Author: iowagolf

McCoy Takes One-Shot Lead Into Final Round of 41st Iowa Mid-Amateur

October 8, 20260 commentsChampionships, Iowa Mid-Am

The stage is set for a compelling finish at the 41st Iowa Mid-Amateur Championship at Veenker Memorial Golf Course, where defending champion Nate McCoy (above) battled through a demanding second round to take the outright lead at 1-over par.

McCoy carded a 2-over-par 73 on Thursday and sits at 1-over 143 for the championship, holding a one-shot advantage over Trent Lindenman, Grant Smith and Brian Wynia, who are all within striking distance heading into the final round.

A two-time Iowa Mid-Amateur Champion and four-time Iowa Masters winner, McCoy knows what it takes to find success at Veenker, having captured multiple titles at the course that hosts the Iowa Masters each summer. With another championship within reach, the experienced contender will look to draw on that history as he pursues another Iowa Mid-Amateur title.

“Veenker is one of the most demanding courses we get to play in Iowa. It played hard today despite near perfect weather. I’m excited to have another crack at it tomorrow. Hopefully I can actually roll a couple pots in,” McCoy said following his round.

Lindenman made a move with a 1-under-par 71, putting himself just one shot off the lead. Having been in contention on numerous occasions, Lindenman will have another opportunity to break through and claim the championship with a strong final round.

Smith also remains firmly in the hunt after posting a 72, matching Wynia’s second consecutive round of even-par 72. Both players enter the final round just one stroke behind McCoy, setting up a crowded leaderboard where a few timely birdies could make all the difference.

The second round proved more challenging for the opening-round co-leaders. Conner Power followed his opening 69 with a 78, while Sam Zoske, who thrilled the field with two back-nine eagles on Wednesday, posted a 79. Tyler Brady, who shared the overnight lead with Zoske and Power after an opening-round 69, also struggled in Round Two, carding an 83 to fall back in the standings.

With the first-round leaders facing a tougher test on Thursday, the spotlight now shifts to the four players at the top.

Will McCoy make it another championship run? Can Lindenman finally turn years of near misses into a breakthrough victory? Will Smith charge to the top, or does Wynia have a few tricks — and a few birdies — up his sleeve?

With just 18 holes remaining, the contenders are separated by a single stroke, and the 41st Iowa Mid-Amateur Championship is primed for an exciting finish. All eyes turn to Veenker Memorial Golf Course tomorrow to see who will emerge as champion when the dust settles.

Complete Results

Three-Way Tie at the Top After Opening Round of Iowa Mid-Amateur

October 7, 20260 commentsChampionships, Iowa Mid-Am

The opening round of the 41st Iowa Mid-Amateur Championship at Veenker Memorial Golf Course produced a three-way tie at the top, with Sam Zoske, Conner Power and Tyler Brady (above) each carding 2-under-par 69.

Defending champion Nate McCoy sits just one shot back after an opening-round 70, while Blaine Buhr posted an even-par 71. Two additional players are within striking distance at 1-over 72.

Zoske’s round took a dramatic turn on the back nine. After making the turn at 2-over, he closed with a 4-under 31, highlighted by a pair of eagles to climb into the lead at 69.

Power relied on a steady birdie-making day, recording five birdies despite challenging scoring conditions across the field. Still, he felt there were opportunities left on the course.

“I left a few out there,” Power said after the round.

Brady also put together an impressive birdie total, making six on the day. Four of those came on the back nine, where he fired a 4-under 32 to finish at 2-under and join Zoske and Power atop the leaderboard.

With two rounds still to play, the championship remains wide open. Those chasing the leaders will have plenty of opportunities to make a move when the second round gets underway tomorrow.

Complete Results

Watson and Boothe Capture Gross Title at IGA Women’s Mid-Am Series Event #3

October 5, 20260 commentsChampionships

Fiona Watson and Tish Boothe teamed up to card an even-par 70 and claim the Gross Division title at the third event of the 2026 IGA Women’s Mid-Am Series, held at Ankeny Golf & Country Club.

The event featured a four-ball format, with two players competing as a team. Each player played her own ball throughout the round, with the better of the two scores on each hole counting toward the team’s final score.

Playing conditions provided an additional challenge for the field as recent rains left the course playing long and tough. Thick rough made approach shots and recovery difficult, while birdie opportunities were hard to come by. Despite the demanding conditions, players enjoyed a competitive and fun day at Ankeny Golf & Country Club.

