Karl Vilips wins Utah Championship presented by Zions Bank and Intermountain Health

If there was supposed to be a learning curve in this business, Karl Vilips didn’t get the memo.

Vilips, 22, earned his first Korn Ferry Tour title Sunday in his fourth professional start, winning the Utah Championship presented by Zions Bank and Intermountain Health by two strokes over Matt McCarty and Joe Weiler.

Vilips carded 25-under 259 at Oakridge Country Club, navigating the parkland venue with rounds of 67-62-64-66 to steadily climb the leaderboard. The Stanford alum, who finished second at last week’s NV5 Invitational presented by Old National Bank, led by one into the final round in Utah and didn’t make a bogey until the final hole, when he could certainly afford it. He tapped in for a two-stroke win, pumped his fist and exhaled with the knowledge that although the work continues, this marked a significant step toward his career dreams.

After entering the week at No. 44 on the season-long Korn Ferry Tour Points List, Vilips jumps to No. 15 and is suddenly positioned to earn his first PGA TOUR card within months of turning pro. The top 30 after the season-ending Korn Ferry Tour Championship presented by United Leasing & Finance will earn 2025 Korn Ferry Tour membership.

Vilips expressed a measure of gratitude afterward, for a magic carpet ride this summer and for those who have helped him along the way.

“Four weeks ago you step in, you try to keep playing and in your wildest dreams you imagine winning and shooting up the rankings,” Vilips said Sunday evening. “Suddenly a lot of stress is relieved and I'm just so happy to see today … all of that kind of be solved.

“I think starting out, one of my buddies, Isaiah Salinda here showed me the ropes. I talked to a lot of guys, Kevin Velo just teaching me a few things, what it takes to win out here. They've been great mentors. I'm not sure if they realize the role they played in my development out here. But really my coach, Colin Swanton, and my mental coach, Rick Sessinghaus, have just played a huge role in being able to close out tournaments like this because that's something I struggled with in the past historically.”

Vilips thrived as a college golfer at Stanford, finishing No. 10 on the 2024 PGA TOUR University Ranking to earn conditional Korn Ferry Tour membership and full PGA TOUR Americas status. After making two PGA TOUR Americas starts in June, he maximized his first Korn Ferry Tour start at The Ascendant presented by Blue (T13) to earn another start at the Price Cutter Charity Championship presented by Dr Pepper (T15), which led him to the NV5 Invitational, and to his hardware-winning week in Utah. Conditional members can stay on the circuit with top-25 finishes, and Vilips followed the formula to perfection.

With four straight top-15 finishes, the long-hitting Australian has proven that he belongs at this level and perhaps one notch above. It’s a power era in professional golf, and Vilips is at the forefront. He averaged 340.3 yards off the tee this week, 10th in the field, setting up a plethora of wedge approaches that allowed him to stay aggressive. He made 26 birdies on the week and added two eagles, allowing him to withstand a double bogey in each of the first two rounds. (He carded no other bogeys until the 72nd hole.)

“It's kind of funny because I don't actually hit it that high, so the distance doesn't really change for me when I come out here, maybe 5, 10 yards in the air,” Vilips said of playing at altitude in Utah. “I think I would say the accuracy is what I try to lean on a little bit more than the distance itself. Driver wasn't fully there today; I hit a couple loose ones. Being able to hit a long way certainly makes a lot of these holes a little easier.”

Vilips hails from Perth, Australia, where he started playing tournaments at age 6 or 7. With his dad Paul, he moved to the United States at age 11, and he began attending Saddlebrook Academy in Florida three years later. He progressed from there to Stanford, where teammates included close friend Michael Thorbjornsen, who finished No. 1 on this year’s PGA TOUR University Ranking to earn automatic TOUR membership.

Vilips has diligently chronicled his journey through the ranks on his YouTube channel, largely with the support of his dad, who would record golf shots and provide commentary. Paul Vilips was on-site in Utah to witness his son earn his first professional title, a full-circle moment for the family. Later this year, they could be headed to the PGA TOUR.

“We're just going to try to win every time we step up on the first tee of a tournament,” Vilips said, “and the expectations now are to get that PGA TOUR card.”

Notes

• With his 72-hole score of 25-under 259, Vilips breaks the previous Utah Championship presented by Zions Bank and Intermountain Health scoring record of 24-under 260 (2018/Cameron Champ; 2023/Roger Sloan).
• Vilips becomes the 15th first-time winner on Tour this season, as well as the 13th winner in their 20s.
• Joe Weiler (T2/23 under), who made his 40th Korn Ferry Tour start this week, posts a final round bogey-free 7-under 64 to finish T2 for his best career result on Tour (previous; T7/2023 BMW Charity Pro-Am presented by TD SYNNEX).
• 54-hole co-lead Matt McCarty (T2/23 under), who won the 2024 Price Cutter Championship to secure his PGA TOUR card for next season, logs his six top-10 of the year, matching Steven Fisk (T61/11 under), Cristobal Del Solar (T72/9 under) and Max McGreevy for the most on Tour.
• Second-year member William Mouw (fourth/22 under), who finished No. 6 in the 2023 PGA TOUR University Ranking, matches his career-low round with an 8-under 63 (2024 Visit Knoxville Open/R2) to record his fourth top-10 finish of the year; In 12 starts on the 2023 Korn Ferry Tour season, Mouw didn’t record any top-10 finishes.
• Korn Ferry Tour rookie Austin Hitt (T5/21 under), who finished No. 4 in the 2023 Totalplay Cup standings on PGA TOUR Lationamérica (now PGA TOUR Americas) to earn conditional 2024 Korn Ferry Tour membership, posts a final round 8-under 63 to finish T5 for the best result of his career on Tour.
• German Thomas Rosenmueller (T5/21 under), winner of last week’s NV5 Invitational presented by Old National Bank, posts a bogey-free 7-under 64 to finish T5 for a second consecutive top-10 finish and fourth of the 2024 season; Rosenmueller had one top-10 all of last year in 23 starts.
• 33-year-old Jeffery Kang (T8/20 under) made an ace from 207 yards with a 7-iron on the par-3 seventh en route to a career-best 10-under 61, matching McCarty for the low round of the week.
• Dan McCarthy (T8/20 under), Brett Drewitt (T8/20 under) and Logan McAllister (T8/20 under) finish T8 to record their first top-10 finishes of the 2024 season.
  • McCarthy carded a bogey-free 7-under 64, marking his lowest round of the year (previous; 65/2024 Memorial Health Championship presented by LRS/Round 3; 2024 Veritex Bank Championship/final round).
• Sam Choi (T19/17 under), who made his 10th career start on the Korn Ferry Tour this week, records his first career top-25 finish and earns a spot in next week’s field at the Pinnacle Bank Championship presented by Woodhouse.