Wichita golfer Sam Stevens, a PGA Tour rookie, wins 2nd straight U.S. Open qualifier

For a second straight year, Wichita native Sam Stevens won a Monday qualifier to secure his place in the field of the United States Open Championship.

The 26-year-old Kapaun Mt. Carmel graduate was dominant at a final qualifying tournament in Springfield, Ohio, playing 36 holes of bogey-free golf to card a 13-under total of 127 strokes at Springfield Country Club on Monday. He cleared the field of 75 golfers vying for five qualifying spots by three strokes.

Stevens punched his ticket to the field of 156 players in next week’s US Open, as he will tee off on the North course at Los Angeles Country Club on Thursday, June 15.

It will be the third major played in the brief professional career of Stevens, a 2018 Oklahoma State graduate. He finished tied for 49th at last year’s US Open, then tied for 72nd place at the PGA Championship earlier this year. He has made the cut in both of his major appearances.

After earning his PGA Tour card with his finish in the Korn Ferry Tour last summer, Stevens is off to a strong start in his debut season. He has made 12 of 21 cuts in the 2022-23 season with four top-25 finishes, including a runner-up finish at the Valero Texas Open in early April that earned him a $970,100 paycheck.

He has earned upward of $1.7 million in prize money this season and ranks 56th in the FedExCup standings, which is on pace to qualify Stevens for the end-of-season playoffs in August.