Watson and Boothe navigated the challenging conditions particularly well, making two birdies to offset a pair of bogeys and finish at even par. Their 70 was enough to give them a two-shot victory over Karli Kerrigan and Katelynn Hogenson, who finished with a 73. Erin Schaffer and Leanne Smith rounded out the Gross Division’s top three with a 75.

In the Net Division, Emily Gillam and Nicol Jones came away with the top score, posting a 1-under-par 69. The duo recorded four net birdies throughout their round to finish one shot ahead of the field.

Watson and Boothe also posted a 69 in the Net Division, but were ineligible for the Net Division title after winning the Gross Division. Noreen Christians and Carroll Dethrow finished third with an even-par 70.

The event marked the third and final stop of the 2026 IGA Women’s Mid-Am Series, bringing together women golfers for another day of competitive four-ball play and camaraderie.

The Iowa Golf Association thanks Ankeny Golf & Country Club for hosting Event #3 and congratulates all of the competitors on a successful day of competition.

Complete Results

USGA Unveils Upgraded GHIN Mobile App, Offers Easier to Use Interface and Innovative Features

October 5, 20260 commentsNews

The app evolves into a playing companion that golfers use before, during and after every round

The United States Golf Association (USGA) today unveiled the next iteration of the GHIN® mobile app presented by Sentry, featuring a comprehensive refresh of the design and innovative new features. The updated user experience focuses on a more streamlined, easier to use navigation flow, while keeping the familiarity and main purpose of the app – score posting – front and center.

Upon updating the GHIN app, users will immediately see a cleaner, more intuitive and consistent design. The user’s Handicap Index® takes center stage, with both starting a round and posting a score prominently featured as well. Using the GHIN app as a playing companion includes a dramatically simpler setup, faster scoring and stat tracking and enriched course graphics.

“Organizationally, we’re committed to evolving GHIN, with a goal of becoming the best overall golf app on the market,” said Tom Padula, managing director, GHIN. “Leveraging both modern design principles and direct golfer feedback, this redesign marks a foundational step that paves the way for an exciting future. We can’t wait for GHIN users to update their app and be delighted with the new visual experience and expanded feature set.”

The new Stats section, a key development in the GHIN app, shows players how different aspects of their game and performance are trending over time. Born out of the popular GHIN Rewind, which annually shows users how they fared during a calendar year, Stats is designed to help golfers engage more deeply with their scores and stats through better data visualization, meaningful metrics and an improved layout on a year-round basis.

Key Stats features include:
– New Stats Tab Navigation: Streamlined interface with dedicated subtabs to simplify discovery and highlight different aspects of your game.
– Overview: View key activity trends at a glance – rounds played, frequency and recent score patterns, while also adding relevant stats like birdies and three-putts per round.
– Scores: Modernized score history with cleaner visuals and sortable, interactive rounds.
– Handicap Index: A focused view on H.I. progress, including Differentials and milestones.
– Hole-by-Hole: Reimagined visualization of hole performance to spot patterns and opportunities.
– Advanced: New charts to track dispersion, putting performance and round trends.
– Courses: Course-specific insights including rounds played and average score per hole.

GHIN users in seasonal score-posting areas can now look forward to offseason play this year, with a forthcoming update that will allow players to save scores in the GHIN app for personal tracking, even if the area of the country they’re playing is not in an active score-posting window.

The Apple Watch experience has also been fully redesigned to mirror the updated look of the new mobile app and is now available for all users. General users can view yardage to the middle of greens, whereas Enhanced GPS users get distances to the front, middle and back of greens, as well as key yardages to hazards and layups. Players can now leave their phone in their pocket or bag and rely on the Apple Watch alone, with a cleaner interface built specifically for the smaller screen.

For public players, GHIN Challenges offers Allied Golf Associations the ability to create interactive leaderboards at golf courses within their communities. Designed to connect more golfers with a Handicap Index, GHIN Challenges offer a fun way to encourage friendly competition and show players of differing abilities how they stack up against each other.

AGAs can set up a GHIN Challenge at any course within their jurisdiction, as long as it has a Course Rating and Slope Rating. This feature was designed with public golfers in mind, allowing those playing at daily-fee or municipal courses to use their Handicap Index to compete fairly on virtual leaderboards using their net scores.

GHIN Challenges are now active and available to all AGAs, which can begin to set up leaderboards at golf facilities in their respective regions. Thirty-six AGAs are already participating, with over 750 Challenges created and more than 30,000 golfers involved.

Presented by Sentry, the GHIN mobile app is fully integrated with the World Handicap System and the Rules of Golf, which the USGA oversees in its governance function, to ensure fair and equitable play for all golfers. Those interested in a Handicap Index can download the GHIN app and sign up.

