Mason Andersen clinches first PGA TOUR card year after narrow miss

Mason Andersen is not taking his #TOURBound status for granted.

In the 2023 Korn Ferry Tour Championship presented by United Leasing & Finance, Andersen held the lead throughout the first two rounds, going from No. 42 on the Points List to a projected eighth, well within the top 30 that would clinch PGA TOUR cards. However, Round 3 saw his lead dissipate with a triple bogey and pair of finishing bogeys. Andersen would go on to play the weekend in 3-over and finish at No. 36 on the season-long standings, six spots and four strokes shy short of a TOUR card.

“That one still kind of stings,” Andersen said. “I had my entire family there. It was too good to be true. I just wasn’t ready. I wasn’t ready.”

A native of Mesa, Arizona, Andersen rose through the junior ranks and enjoyed a successful college career at Arizona State University, where he played five seasons from 2017 to 2022 and claimed two individual titles. Andersen was a big part of Arizona State’s success in the 2022 NCAA Division I men’s golf championship, where the Sun Devils lost to the Texas Longhorns in the championship match.

Andersen, 25, joined the Korn Ferry Tour in 2023, and while he may not have been ready for the ultimate leap to the PGA TOUR at the time, 2024 told a different story. He worked with his sports psychologist and swing coach on the “little things,” and he earned his first win on the Korn Ferry Tour at the 117th Visa Argentina Open presented by Macro, defeating two-time winner Kris Ventura in a playoff.

“Winning is just so hard in golf,” Andersen said afterward. “You never win, you never win, and you come close a bunch of times, but winning’s just so hard. To do it with my dad here and my girlfriend here … yeah, pretty emotional.”

He added four more top-20 finishes after his victory, and despite a summer of struggles – one withdrawal and seven consecutive missed cuts – he entered the season-ending Korn Ferry Tour Championship at No. 21 on the Points List. After a 13th-place finish at the season finale, he was #TOURBound.

Ahead of the 2024 Korn Ferry Tour Finals, Andersen reflected back to 2023: “Just kind of fell on my face,” he said. “I put up a good fight, but I don't think I was really ready for that yet. I think everything in life has a progression and you just kind of climb the ladder … This is hopefully the year. We're gonna go play with the big boys next year. That's kind of the ultimate goal.”

Goal achieved.

About Mason Andersen

• Age: 25
• Hometown: Mesa, Arizona
• Alma mater: Arizona State University
• PGA TOUR starts: 2
• Cuts made: 0
• Best PGA TOUR finish: MC

Notes: Earliest golf memories are with Junior Golf Association of Arizona where he earned five JGAA wins … Four top-10s and 11/24 cuts made in 2024 Korn Ferry Tour season … Named Arizona Golf Association Player of the Year in 2017 … Was named a 2022 Third-Team All-American as a fifth-year senior at Arizona State … Favorite sports teams are Seattle Seahawks and Los Angeles Chargers … Enjoys hunting and fishing.