Ivins, Utah — Austin Cook got off to a good start this week by avoiding missing the cut, making six birdies on Thursday to share the lead before a slow round at Black Desert at the Bank of Utah Championship stopped in the dark.
Thorbjorn Olesen, Jesper Svensson and David Lipsky each shot a 6-under 65 on the unique course, surrounded by red dirt and black lava rock.
Cook was also at 6 under with a 20-foot birdie putt on the reachable par-4 14th, but it was too dark to continue. Afternoon tee time was pushed back 15 minutes. The 38 athletes who did not finish the race were to restart at 8 a.m.
Mr. Cook had few complaints. This is only his eighth start of the year for the one-time PGA Tour winner. He was far down the reserve list but was at the beach with his family, planning to compete in Monday’s qualifying round.
“Saturday was the last minute to make the first alternate. I felt like I was going to make it, so I helped drive everyone home on Sunday and left on Monday. I got a text message on the plane,” he said. Cook replaced Erik van Rooyen, who was absent.
Olesen was also surprisingly happy with his start. He was in Mississippi for the Sanderson Farms Championship, then returned to Europe to compete in the Spanish Open, then returned to his home in Dubai before coming to Utah. It was a long time in the air.
“I would say my expectations were pretty low this morning,” Olesen said. “But the last few days I’ve just been trying to recover and get my body ready for today.”
Olesen is 116th in the FedEx Cup and has friends on the bubble. Svensson is 115th and Lipsky is 99th.
After this week, there are only three tournaments left in the season for players to finish in the top 100 in the FedEx Cup and hold a full card for the 2026 season. The top 100 is down from 125 players who held cards a year ago.
The 66th-place group, one stroke behind, included Paul Peterson, who had an eight-hole round at 2 over before finishing with six birdies and one eagle.
Black Desert has a lot of birdie opportunities, but it also has a lot of trouble. Billy Horschel, who missed five months this year due to hip surgery, rounded the round at 1 under until starting with a bogey on the back nine, but hit a quadruple-bogey 8 on the 11th hole.
He tried to play outside in the desert, but fell into black lava. Despite receiving a penalty drop, Horschel continued to play in the red dirt, balancing on some rocks. The shot missed to the left of the green. He kept pitching and sank a three-putt from just inside 20 feet.
Horschel at least bounced back by driving the 14th green to 20 feet for an eagle putt and adding a 12-foot birdie on the par-3 15th. He salvaged 72.
Max Homa was close to the lead and improved to 3 under par, then fell into the water on the 13th hole for a double bogey. He also bounced back with a drive on the 14th green (winning a birdie), but faltered further with a soft bogey on the 16th and an inability to save par from the bunker on the par-3 17th. He was even par with a 27-foot birdie attempt on the 18th to start Friday.
Alex Nolen finished his round with a 4-under 67. The Swede was sidelined until early May due to a foot injury, but is still aiming to break into the top 100 at the FedEx Cup. Nolen won the BMW PGA Championship in Britain, the European Tour’s flagship event, and served as vice-captain of Europe’s winning Ryder Cup team.
