Bank of Utah Championship to award sponsor exemption to Utah State Amateur champion 

Media contacts:
BZA PR, Bank of Utah Championship, [email protected]
Mark Fredrickson, SnappConner PR for Bank of Utah, [email protected]
Easton Folster, Executive Director, Utah Golf Association, [email protected]

Bank of Utah Championship to award sponsor exemption to Utah State Amateur champion 

Bank of Utah and the Utah Golf Association announce a strategic statewide partnership as Bank of Utah becomes the “Official Banking Partner of the Utah Golf Association” 

Bank of Utah Championship to bring PGA TOUR stars to Black Desert Resort October 1-4 

IVINS, Utah (MAY 13, 2026) – The PGA TOUR’s Bank of Utah Championship announced today that the tournament will award a sponsor exemption to the winner of the Utah State Amateur Championship.

The announcement is part of a strategic statewide partnership between Bank of Utah and the Utah Golf Association that positions the bank as the “Official Banking Partner of the Utah Golf Association,” with the Bank of Utah Championship serving as a platform for elevating Utah golfers and the sport statewide.

The Bank of Utah Championship will bring the PGA TOUR’s stars to Black Desert Resort for the third straight year Oct. 1-4, 2026.

“Bank of Utah has always believed in the importance of investing in the people, organizations and experiences that help strengthen communities across our state,” said Branden Hansen, President of Bank of Utah. “As a Utah-founded community bank and statewide financial partner, this partnership with the Utah Golf Association and the Bank of Utah Championship reflects our commitment to  Utah golf at every level, from local players and historic championships to Utah’s opportunity to host an official PGA TOUR event at Black Desert Resort.”

The sentiment was echoed by the Utah Golf Association, which views the collaboration as a vital step for the sport’s regional growth.

“This partnership represents an exciting opportunity to continue elevating golf across Utah while creating stronger connections between our players, championships and the PGA TOUR stage,” said Easton Folster, Executive Director of the Utah Golf Association. “Bank of Utah shares our commitment to supporting Utah communities, honoring the traditions of the game, and investing in opportunities that help grow golf statewide.”

“Elevating Utah golf and creating pathways for our state’s best players to compete at the highest level is what Black Desert Resort and the Bank of Utah Championship are all about. Nothing excites us more than watching a homegrown champion step onto that stage and show the world what Utah golf is made of,” said Ashley Dove, Executive Director of the Bank of Utah Championship.

Qualifying rounds for the Utah State Amateur Championship — one of Utah’s most historic amateur golf championships  — begin statewide May 14. The championship will be held July 6-11 at Soldier Hollow Golf Course, with significant stakes as players compete for a spot in the Bank of Utah Championship.

Since its inception, the Bank of Utah Championship has supported Utah’s thriving golf community by extending sponsor exemptions to players with local ties. Bowen Mauss, the 2025 Utah State Amateur champion, and Preston Summerhays, the State Amateur winner in 2018 and 2019, played on sponsor exemptions in 2024 and 2025, respectively. This partnership further solidifies the tournament’s support of Utah talent.

In addition to the tournament exemption, Bank of Utah will become the presenting partner of the Utah Golf Association’s player recognition programs, including Champion of the Month and Player of the Week. These awards will highlight the achievements of local golfers all year long, allowing Bank of Utah and the Utah Golf Association to share the stories of talented players across the state.

About Bank of Utah

Founded in Ogden in 1952, Bank of Utah has been part of the state’s story for more than 70 years. We’ve supported small businesses and helped individuals and families build their futures in communities across Utah — from quiet mountain towns to thriving city centers. With 18 full-service branches, dedicated trust teams, and mortgage specialists throughout the state, Bank of Utah provides personal service and forward-thinking financial tools. The bank’s comprehensive offerings include business and personal banking, mortgage and commercial lending, personal and corporate trust services, and wealthmanagement and investment services.

Recognized as one of the Top 20 U.S. Community Banks of 2025 by S&P Global Market Intelligence and named Utah’s Best Bank by GOBankingRates in 2025, Bank of Utah blends local insight with award-winning strength. Whether it’s the little details in a banking experience or the big moments in life, Bank of Utah is here to help Utahns succeed. Our commitment is to remain strong, trustworthy, advanced, secure and appreciative — to work side by side with clients on their financial journeys, so they can confidently say: “This is my Utah. Bank of Utah is my bank.”  Learn more at bankofutah.com or call 801-409-5000.

