Frankie Capan III secures PGA TOUR card at Korn Ferry Tour Finals

Arron Oberholser knew in 2005 what finally came true Sunday: Frankie Capain III had a future on the PGA TOUR.

Capan was 7 when he beat Oberholser, a family friend, in a putting contest that Oberholser admitted, “I was trying hard to win.” It was only a few years later that Capan was beating Oberholser, then still a touring pro, in matches.

“He's been a prodigy since day one,” Oberholser said.

That potential is now fully realized and headed to the biggest stage.

Capan, 24, finished T12 at the Simmons Bank Open for the Snedeker Foundation, the Korn Ferry Tour Finals’ second leg, clinching his top-30 spot on the 2024 Korn Ferry Tour Points List to secure a 2025 PGA TOUR card. The second-year pro finished runner-up twice this season, including in a playoff to Harry Higgs at the Visit Knoxville Open. Capan has amassed five top-10s and nine top-25s.

The Stillwater, Minnesota native ranks No. 14 on the Korn Ferry Tour Points List with two events remaining. The top 30 after the Korn Ferry Tour Championship presented by United Leasing & Finance will earn 2025 PGA TOUR status but Capan doesn’t have to worry. His spot is clinched. Capan is the lone Minnesotan with fully exempt status for the 2025 TOUR season.

Capan grew up less than 15 miles from TPC Twin Cities, where he made his PGA TOUR debut at the 2023 3M Open. With his mom Charlynn on the bag, Capan made the cut. He also made the cut at this year’s U.S. Open, inside the top 25 after the first two rounds.

Capan’s firepower was on high display for much of the Korn Ferry Tour season. He’s got “Rory McIlroy speed,” Oberholser said, regularly clocking 185 mph ball speed. He leads the Korn Ferry Tour in Par-5 Scoring but also ranks inside the top 10 in Putting. That firepower was on full display during the opening round of the Veritex Bank Championship. Capan carded 13-under 58 to clip Scottie Scheffler’s course record by one shot. It matched the second-lowest score in Korn Ferry Tour history, one shy of Cristobal Del Solar's record 57, set at the Astara Golf Championship presented by Mastercard earlier in the year.

It wasn’t the first time Capan dipped below 60. He shot 59 in the final round of the 2018 Arizona high school state championship to win by 10 strokes. He won the AJGA Puerto Rico Junior Open in January 2016 to earn a spot in the Puerto Rico Open. He also won the 2017 U.S. Junior Amateur Four-Ball Championship with Shuai Ming Wong.

“There's no doubt in my mind he can win on the PGA TOUR,” Oberholser said. “There's no doubt in my mind he can win multiple times on the PGA TOUR. There's no doubt that he's going to contend and compete and can win a major championship on the PGA TOUR. There's no doubt in my mind he's got that kind of game.”