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Pinnacle Bank Championship presented by Woodhouse: Pre-tournament notes, storylines, more

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Gutschewski family plays together at Pinnacle Bank Championship

Gutschewski family plays together at Pinnacle Bank Championship

    Written by Staff

    The Korn Ferry Tour season continues with the Pinnacle Bank Championship presented by Woodhouse, the 21st event of the 26-event season. The Club at Indian Creek has hosted every iteration of the Pinnacle Bank Championship presented by Woodhouse, which played its inaugural event in 2017.

    Twelve players in the field are in the top 200 of the Official World Golf Ranking: Johnny Keefer (No. 56), Neal Shipley (No. 87), Pierceson Coody (No. 105), Austin Smotherman (No. 114), Kensei Hirata (No. 126), S.H. Kim (No. 142), Hank Lebioda (No. 159), Hayden Springer (No. 160), Trace Crowe (No. 163), Chandler Blanchet (No. 175), Taylor Montgomery (No. 177) and Davis Chatfield (No. 178).

    Last season, PGA TOUR winner Matt McCarty captured the 2024 Pinnacle Bank Championship, marking his second victory of the season. Just two weeks later, he secured a third win at the Albertsons Boise Open to earn an immediate promotion to the PGA TOUR via the Three-Victory Promotion. This week, three players in the field – Keefer, Smotherman and Shipley – have a chance to follow McCarty as the next player to achieve the Three-Victory Promotion.

    Key storylines

    • Eighteen-year-old professional Blades Brown will make his first start as an official Korn Ferry Tour member this week after recording his second top 10 of the season at last week's Utah Championship presented by Zions Bank and Intermountain Health, eclipsing the necessary points threshold of 237.718 points to earn Special Temporary Membership for the remainder of the 2025 season.
    • Rookies Keefer and Shipley, in addition to Smotherman, enter the week in pursuit of the Three-Victory Promotion, which would grant them an immediate promotion to the PGA TOUR. Keefer and Smotherman, ranked Nos. 1 and 2 respectively on the Points List, were the first players declared #TOURBound after effectively locking up top 20 finishes.
    • The field includes 17 PGA TOUR winners with 30 career victories, highlighted by five-time TOUR winner Nick Watney.
    • The field features 58 Korn Ferry Tour winners who have combined for 88 career victories, led by four-time Korn Ferry Tour winner Robby Shelton.
    • Shelton is the lone past champion of the Pinnacle Bank Championship in this week's field. The two-time Korn Ferry Tour graduate (Class of 2019, 2022) earned his third top-10 finish of the season at last week's Utah Championship, finishing T7 after holding a share of the 54-hole lead.
      • In his rookie season on the PGA TOUR, Shelton qualified for the FedExCup Playoffs and finished No. 66 in the 2019-20 FedExCup standings. The FedExCup Playoffs begin this week on the PGA TOUR with the FedEx St. Jude Championship, and three Class of 2024 Korn Ferry Tour graduates highlight the field: Ryan Gerard, Brian Campbell and Aldrich Potgieter.
    • Players in the field with ties to the state of Nebraska include Omaha native and three-time Korn Ferry Tour winner Scott Gutschewski, in addition to his son, Luke Gutschewski, who is competing via sponsor exemption this week after defending his title at the Nebraska Qualifier.
      • Luke made his Korn Ferry Tour debut at the 2024 Pinnacle Bank Championship alongside his father and younger brother, Trevor. He will be making his first professional start on the Korn Ferry Tour this week after making his professional debut at last week's Osprey Valley Open on PGA TOUR Americas, where he finished T14.
    • Additional players with Nebraska ties include Brandon Crick (McCook native, University of Nebraska alum), open qualifier and Omaha resident Alex Schaake, and Lincoln native Rudy Sautron, who is making his Korn Ferry Tour debut via sponsor exemption.

    Tournament facts

    • Course: The Club at Indian Creek, par 71, 7,721 yards
      • Years hosted: 2017-present
    • Field: 156 players
    • Scoring records
      • 18-hole: 62, seven times; last: Danny Walker (Round 1, 2024)
      • 72-hole: 263, Sam Ryder (2017)
    • 2024 champion: Matt McCarty
    • Purse: $1,000,000 ($180,000/winner)

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