About Utah Golf Association

The Utah Golf Association, the governing body of amateur golf in Utah, is a not-for-profit organization whose objective is to protect, grow and enhance the game of golf by providing golfers of all abilities and classifications the opportunity to play, serve and compete by way of a UGA membership. The UGA was officially incorporated in 1966, but its history dates back to 1899 when the very first Utah State Amateur Championship was held. The Utah State Amateur is proudly recognized as the “Oldest Continuously Held Golf Tournament in the World.”

More information about the Utah Golf Association can be found at UGA.org.

About Bank of Utah Championship at Black Desert Resort
Following its historic debut in 2024 — the first PGA TOUR event held in Utah in more than 60 years — the Bank of Utah Championship will return to Black Desert Resort in Southern Utah’s Greater Zion region Oct. 1-4. Tickets and VIP opportunities for the Bank of Utah Championship are officially on sale at www.bankofutahchampionship.com.

About Black Desert Resort

Set amidst the vermillion sandstone cliffs and striking black lava beds of Greater Zion, Black Desert Resort, is a premier destination for luxury hospitality, golf, and outdoor adventure. Anchored by a Tom Weiskopf-designed championship golf course, the resort is home to the PGA TOUR’s Bank of Utah Championship, the only Utah event on the TOUR. In addition, the Greater Zion Cup, a premier Carvana PPA Tour event, is held on the property’s newly designed championship pickleball courts. The Resort Center features 549 rooms and suites, seven dining venues, a 15,000-square-foot spa, state-of-the-art pickleball courts, a heated outdoor pool and hot tub, and 45,000 square feet of indoor and outdoor meeting and event space. Expansion plans include additional pickleball courts, a water park, and more accommodations, dining, and entertainment options. Spanning over 600 acres, the resort offers access to 200+ acres of preserved land and six miles of hiking trails.

Reef Capital Partners is a vertically integrated real estate investment, development, and operations firm dedicated to enhancing communities through transformative and impactful projects across North America. Its portfolio includes marquee destinations such as Black Desert Resort, Marcella Club, Cornerstone Golf Club, Tributer Resort, Cormont, and Sweetens Cove. Learn more at www.reefcp.com.

32nd Utah Senior State Amateur: Darrin Overson completes a UGA trifecta

Regardless of the outcome, the final match of the 32nd Utah Senior State Amateur Championship was destined to deliver a good story.

Stuart Wallin was positioned to become one of the biggest surprises of the 2025 Utah Golf Association schedule, with his credentials boosted by the big-name players he beat along the way at Bonneville Golf Course.

2025 Utah Senior State Amateur champion, Darrin Overson.

Darrin Overson had a shot at adding his own name to a club that featured one of Utah’s most successful amateur golfers of the past half-century.

The champion: Overson, 3 and 1. His reward: A trophy that joins State Amateur and Mid-Amateur awards in a collection that only Utah Golf Hall of Fame member Todd Barker previously could claim.

Overson’s 17-hole achievement Thursday was hardly stress-free, but he didn’t have to play as much golf as the other winners. Mark Gardiner went 23 holes vs. Rick Lloyd in the Super-Senior (60-over) division and Michael Hacker took 20 holes to top Rob Bachman for the Legends (70-over) title.

Each of those winners also claimed a UGA Winterchamps title in March. Gardiner and Hacker then won their Senior Stroke Play categories in May. Overson fell short in that event, but he has left little else undone on the golf course as a senior rookie.

Overson’s successful season has been framed by the passing of his father, Donald, in March at age 73. That’s why he used the qualifier “a good year of golf” to describe 2025.

“It’s been a weird year, for sure,” he added. “Turning 50 was not something I was looking forward to, right? It means you’re getting older. But having an avenue, and a place to play with guys my age and see how I stack up, it’s been a really good year. It’s been fun.”

Overson, who works as a human resources service broker, had to go through three-time champion Brigham Gibbs in the quarterfinals and two-time UGA Senior Men’s Player of the Year Shane McMillan in the semifinals. Wallin, a firearms business owner who’s new to UGA competition, beat defending champion Jon Wright in the round of 16 and No. 1 seed John Owen in the semifinals.

And then he kept Overson from leading in the final match until No. 11. Wallin pulled even on No. 12, before Overson won Nos. 13, 16 and 17 (birdie, par, birdie) to end the match.

“I love playing with the senior guys,” said Overson, a Provo native who briefly pursued pro golf after his Colorado State career. “It’s all about just having fun, for sure. We know why we’re out here. We’re not competing for dollar bills or anything like that.”

Super-Senior Champion, Mark Gardiner

SUPER-SENIOR

Whether the drive home took him to the south part of the Salt Lake Valley or the southern end of Utah, the Super-Senior runner-up would be doomed to replay his missed chances.

The much longer drive became the far happier trek, in the case of Mark Gardiner. The Washington, Utah, resident could enjoy the I-15 jaunt, even after missing opportunities to close out his match vs. Rick Lloyd long before the 23rd hole.

