23H AGO
Ian Gilligan leads suspended second round at LECOM Suncoast Classic
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Cancer survivor Ian Gilligan makes second PGA TOUR start in Las Vegas
Written by Staff
Ian Gilligan leads the LECOM Suncoast Classic after posting an 8-under 63 at Lakewood National Golf Club in Lakewood Ranch, Florida, before the second round was suspended due to darkness at 7:49 p.m. ET. At the time of the suspension, 69 players needed to complete their round.
The second round will resume Saturday at 7:45 a.m., and the 36-hole cut will be made upon its completion. Third-round tee times are expected to run from 10:30 a.m. through 12:30 p.m. off the first and 10th tees.
Charting the leader (stats entering week)
| Category | Ian Gilligan |
| Age | 23 |
| 2026 Korn Ferry Tour Points List | No. 9 |
| Starts – Wins – Top-10s on Korn Ferry Tour in 2026 | 7-0-4 |
| Starts – Wins – Top-10s in Korn Ferry Tour Career | 19-0-5 |
| Starts – Wins – Top-10s at LECOM Suncoast Classic | Debut |
Ian Gilligan (first/15 under)
- Follows 7-under 64 with 8-under 63 to total 15-under 127, the second-lowest opening 36-hole score in the eight playings of the LECOM Suncoast Classic (126/Kevin Dougherty/2023)
- In line to hold his first lead after any round on the Korn Ferry Tour (previous career-high 36-hole position: third/2026 Panama Championship/finished T4)
- Boasts four top-10 finishes in seven starts this season, tied for the most top 10s on Tour (Hunter Eichhorn)
- Finished No. 129 on the 2025 Korn Ferry Tour Points List, with one top-10 finish in 11 starts, after he earned membership via PGA TOUR University performance benefits; he earned full status for the 2026 Korn Ferry Tour season as one of the top-five players on the 2025 PGA TOUR University Total Points List (combined total of FedExCup and Korn Ferry Tour points among Nos. 2-25 from 2025 PGA TOUR University Ranking)
- Finished fourth in the 2025 PGA TOUR University Ranking after two seasons at Long Beach State University (2021-23) and two seasons at the University of Florida (2023-25); he earned six collegiate victories (four at Long Beach State, two at Florida)
- Won the 2024 Western Amateur and 2025 Australian Master of the Amateurs
- In June 2018, at 15 years old and having just finished his freshman year of high school, Gilligan was diagnosed with stage 4 ALK-negative large cell lymphoma, a rare form of lymphoma typically found in adults as opposed to those under 25 years of age; he was declared cancer-free after roughly seven months of treatment
