The 2023 Midwest Masters Tournament will be held on August 26th, the fifth edition of the revered competition.
Saturday’s tee times will range from 2:00 to 2:30 p.m., featuring the first four-group arrangement in the Tournament’s history. A record 13 players are expected to compete in this year’s Masters.
Leading the way in the initial grouping at 2:00 p.m. will be Midwest Masters official scorer Wyatt Mosson competing in his fifth Tournament. Joining Mosson will be Ryan Lear of Sumner, Illinois, making his fourth start, and Kevin Schuh of Mt. Carmel, Illinois in his third appearance.
The second grouping, teeing off at 2:10 p.m., includes Board of Governor Tanner Watkins of Indianapolis, Indiana. Rounding out the group will be first-timer Carter McCue of Spring Hill, Tennessee, as well as Brayden Cowling, joining in the competition as one of two players traveling from Irving, Texas to play.
This year’s lone four-player grouping will begin at 2:20 p.m., led by Board of Governor Jonah Laws in his fifth Masters. Doug Findley will make his first start in the Tournament, in addition to Lucas Rogers’ second career Masters appearance.
Our final grouping of the day will see players tee off at 2:30 p.m. Four-time champion and Board of Governor Nathan Utley will take aim at a fifth straight Green Jacket bid, playing alongside his father, Rex, in his fourth Masters appearance. Five-time starter and last year’s runner-up Mitch Lear will join the Utley’s to round out the field of competitors.
Headlines and Trends
- Growing Field: There are a record 13 players on this year’s Midwest Masters tee sheet. The previous record was 12, set at the 2022 Tournament.
- By Any Means Necessary: A pair of players will be challenged further than the normal difficulty that Cambridge Golf Course provides. Jordan Cox will be playing through a rehab process stemming from last month’s appendectomy, while Mitch Lear will be joining us after flying into Evansville on Tournament morning from an out-of-state trip.
- Four-Time: Nathan Utley enters the 2023 Tournament after winning the first four editions of the Masters. Last year’s event saw the closest margin of victory at six strokes.
- First Time: Two first-time players are making their debut in this year’s Midwest Masters: Doug Findley of Marshall, Illinois and Carter McCue of Spring Hill, Tennessee.
- Southpaws: There are two left-handed players in this year’s field: Jordan Cox of Olney, Illinois and Brayden Cowling of Irving, Texas.
- Ironmen: Five players have started every Midwest Masters thus far: Jonah Laws, Mitch Lear, Wyatt Mosson, Nathan Utley and Tanner Watkins.
- Four-For-Five: Only Mitch Lear and Nathan Utley have finished in the top five in each of the Tournament’s first four events.
- Family Ties: The father-son combination of Rex and Nathan Utley will make their fourth all-time start together.
- Birdie Hunt: There have not been scores under par recorded at the following holes at the Midwest Masters: Hole’s No. 1, 2, 4, 5, 6, 9, 10, 14, 15, 16, 17 and 18. Notably, Holes No. 2 and 16 are Par Fives.
- 80 – The New 90: In the first three editions of the Midwest Masters Tournament from 2019 to 2021, Nathan Utley was the only player to shoot under 90. In last year’s Tournament, three players shot in the 80s: Utley (82), Mitch Lear (88) and debutant Lucas Rogers (89).
- Domination: Four-time champion Nathan Utley has never trailed in the Midwest Masters after the second hole. Last year the Irving, Texas player won wire-to-wire for the first time.
- Raising the Bar: Last year’s Midwest Masters field set the record for most birdies, pars and bogeys in the Tournament. The 2022 field average was also lowest in Midwest Masters history at 98.25 – under 100 for the first time.
- About Cambridge: Cambridge Golf Course, home of the Midwest Masters, measures at an 18-hole distance of 6,227 yards for the Tournament and has a par of 72. The first nine distance totals 3,109 yards while the second nine distance amounts to 3,118 yards.
- Yardages, Vol II: Three holes (No.’s 2, 7 and 16) total 500 yards or more while three holes (No.’s 3, 5 and 13) measure at less than 155 yards.
- Scoring Trends: The 147-yard Par Three third hole has the lowest field average score relative to par (3.50) while the 506-yard Par Five second hole has the highest (7.58). Nine holes set field Tournament lows in 2022.