The GHIN app also offers a 30-day free trial for golfers who want to track progress but don’t yet have a Handicap Index; however, those wanting to participate in Challenges need to have an official GHIN number. More than 3.6 million golfers in the U.S. alone maintain a Handicap Index, representing a wide range of playing abilities.

The app redesign is being rolled out gradually to users over the next few weeks. GHIN.com is also scheduled to undergo a redesign in the coming months.

Download the GHIN app now on iOS or Android, and for more information about the app and its features, please visit www.GHIN.com.

Iowa PGA Section wins 59th Iowa Cup

September 30, 20260 commentsChampionships

The 59th Iowa Cup Matches were held September 29–30 at Des Moines Golf & Country Club, bringing together the top Iowa Section PGA Professionals and Iowa Golf Association Amateurs in a Ryder Cup-style competition.

The first two rounds featured team competition, with Four-Ball and Foursome matches, followed by a final round of Singles matches.

Match Results
Four-Ball: Iowa PGA 4 – 2 IGA
Foursomes: Iowa PGA 3.5 – 2.5 IGA
Singles: IGA 7 – 5 Iowa PGA

After falling behind in the first two sessions, the Iowa Golf Association put together a strong comeback in the Singles matches, winning the final session 7–5. The comeback effort came up just short, as the Iowa PGA team held on to win the 59th Iowa Cup by a final score of 12.5–11.5.

IGA Match Winners
Four-Ball
Nate McCoy / Trent Lindenman
Micah Moyer / Calen Bishop

Foursomes
Nate McCoy / Hogan Hansen
J.D. Anderson / Zach Christianson

Singles
J.D. Anderson
Hogan Hansen
Micah Moyer
Jon Brown
Nate McCoy

Congratulations to the Iowa PGA Section on winning the 59th Iowa Cup. The IGA made a strong push in the final Singles session, winning 7–5, but ultimately fell just short in a hard-fought competition.

Complete Results

2026 IGA Club Team Championship Canceled

September 23, 20260 commentsChampionships, IGA Club Team

Following a recent course visit to Waveland Golf Course, our staff has made the difficult decision to cancel the 20th playing of the IGA Club Team Championship.

Historic rainfall and challenging weather conditions throughout the summer have significantly impacted the golf course. After evaluating the current conditions, we determined that the course is not at a level that would properly represent Waveland or provide the championship experience our participants deserve.

We understand this decision may impact plans you’ve made around the championship, and we sincerely apologize for any inconvenience.

All teams will receive a full refund of their entry fee. Refunds will be processed over the next couple of days, so please allow some time for the funds to appear in your account.

Thank you for your understanding and continued support of the Iowa Golf Association. We look forward to seeing you at future IGA events and hope to welcome everyone back for the IGA Club Team Championship next year.

Spences Capture Second Iowa Wife-Husband Championship in Weather-Shortened Event

September 21, 20260 commentsChampionships, Wife-Husband

The 66th Iowa Wife-Husband Championship, hosted by Sunnyside Golf & Country Club, was shortened to a one-day championship due to weather conditions before and during the originally scheduled Friday and Saturday rounds. Excessive rainfall left the course unplayable and created concerns that golf cart traffic would severely damage the property, with nearly every fairway and green impacted by water.

After considerable effort by the Sunnyside Country Club staff, the championship was able to take place on Sunday as an 18-hole event using the Modified Alternate Shot format.

Margaux Spence and Kyle Spence of Coralville (above), the 2024 champions, won their second title with a 1-under-par 70. The Spences carded four birdies during their round to finish one stroke ahead of Lauren Svejda and Seth Svejda of Clive. Amy Weiland and Ben Weiland of Cedar Rapids, along with Julie Buerman and Brian Buerman of Cedar Rapids, shared third place at 73.

In the Senior Division, Jean Bowen and Steve Bowen of DeWitt posted a 75 to win by eight strokes over Michelle Klein and Tom Klein of Jesup. Nancy Olberding and Dave Olberding of Cedar Rapids finished third, one stroke behind the Kleins.

Mindy Bowen and John Bowen of Coralville captured the Super Senior Division with a score of 79, edging Vicki Rodenberg and Brian Rodenberg of Guttenberg by one stroke. Laura Christensen and Tom Christensen of Waterloo, along with Konnie Bachelder and Richard Bachelder of Iowa City, tied for third, four strokes back.

The Iowa Golf Association extends its appreciation to the Sunnyside Golf & Country Club staff for their tremendous efforts in making Sunday’s championship possible, as well as to all participants for their patience and flexibility throughout the weather-related challenges. The conditions were beyond anyone’s control, and the cooperation of everyone involved allowed the championship to be completed.

