his teammates was future U.S. Open champion Jack Fleck. Barnard played in the Iowa Amateur t0 times, reaching the quarterfinals in 1953.

He also spent eight years on the IGA’s Board of Directors, and was the association’s president in 1955. That same year, Fleck outdueled Ben Hogan in a playoff to win the U.S. Open at the Olympic Club.

Barnard was also a master at promoting the game of golf. He played an unmistakable role in the arrival, and later survival, of the PGA Tour in the Quad Cities. Barnard was the chairman of the first Quad-Cities Open, played as a PGA Tour satellite event in 1971. It became a full-fledged tour stop in 1972 and now carries on annually as the John Deere Classic.

“I tell you with confidence that no man was more influential in this event’s inception than Whitey Barnard,” said Craig DeVrieze, author of “Magic Happened: Celebrating 50 Years of the John Deere Classic.”

Barnard had envisioned the PGA Tour coming to the Quad Cities as far back as 1936, when he and Fleck worked as caddies at the Western Open held the Davenport Country Club. Barnard, 13 years old at the time, earned a total of $20 that week to caddy for Tommy Armour.

Barnard worked behind the scenes to bring the Western Open back to the Davenport Country Club in 1951, one of many things he would do to promote the game he loved. A travel agent by trade, he was a member of the Davenport Park Board when that group approved the building of the Emeis public course in 1962. As president of that board, Whitey hired Bob Fry as the golf professional in 1965.

Fry, a member of the Iowa Golf Hall of Fame, joined Barnard and others to chase the dream of bringing the tour to the Quad Cities. They were also instrumental in the building of Crow Valley Golf Club, which hosted the tour event for the first four years and remains one of Iowa’s greatest courses.

Barnard was the co-chairman of the Quad Cities event from 1972 to 1974, and even dug into his own pocket to keep the event above water.

“The fascinating history of the event includes numerous moments when its future was dire, even desperate,” DeVries wrote. “But with the support and commitment of Quad Citians who echoed the dedication to community first exemplified by Whitey Barnard and friends, it persevered, overcame and grew. Whitey remained a friend of the tournament for the remainder of his life.”

Barnard received the Bob Fry Award, presented annually in recognition for contributions to golf in the Quad Cities, in 1995.

Mr. Barnard was 79 when he passed away in 2000. But his legacy lives to this day.

“He was instrumental in just about every phase of golf in the Quad Cities,” Iowa Golf Hall of Fame member Jim Hasley said when Barnard passed away. “His fingerprints are on just about everything.”

Jeff Schmid

Jeff Schmid has seen the world through a golfing lens, putting together a resume that has earned him a spot in the Iowa Golf Hall of Fame’s Class of 2025.

Schmid started winning in the late 1980s as an all-Big Ten player and two-time captain at the University of Iowa. Now a teaching pro at Brown Deer in Coralville, he continues to win in a career nearly four decades long. Most recently, he was the 2024 Iowa Section PGA Senior Player of the Year.

“His playing record continues to culminate at a very high level,” said Iowa Golf Hall of Fame member Jeff Smith.

Schmid won six times as a collegian at Iowa. His best season came in 1988-89. Schmid won two individual titles, was sixth at the Big Ten Championships and was named all-Big Ten for a second straight season.

In the summer of 1990, after his college career had ended, the Cedar Rapids native captured the Iowa Amateur Match-Play title at the Carroll Country Club.

Schmid’s professional career included stops on the Asian Tour (1993-96), the South American Tour (1993-99) and the Canadian Tour (1996-97). He also played on the Hooters Tour, Dakotas Tour and Golden Bear Tour. He won three times on the Golden Bear Tour and took home a pair of North Dakota Open crowns. He also won the 2002 Arrowhead Pro-Am and the 2003 Hillcrest Invitational on the Dakotas Tour. He won the Dakotas Tour Order of Merit in both 1996 and 1997.

Schmid also returned to his home state and won the Waterloo Open back-to-back (1996-97) . He also took home the 2000 Iowa Open at the Irv Warren course in Waterloo.

He left the state and won a pair of Gateway Section Championships in 2013 and 2016.He moved back to Iowa City later in 2016 and spent two seasons as an assistant golf coach at Iowa.

