Before Westminster resident Jennifer Kupcho became the full-fledged golf phenom she is now in Colorado, her older brother Steven garnered his share of headlines in the state.
Steven won the Colorado Junior Amateur by six strokes in 2011. The next year he put together a major-league rally to capture the CGA Amateur title, coming from nine strokes down heading into the final round and prevailing by one after shooting a 66.
On Friday, just five days after Jennifer finished 21st in the U.S. Women’s Open as a 20-year-old, Steven reminded observers again that he too has plenty of game. Kupcho shot a 6-under-par 66 — “and I probably wasted a 63 or 64 out there,” he said — to move into a tie for second place after two days of the CoBank Colorado Open at Green Valley Ranch Golf Club in northeast Denver. He carded nine birdies and three bogeys in round 2.
“It’s fun to see her do well,” Steven said of Jennifer, who has committed to play in the CoBank Colorado Women’s Open Aug. 30-Sept. 1. “But I love being able to go home with a round in the 60s too every once in a while.”
With a 10-under-par 134 total in the $250,000 tournament, Kupcho is one of several Coloradans on the leaderboard after day 2. Jacob Lestishen from Lone Tree fired a tournament-best 8-under-par 64 on Friday to grab a one-stroke lead at 133. Kupcho and two-time PGA Tour winner Jonathan Kaye, who lives in Boulder during the summer, are tied for second at 134 with Oscar Fraustro of Mexico and Thomas Bass of Wilmington, N.C.
With two lightning-related delays totaling almost two hours, not all the competitors finished their second round by Friday night. Some have as many as three holes remaining. They’ll complete round 2 Saturday morning, a cut will be made to the low 60 players and ties, then the third round will begin.
Kupcho (pictured with father/caddie Mike on Friday), who turned pro just a little more than a year ago, has posted two second-place finishes and two thirds in tournaments in the last couple of months. Now he’s hoping to make a run at the title at the Colorado Open, where he was low amateur in 2012 after shooting 66-67 the first two rounds.
“This is an event I love,” the 24-year-old said. “It’s probably my favorite event of the summer.”
Through two rounds, Kupcho has racked up 14 birdies at GVR. He’s hoping that continues on the weekend.
“It’s interesting playing professionally now,” he said. “It’s just another step up. It was kind of hard adjusting to that last summer. You learn that you’re not always ‘on’. You’re not shooting a course record on every shot like you want.
“But I definitely learned how to play golf better than I ever did as an amateur. I’m not worried about my swing, I’m not worried about mechanics. I just go out there and feel my way around the golf course and using the 20-plus years of experience I have in this game to try to get the ball in the hole. It seems to be working.”
Also in a nice groove so far this week is Lestishen (left), who went bogey-free on Friday with his 64 to vault into the lead. Letishen said it was his low tournament round ever.
“That’s certainly one of the better (rounds) I’ve had,” said the 29-year-old, who earlier this year advanced to the U.S. Open Sectional Qualifying stage for the second time. “I made a lot of putts obviously. I was nice and comfortable out there all day. Doing it in the Colorado Open is always going to help you be near the top.”
Lestishen had to qualify to get into the Open, but is making the most of his opportunity so far.
“It’s a fun week,” he said. “You always want to be in contention. It’s always nice to be up near the top. There’s two more days to give it a shot.
“I’ve gotten some things figured out over the last few weeks. I feel like the game is better than it has been for a while. I’ve just got to keep it going.”
Meanwhile, Kaye has picked up where he left off last year at GVR. After going 67-66-70-66 at the Colorado Open in 2016, he’s gone 67-67 this week. On Friday, he was 2 over par through his first six holes, then birdied seven of his final 12 without another bogey.
Not bad for a guy who hasn’t competed in a tournament in three months.
“I kind of hoped to be in contention,” the former University of Colorado golfer said. “I expect to be there. Golf is golf, right? It’s like riding a bike — I think. I hope that when the heat’s on, I remember what to do.
“There’s no substitute for competition. But when I play, I set goals for myself every round so I have some sort of competition that I’m doing — with people or with myself to keep me in it.”
Kaye will turn 47 on Aug. 2, but the 1996 chapion has proven at the Colorado Open that he can compete with players half his age.
“The ball doesn’t know how old you are,” he said. “That’s what I was told. I’m still fit. I’m sure these young guys can hit it past me, but I would hope maybe that I’ve got a little more creativity in my game and shot-making abilities than some of them.”
Notable: The 36-hole cut — to the low 60 players and ties — will be made after the completion of round 2 on Saturday morning. Depending on how things play out early Saturday, either 2 or 3 under par total — or better — will be needed to advance to round 3. Very windy conditions in the late afternoon kept the cut line from going lower. … Texan Branson Davis withdrew six holes into his second round on Friday when he was experiencing symptoms that medical personnel thought might be an appendicitis. Davis was 1 over par for the tournament at the time. … After two days, Jake Staiano, the Colorado State University golfer from Cherry Hills Village, holds the low-amateur position by two strokes. The 2017 U.S. Amateur qualifier has shot rounds of 68-69 for a 7-under-par 137 total, which leaves him in 14th place overall, four back of Lestishen. University of Colorado golfer John Souza (71-68) is second among amateurs. … The winner — or low professional — on Sunday will receive $100,000.
For all the scores from GVR, CLICK HERE.