That was still not Gardiner’s longest match of the week, after he went 26 holes in the first round of the 16-golfer bracket.

Gardiner missed a birdie putt from inside of 4 feet on the first extra hole, the par-5 No. 1. He managed to laugh it off, and stayed in the game when Lloyd barely missed birdie attempts on the next three holes. Gardiner’s par on the par-5 No. 5 ended things.

“There’s a reason we’re amateurs, and it’s right here in the head,” Gardiner said. “But I smile the whole way. I mean, this is just the best game there is. … Just live for another hole. Put it behind you and just try to hit another shot. That’s all I try to do.”

Lloyd was the defending champion; he also won a title in 2022, when Super-Senior eligibility was 65 and older.

Having retired after 26 years in the U.S. Air Force and moved to Utah last year, Gardiner said after posing with the trophy, “The native Utah guys have had their names plastered on that thing for years and years. I’m very happy to have my name on there, next to them.”

Legends Champion, Mike Hacker

LEGENDS

As his 20-foot, sharply breaking putt from the fringe of the No. 2 green rolled along his intended line and took the proper turn toward the hole, Michael Hacker said to himself, “Oh, man. This could go in.”

It did, ultimately surprising him even more than his short misses on the previous two holes that could have ended his match vs. Rob Bachman, before he won in 20 holes.

“Ridiculous,” Hacker said of that sequence of events, leading to the dramatic conclusion. “And (to) make something like this …”

That’s golf, right? And about 16 months after missing a short putt on the first playoff hole that gave Bachman the Legends title in the 2024 Senior Stroke Play, Hacker was like Gardiner. He could enjoy the drive home to St. George as a repeat champion.

“Just got to keep fighting, that’s all,” Hacker said of responding after his missed opportunities via three-putts on No. 18 and No. 1. “Rob kept fighting the whole way and I gave it to him for a while, but I feel like I took it there. So I feel pretty good about it.”

The UGA doesn’t name a Legends Player of the Year. Otherwise, Hacker would be a runaway winner. “It’s been a phenomenal year,” he said.

2025 Utah Senior State Amateur championship recap written by Fairways Media senior writer Kurt Kragthorpe. Photography by Fairways Media/Randy Dodson.

The UGA Announces a New Partnership With Tee Box

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Salt Lake City, Utah — 8/01/2025 — The Utah Golf Association (UGA), the governing body of amateur golf in the state, announced a new multi-year partnership designating Tee Box as the official indoor training facility of the Utah Golf Association. The agreement unites two Utah-based organizations committed to helping amateur golfers of all abilities improve, compete, and deepen their engagement with the game year-round.

“The UGA is excited to partner with Tee Box and identify them as the ‘Official Indoor Training Facility of the Utah Golf Association.’ Part of the UGA’s mission is providing golfers of all abilities with the opportunity to play and compete. Both organizations share a mutual objective to develop golfers, and we are excited to collaborate on future projects with Tee Box in an effort to achieve this common goal. I invite all Utah golfers to obtain a Handicap Index and work to improve that Handicap Index by training at a Tee Box facility near them,” said Easton Folster, Executive Director of the Utah Golf Association.

Tee Box Founder and CEO Preston Unck said the partnership reflects how closely the two organizations’ communities already overlap. “We’re excited for this partnership and to have Tee Box as the official training facility of the UGA. The UGA does so much good for golf in our state and as someone who’s passionate about helping golfers improve, this partnership means a lot. UGA members are serious about their game—they track their handicap; they care about getting better—and that’s exactly who we built Tee Box for. Together, we’re not just growing the game; we’re helping players lower scores, gain confidence, and really ‘Know Their Game.’ We look forward to the many initiatives that we have planned together over the next few years.”

UGA members can expect exclusive benefits such as Member Days at Tee Box locations, where they can experience training and simulated play opportunities. During these events, members will receive complimentary performance assessments, including Titleist Performance Institute (TPI) mobility screenings. Additional perks will include game-improvement programming, access to indoor competition concepts such as winter tournaments and championships, and exclusive offers and training resources. Details will be announced in the coming months.

The UGA and Tee Box share the common goal of helping people get into the game and then improve and lower their Handicaps Indexes.

“It’s going to be a great partnership.” Folster emphasized, stating, “I am confident that both entities will benefit greatly from this partnership as we aim to elevate golf throughout the state and provide even more benefits for our members.”

While technology is central to the Tee Box experience, each location also offers a complete gym environment and a staff of TPI-certified professionals who integrate golf-specific strength, mobility, nutrition awareness, and injury-prevention strategies into personalized training plans.