He qualified for the 2019 PGA Championship at Bethpage Black. He’s also played three times on the PGA Tour (2000 Western Open, 2000 John Deere Classic, 2001 Greater Milwaukee Open).

A week after that 2019 PGA Championship, Schmid made his first appearance in the KitchenAid Senior PGA Championship. He also qualified for that event in 2020, 2021 (canceled because of COVID), 2023 and 2024. Schmid tied for 63rd in 2023 and had strongest showing when he tied for 27th after rounds of 66-71-70-73 (3 under par) in 2024.

Schmid also turned in an impressive showing at the 2022 at the U.S. Senior Open, played at Saucon Valley Country Club in Bethlehem, Pa. He tied for 33rd after rounds of 75-70-73-73.

In 2020, Schmid pulled off a rare double. He won both the Iowa Section PGA Match-Play and Senior Match-Play championships. During his career, he also won the Iowa Section PGA and Iowa Open Senior title in 2021; and two more Iowa Open Senior titles in 2022 and 2024.

“The thing that impresses me the most about Jeff is that he is still competing at a very high level,” said Iowa Golf Hall of Famer Ken Schall. “He made the cut at the U.S. Senior Open in 2022 and the Senior PGA in 2023 and 2024 against the world’s best senior players, all while maintaining his position as Teaching Professional at Brown Deer. At Iowa PGA events Jeff is always at the top of the leaderboard.”

Tom Verrips

When Doug Snook came to the Sheldon Country Club as the pro and superintendent in 1974, one of the first people he hired was Tom Verrips.

“It didn’t take me long to realize that this farm kid had skills,” Snook reflected.

Those skills were put to use for more than four decades. And now Verrips will be joining Snook in the Iowa Golf Hall of Fame.

After stops at Sheldon, Sunnyside Country Club in Waterloo (1975-1977) and Hampton Country Club (1977-1984), Verrips took the job at Otter Creek in Ankeny in 1984 and was there until he retired in 2014. His time at Otter Creek included a complete makeover of the facility in 2008 – a new 18-hole layout, clubhouse and driving range.

Verrips worked side-by-side on the Otter Creek rebuild with golf course architect Paul W. Miller.

“I have had the pleasure of working with Tom on multiple golf course improvement projects for the City of Ankeny,” Miller said. “During almost 25 years of working together I found Tom to be the consummate professional who contributed greatly to the game of golf in Iowa.”

Otter Creek was named the Iowa Golf Association’s 2016 18-hole course of the year.

“Tom’s dedication to the profession showed not only for the outstanding job he did at Otter Creek, transforming it into one of the top public courses, but also his involvement in the Iowa Golf Course Superintendents Association,” Snook said.

Verrips has served the Iowa Golf Course Superintendents Association in a variety of ways. He was named Iowa GCSA Superintendent of the Year in 2004, and received that organization’s Distinguished Service Award in 2003. The Iowa Turfgrass Institute presented Tom with their Meritorious Service Award in 2017.

Verrips also served two tours of duty on the Iowa GCSA board of directors, and was the president in 1998. He was a GCSAA chapter delegate for five years, was on the USGA Green Section Committee for five years and served the lowa Turfgrass Institute for 13 years including a stint as president in 2006.

“I had the honor to serve with Tom on some of these boards, and the biggest thing that stood out to me is he was never a “yes man,” said Rick Tegtmeier, retired director of grounds at the Des Moines Golf and Country Club and a member of the Iowa Golf Hall of Fame. “Tom always voted his mind and the integrity he stood for. He never wavered even if it was against the status quo. Tom’s leadership and contributions are well documented by the awards he has received over the years from various organizations.”

During his career, Verrips was always quick to help a fellow superintendent deal with any challenge that popped up.

“He was always the calming, reassuring voice that I needed,” said John Ausen, the retired superintendent at Hyperion Field Club in Johnston and another Iowa Golf Hall of Fame member.

Ausen added, “Small organizations such as the Iowa Golf Course Superintendents Association cannot be successful without the help of members like Tom Verrips. When you step on an Iowa golf course you probably won’t think of Tom. But at some point, Tom was involved in a decision that made the golf course better.”

The Iowa Golf Association is thrilled to welcome these four new members to the Iowa Golf Hall of Fame and will host a ceremony honoring those individuals this year with details to still be determined for that event.