John Pak tops first-ever PGA Tour University ranking
John Pak (Florida State photo)
The inaugural PGA Tour University ranking is out, and Florida State senior
John Pak is surprised to find himself sitting at No. 1.
When I first heard that I was No. 1, I was a little bit shocked as I thought it was going to be someone else,” said Pak, 21. “But for me to be the first one to top the Ranking is awesome and it shows that a lot of hard work is paying off.”
Related: AmateurGolf.com Feature Interview: John Pak
Pak had three wins in 2019 (the Sea Best Invitational, Mobile Sports Authority Intercollegiate and ACC Championship), and followed it up with two more this spring (Mobile Sports Authority Intercollegiate and Seminole Intercollegiate) before the COVID-19 outbreak put a stop to the college season.
Pak is the current No. 2 in the
Golfweek/AmateurGolf World Amateur Ranking, behind only Arizona State's
Chun An Yu. The two are switched in the inaugural PGA Tour Ranking, with Yu right behind Pak.
Yu, the 2019 AmateurGolf.com Player of the Year, was a model of consistency, always at or near the top of the leaderboard in major events. In addition to wins in the Australian Master of the Amateurs and the ASU Thunderbird Invitational, he finished 5th in the Australian Open and had eight top-5 finishes including a 3rd in the NCAA Championship.
Related: The 2019 AGC Men's Player of the Year: Chun An Yu
Rounding out the top 5 is
Austin Eckroat of Oklahoma State,
Davis Thompson of Georgia and
Sandy Scott of Texas Tech.
PGA Tour University Ranking, July 22
1.
John Pak, Florida State
2.
Chun An Yu, Arizona State
3.
Austin Eckroat, Oklahoma State
4.
Davis Thompson, Georgia
5.
Sandy Scott, Texas Tech
The top 5 in the final PGA TOUR University Ranking List will receive Korn Ferry Tour membership and will be exempt into all open, full-field events beginning the week after the 2021 NCAA Championship. The top 5 will also be exempt into the Final Stage of the Korn Ferry Tour Qualifying Tournament.
In order to be eligible for the PGA TOUR University Ranking List, a player must be a NCAA Division I golfer who completes a minimum of four years in college.
“I think this is so good for college golf – it’s something that will make guys stay in college. I was always planning to stay at Florida State for four years, but this definitely helped,” Pak said. “This program provides a lot more incentive to a lot of people, and it’s cool to think you can get guaranteed starts on the Korn Ferry or International Tours.”
Players ranked 6-15 in the final list will secure membership on one of the International Tours (it will be the player's choice) and a spot in the Second Stage of the Korn Ferry Tour Qualifying Tournament.
Players earn ranking points through their performance in NCAA Division I college tournaments, PGA TOUR events, and professional majors (Masters, U.S. Open and British Open Championship).