Today’s announcement comes as Utah continues a multi-year surge in golf participation, with many courses reporting record play and UGA membership at an all-time high of nearly 46,000 golfers. By partnering with Tee Box, the UGA aims to translate that momentum into measurable player development and new ways to stay engaged with the game year-round.

About the Utah Golf Association:

The Utah Golf Association (UGA) is the governing body of amateur golf in Utah and a 501(c)(7) not-for-profit organization. Its mission is to promote interest in the game by encouraging, organizing, supporting, sponsoring, and administering golf activities and programs while engaging in educational and goodwill initiatives that further the game across the state.

About Tee Box:

The Tee Box mission is to revolutionize the game of golf by bringing together world-class on-demand coaching, cutting-edge club-fitting technology, and a vibrant, inclusive community. Tee Box provides personalized instruction from top-tier professionals, custom-fit equipment, golf-specific fitness training, and a supportive environment where players of all levels can connect, improve, and share their passion year-round.

Media Contacts:

Utah Golf Association: Easton Folster, Executive Director, [email protected]

Tee Box: Colby Kendell, Chief Marketing Officer, [email protected]

Utah Golf Association, Primo Golf Announce New Partnership Agreement

Easton Folster, the executive director of the Utah Golf Association (UGA), announced today a new sponsorship agreement with Primo Golf Apparel (Primo), a Utah-born company based in Lehi.

Folster said, “We are incredibly excited to announce this groundbreaking partnership with Primo. To align the preeminent amateur golf organization in the state with a Utah based golf apparel line was an easy decision for the UGA. It is incredibly rare to be at a golf course and not see golfers wearing Primo.”

Primo specializes in golf attire for the athletic golfer. Founded in June 2020 by four cousins who grew up playing golf together, the company started with a signature line of golf joggers, then expanded into polo shirts, hoodies, and quarter-zip tops. Its goal has been to bridge the gap between comfort and style.

In May, Primo, which means “cousin” in Spanish, launched a line of women’s golf apparel, the result of a year of interviewing and collaborating with women golfers. The company sells its products primarily through e-commerce channels; it also has national retail partnerships with Scheels and Al’s Sporting Goods.

Primo’s Matty Gay said, “We are thrilled to be partnering with the Utah Golf Association and show our support to Utah golf. We are proud to have Primo based in Utah and it only made sense for us to work alongside our wonderful state’s golf association. When we started in 2020, we realized that our brand would benefit from aligning ourselves with competitive golfers. The UGA aligns perfectly with that goal and we are excited to be involved in all of the championships they host. We believe that Utah will continue to develop talent that can compete at the highest level and we’re excited to play a small role in that.”

The agreement calls for Primo to have prominent logo presence at UGA championships including the historic Utah State Amateur and Utah Women’s State Amateur. The pioneering agreement marks Primo as the presenting sponsor of the UGA’s Player Performance Rankings and Player of the Year Awards. In addition, Primo will be the official apparel provider of the UGA and its traveling teams.

Today’s announcement builds upon the significant growth of amateur golf in Utah where many golf courses have seen a remarkable increase in rounds played year-over-year since 2020. The UGA has benefitted from the increase in play, growing its membership to an all-time high of nearly 40,000 golfers.

Folster said, “I am confident that both entities will benefit greatly from this partnership as we aim to elevate golf throughout the state.”

Score posting season will be inactive in Northern Utah until March 15th, 2024.

If we can still play, why do we stop posting in the winter?

Course and slope rating represent the difficulty of a course played under normal or mid-season playing conditions. The unpredictability of off-season conditions – a lack of foliage, lessened green speeds, reduced bounce and roll – can greatly affect a course’s difficulty. The course conditions during winter months are inconsistent with the way a course was rated; posting these scores could affect a player’s index.

A handicap index is defined as “potential scoring ability on a course of standard playing difficulty.” Consider a player on a course that, during the winter, was extraordinarily easy because the tees were moved up and there was no rough. Such a course would no longer reflect conditions under which it was rated, so accepting even a few scores could change a player’s index. The converse holds true for those facing quite difficult conditions, such as wet fairways or strong winter winds.

That’s why many associations in areas where winter can be harsh set an inactive season, which often lasts from November to the middle of March. To provide consistency in posting of scores across a state or region, all clubs within the association’s jurisdiction, whether member clubs of the association or not, must follow the inactive season.

Can I post rounds I’ve played anywhere else?

If you travel to St. George area, you may continue posting scores through the winter. If you travel out of the state to play, please check with a golf course staff member to see if you can post scores from rounds played at their course.

More resources and information can be found online at UGA.org, or by calling the UGA Office at 801-563-0400.