Two returning champions will be back to try to win a second Ascendant title this weekend at TPC Colorado.

Nelson Ledesma, who won the inaugural Korn Ferry tournament at TPC Colorado in 2019 when it was called the TPC Colorado Championship, is back in the Berthoud field for a fifth time. Last year, he tied for 48th.

Zecheng Dou, who won the tournament the first year after its name change to The Ascendant in 2022, will also be a part of this year’s event. Dou won with a then-tournament record score of 271 that year.

Nine of the top 10 golfers in the Korn Ferry points standings will also be in action this weekend. Austin Smotherman (1), Johnny Keefer (2), Hank Lebioda (3), S.H. Kim (4), Pierceson Coody (5), Davis Chatfield (6), Emilio Gonzalez (7), Mitchell Meissner (9), and Neal Shipley (10) will all be looking to maintain their spots in the top 10.

Smotherman became the first Korn Ferry Tour golfer to earn his PGA Tour card this year after winning both the BMW Charity Pro-Am and the Memorial Health Championship in a three-week stretch, which vaulted him to the No. 1 position and assured him of a top-20 finish on the final points list.

Also in the field this weekend are Air Force alums Kyle Westmoreland and Tom Whitney. Westmoreland captured his first Korn Ferry Tour win in 2025 at the Astara Golf Championship. Among the players who earned sponsor exemptions via the Saturday qualifier at TPC Colorado was Evan Brown, a Colorado State University alumnus who will be making his fourth appearance in The Ascendant — though this is his first since 2022 and his first Korn Ferry Tour start since 2023.

About the Korn Ferry

Announced in early 1989 by PGA Tour commissioner Deane Beman, the “satellite tour” was formalized by the PGA Tour in 1990 as a steppingstone to the main tour. It was originally named the Ben Hogan Tour, sponsored by the Ben Hogan Golf Company.

Over the years, the tour has undergone several sponsorship changes, culminating with Korn Ferry announcing a 10-year sponsorship deal in 2019, which was also the first year of The Ascendant. (It was called the TPC Colorado Championship from 2019-2021).

Two years ago, the Korn Ferry Tour increased the number of PGA Tour spots available to qualifiers from 25 to 30, but this year the number of qualifiers from the Korn Ferry Tour to the PGA Tour has been reduced down to 20.

Past graduates of the tour include PGA Tour stars Scottie Scheffler, Justin Thomas, Will Zalatoris, Sam Burns, Max Homa, Tony Finau and dozens more.

Record watch

The tournament record has not been safe at TPC Colorado over the past several years.

After Ledesma shot a 273 in 2019, Zalatoris matched that number the next year. After that, the four-round score went lower each year.

Tag Ridings shot a 272 in 2021;

Dou shot a 271 in 2022; Nicholas Lindheim shot a 268 in 2023; and Christobal Del Solar set the current mark with a 266 last year.

The Korn Ferry Tour has seen some low scores this season, and if the recent trend continues, the record should fall again this weekend.

Fun fact

The TPC Colorado course can play up to 8,029 yards from the tournament tees, but it is most notable for its 773-yard, par-5 13th hole, the longest in PGA Tour-sanctioned tournament play.