Smithers golfer Kaleb Gorbahn won his first professional tournament yesterday on the Outlaw Tour at the Dove Valley Championship in Cave Creek, Arizona.
Gorbahn carded six birdies and an eagle during the second and final round Dec. 10. Those were offset by two back-to-back double bogeys on the 14th and 15th holes, but his 4-under-par 68 to match Monday’s first round 68 was good enough for first place and the $3,500 purse.
“I’ve been feeling really good about my golf game since coming back from dealing with a back issue,” he said in a Facebook post following the round. “Thank you all for your support. Big thanks to my family who supports and lifts me up every day.”
READ MORE: Gorbahn’s drive to be a golf pro
It was his third event of the 2019-2020 season. Previously, he tied for 11th with partner Joey Medora of Arizona in the 2-Man Turkey Bowl Nov. 24 – 26 and missed the cut at the Papago Winter Classic Dec. 5 – 6.
Before qualifying for the Outlaw Tour, Gorbahn played college golf at the University of Nevada. In his senior year he averaged 74.25 over 24 rounds. His career best round in college was a 64 at the 2017 Jackrabbit Invitational, where he finished tied for second with a tournament score of 12-under-par.
At Smithers Secondary School Gorbahn competed in golf, volleyball and basketball. He was the Gryphons MVP four times in golf and volleyball and twice in basketball.
READ MORE: Junior finishes in Top 10 CJGA nationals
He is currently competing at a Golden State Tour event in Scottsdale, Arizona where he shot a first round 68 and is in a five-way tie for fifth place.
Gorbahn’s father, Dana Gorbahn, said he is very proud of Kaleb.
“This is something he’s been working for all of his life, basically,” Dana said. “He’s put in some really hard work as of late and it’s starting to come through, so we’re very happy that things are starting to click.”
The Outlaw Tour is a developmental mini tour on which professional golfers can hone their game in the hope of qualifying for bigger tours.
In January, Kaleb will get a chance to qualify for the PGA Latinoamérica Tour in Mazatlán, Mexico. If unsuccesful, he is scheduled to play in a qaulifying event for the Sunshine Tour in South Africa, but Dana said he will drop out of that if he gets status on the Latinoamérica Tour.
The Latinoamérica Tour is a third level tour that feeds the Korn Ferry (formerly Web.com) Tour, the primary path for golfers to graduate to the PGA Tour.
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