Complete Results

Senior Division Champions – Jean Bowen and Steve Bowen of DeWitt

 

Super Senior Division Champions – Mindy Bowen and John Bowen of Coralville

Smith, Brown & Peterson Take Home 2026 Briarwood Amateur Titles

September 14, 20260 commentsChampionships

The 2026 Briarwood Amateur, hosted by Briarwood Golf Club, featured three competitive divisions and plenty of low scoring across the two-day event.

In the Open Division, defending champion Grant Smith (above) successfully defended his title in dominant fashion, posting rounds of 65-63 for a 128 total, 16-under par. Smith made 17 birdies over the two rounds. Nate McCoy finished runner-up at 14-under par after rounds of 65-65, while Sam Storey placed third at 12-under.

Jon Brown claimed the Senior Division title with an impressive 17-under-par 127, carding rounds of 64-63. Brown made 16 birdies during the championship. Mike McCoy finished second at 11-under following rounds of 67-66, while two players shared third at 4-under.

In the Super Senior Division, Ron Peterson captured the title by four shots over Tony Malizia, finishing at 13-under par with rounds of 67-64. Peterson recorded 13 birdies during the event. Andy Burton finished third at 5-under.

Note: Hole No. 18 played as a par 3 during the event, although it is reflected as a par 4 in the online scoring.

Complete Results

Collett & Anderson Cap Dominant Performance with Senior Four-Ball Victory

September 11, 20260 commentsChampionships

From left – J.D. Anderson, Jeff Collett, Dave Waugh and Tom Norton

Jeff Collett and J.D. Anderson saved their best for last.

After opening the 2026 IGA Senior Four-Ball Championship at Council Bluffs Country Club as the first-round leaders, Collett and Anderson closed with a spectacular 61 (-10) to claim the championship with a two-shot victory. The duo finished at 19-under-par 123 for the 36-hole event.

Their final round was highlighted by an incredible scoring performance, with Collett and Anderson combining for 11 birdies and an eagle on the day. Impressive to say the least!

Chris Kramer and Jon Brown matched the champions with a final-round 61 (-10), making a furious run at the title. The pair combined for nine birdies and two eagles on their own ball to finish at 17-under-par for the championship and secure runner-up honors. Another impressive day of scoring!

Josh Janeczko and Cory Braunschweig posted matching rounds of 65 to finish at 12-under-par, good for a tie for third. Ron Peterson and Bret Taylor also finished at 12-under to share third place.

Tom Norton and Dave Waugh successfully defended their Super Senior title, storming back with a final-round 66 (-5) to finish at 11-under-par 131 and claim the championship.

Norton and Waugh faced a strong challenge from Tom Schill and Tony Malizia, who fired an impressive 64 in the final round to finish just two shots behind at 9-under-par.

Overnight leaders Tom Christensen and Dave Gaer followed their opening-round 64 with a 69 (-2) to also finish at 9-under-par, sharing runner-up honors.

Joe Ward and Al Pottebaum finished four shots off the lead at 8-under-par for the championship.

The 2026 IGA Senior Four-Ball Championship delivered plenty of low scores and exciting final-round action, with both divisions featuring impressive comebacks and plenty of birdies and eagles at Council Bluffs Country Club.

Complete results can be found here: https://www.golfgenius.com/pages/5757783

Collett/Anderson Take Two-Shot Lead at IGA Senior Four-Ball Championship

September 9, 20260 commentsChampionships

The 2026 IGA Senior Four-Ball Championship, hosted by Council Bluffs Country Club (above), got underway with an impressive opening round as teams in both divisions battled for position heading into tomorrow’s final round.

In the Senior Division, Jeff Collett and J.D. Anderson grabbed the early lead with an outstanding 9-under-par 62. The duo combined for 10 birdies, including a birdie by both players on No. 13, to build a two-shot lead over the teams of Chris Kramer/Jon Brown and Ron Peterson/Bret Taylor, who each carded a 7-under 64.

Two additional teams sit at 6-under 65, keeping themselves within three shots of the lead and firmly in contention heading into the final round.

In the Super Senior Division, Tom Christensen and Dave Gaer teamed up for seven birdies en route to a 7-under 64, giving them a one-shot advantage over Tom Norton/Dave Waugh, who posted a 6-under 65.

Bob Brooks/Paul Wielage sit at 4-under 67, while three additional teams are just one shot behind at 3-under 68.

With one round remaining, both divisions remain wide open, with plenty of teams within striking distance of the championship.

Complete Results

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