Former Utah golfer Tomlinson surges to 2-shot lead after 36 holes at Utah Open

PROVO — Blake Tomlinson "had a good feeling" that Saturday could be a good round at Riverside Country Club when he birdied the first two holes at Riverside Country Club.

By No. 15, he went for "good" to "contending."

The former University of Utah golfer carded 10 birdies, including a brilliant finish on the par-4, 415-yard 18th hole to surge into the lead at the 100th edition of the Larry H. Miller Utah Open.

Tomlinson carded 10 birdies in his bogey-free round, with few bigger than then par-5, 584-yard 15th hole. That's where the Salt Lake City native took his first lead after catching up to former BYU golfer Carson Lundell, who was in a four-way tie for first after Friday's opening round and remained there with a 5-under 67 to lead the morning flight.

But Tomlinson's been here before. He won the Utah Open in 2022 to jumpstart a professional career that included a pair of Provo Open titles at nearby Timpanogos Golf Course. He plans to stick to a similar routine the night before Sunday's final round but with one added caveat: his girlfriend Kate, who caddied for him at Riverside.

"I'll probably grab a good burger after this," he said, adding he's not superstitious "outside of the golf course" when it comes to routines.

Tomlinson, whose 10-under 62 tied the low round of the tournament's first 36 holes with former BYU golfer Keanu Akina, found his putter and didn't let up as he moved around the course in breakneck course speed on moving day.

"My short game was really good today," admitted Tomlinson. "I maybe had one tester, and that was it. But my short game was really good."

A day after barreling through to 9-under 63, Lundell kept his foot down to stay in a tie for second place (two shots behind Tomlinson) with Spanish Fork's Jackson Rhees and recent BYU grad Simon Kwon, who shot 6-under 66 on Saturday in his professional tournament debut.

Lundell, a former three-time 5A state champion at Lone Peak just two weeks removed from winning the Colorado Open carded four birdies and an eagle on the par-5, 557-yard 13th hole to surge to 14-under and a one-shot lead after the morning wave.

Fellow BYU alum Tyson Shelley, the former Skyline High standout playing less than a week removed from turning pro, shot 4-under 68 for a tie for fifth at 13-under with Draper native Rhett Rasmussen.

The former BYU golfer carded eight birdies, including six through the first eight holes as he surged into contention with a strong start.

"I was just kind of doing everything well: hitting it down the middle, hitting some good wedge shots, and then the putter got hot," Rasmussen said. "It was nice."

Homegrown Utahns dominated the top of the leaderboard after 36 holes, which cut the field down to the top 64 and ties at 1-under.

The top 11 golfers all claimed a Utah city as their hometown, down to Colorado pro and two-time Utah Open champion Derek Fribbs in a tie for 12th at 10-under.

"There are so many good players in this state, and everybody mentions how cool it is to come back to this," said Rasmussen, who will head to PGA qualifying school in October. "It's like a family reunion for everybody; it's just awesome. And it's even better to have it at Riverside, practically my home course.

"It's pretty cool that this thing has been going for 100 years."

Larry H. Miller Utah Open

Riverside Country Club

Top 10 (and ties)

• 128 — Blake Tomlinson (p)
• 130 — Carson Lundell (p), Simon Kwon (p), Jackson Rhees (p)
• 131 — Tyson Shelley (p), Rhett Rasmussen (p)
• 132 — Braxton Watts (p), Keanu Akina (p), Jackson Mauss (a)
• 133 — John Fox (p), Parker Bunn (a)
• Full leaderboard available at utahpga.com

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