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5D AGO

Ross Steelman among three tied on top after Thursday at The Ascendant presented by Blue

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Daily Wrap Up

Ross Steelman makes birdie on No. 14 at THE CJ CUP

Ross Steelman makes birdie on No. 14 at THE CJ CUP

    Written by Staff

    Suspension summary: The first round was suspended due to dangerous weather at 12:05 p.m local time. and resumed at 2:34 p.m. (delay of two hours, 29 minutes), then play suspended again due to dangerous weather at 4:06 p.m., resuming at 5:49 p.m. (delay of 1 hour, 43 minutes). It was suspended due to darkness at 8:29 p.m., with the entire afternoon wave needing to complete their round. The first round resumed at 6:45 a.m. Friday.

    Weather: Scattered showers and thunderstorms. High of 90. Wind W/NW at N/NE 5-16 mph, gusts of 30-plus mph.

    Charting the clubhouse co-leaders (stats entering week)

    CategoryIan HoltMichael JohnsonRoss Steelman
    Age293224
    2025 Korn Ferry Tour Points ListNo. 26No. 42No. 28
    Starts – Wins – Top-10s on Korn Ferry Tour in 202516-0-215-0-113-0-4
    Starts – Wins – Top-10s in Korn Ferry Tour Career34-0-2156-0-844-0-6
    Starts – Wins – Top-10s at The Ascendant1-0-04-0-01-0-0

    Ian Holt
    (T1/-5)

    • Makes six birdies – most notably at the par-4 18th, which yielded only five birdies and played as the toughest hole relative to par Thursday – and one bogey en route to 5-under 67
    • Career-high 18-hole position in 34 previous Korn Ferry Tour starts is T3 (2023 NV5 Invitational/finished T49)
    • Stood in the top five through 18 holes twice this season (T4/Veritex Bank Championship/finished T42; T4/Astara Golf Championship presented by Mastercard/finished T26)
    • Recorded a season- and career-high finish (T2) on Tour at the 118th Visa Argentina Open presented by Macro in March 2025
    • Finished T50 at the 2023 Ascendant presented by Blue, his only previous start at the event
    • Third season with Korn Ferry Tour membership (2019, 2023); he previously finished No. 150 on the 2023 Korn Ferry Tour Points List as a rookie
    • Finished No. 10 in the 2024 Fortinet Cup standings on PGA TOUR Americas, which earned him Korn Ferry Tour membership for the 2025 season
    • Began the 2024 PGA TOUR Americas season with conditional status and open qualified into his season debut at the 2024 Times Colonist Victoria Open, the eighth event of the season; he recorded back-to-back top-25 finishes and won his third start at the 2024 Explore NB Open, which propelled him to a top 10 finish in the Fortinet Cup standings
    • Turned professional in 2018 and played four seasons on PGA TOUR Canada (2018, 2019, 2021, 2022)
    • Played four seasons at Kent State University (2014-18), where he earned three collegiate victories, including medalist honors at the 2018 Mid-American Conference Championship, and was named the MAC Golfer of the Year in 2017 and 2018

    Michael Johnson
    (T1/-5)

    • Cards bogey-free, 5-under 67, equaling his lowest score in 13 career rounds at TPC Colorado (R4/2022)
    • Held one previous 18-hole lead/co-lead in a Korn Ferry Tour event (2018 Panama Championship/finished T13)
    • Stood inside the top five through 18 holes twice this season (T3/LECOM Suncoast Classic/finished T20; T4/Astara Golf Championship presented by Mastercard/finished T13)
    • Recorded a season-high finish of solo fifth at the UNC Health Championship presented by STITCH, which marked his highest finish on Tour since the 2018 UNC Health Championship presented by STITCH/T4
    • Making fifth appearance at The Ascendant presented by Blue, with two made cuts in four previous starts at the event (T59/2019, T50/2022)
    • Currently in his seventh season on the Korn Ferry Tour, with top 75 finishes in the standings in 2017 (No. 63), 2018 (No. 55), and 2024 (No. 69)
    • Played five seasons at Auburn University (2011-16), where he was a 2016 All-America First Team selection, a two-time All-Southeastern Conference selection, and recorded five individual victories, tied for the second-most in program history at the time
    • Won the 2010 Junior PLAYERS Championship, earning a one-stroke victory over co-runners-up Jordan Spieth and Emiliano Grillo

    Ross Steelman
    (T1/-5)

    • Cards seven birdies and two bogeys en route to 5-under 67; His only two previous rounds at TPC Colorado were an even-par 72 and 5-over 77 at the 2024 Ascendant presented by Blue
    • Career-high 18-hole position in a Korn Ferry Tour event is T4 (three times, most recent: 2024 LECOM Suncoast Classic/finished T20)
    • Stood inside the top five through 18 holes once this season (T5/BMW Charity Pro-Am presented by TD SYNNEX/finished T10)
    • One of nine players with four top-10s this season; he recorded a season-high finish of solo fifth at the Visit Knoxville Open
    • Finished No. 56 on the 2024 Korn Ferry Tour Points List in his first full season on Tour, earning fully exempt status for the 2025 season
    • Finished No. 4 in the 2023 PGA TOUR University Ranking after four and a half seasons of collegiate golf (2019-23); he played two and a half seasons at University of Missouri (2019-21 – redshirted after enrolling in January 2019) and two seasons at Georgia Tech (2021-23)
    • Finished T2 individually at the 2023 NCAA Championship in his final season at Georgia Tech

    Additional notes

    • Three-time Korn Ferry Tour winner Pierceson Coody (T1/-5), who stands No. 5 on the 2025 Korn Ferry Tour Points List, is one of three players on Tour with six top 10s this season (Hank Lebioda, Mitchell Meissner).
    • Korn Ferry Tour Class of 2023 graduate Tom Whitney (T1/-5), who graduated from the United States Air Force Academy in Colorado Springs, Colorado, makes four consecutive birdies on Nos. 5-8.
    • Three-time Korn Ferry Tour winner Zecheng Dou (T6/-4), winner of the 2022 Ascendant presented by Blue, is bidding to become the first multi-time winner of The Ascendant presented by Blue.
    • Korn Ferry Tour Class of 2023 graduate Ryan McCormick (T41/-1) makes his first hole-in-one in a Korn Ferry Tour event, aces the par-3 second with an 8-iron.

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