Since the inaugural class graduated in June 2021, PGA TOUR University alumni have combined for 13 professional victories. Through their play on Korn Ferry Tour in 2022, Trevor Werbylo, Davis Thompson, Kevin Yu and Austin Eckroat became the first four PGA TOUR University alumni to earn their PGA TOUR cards.
Trevor Werbylo, University of Arizona (Class of 2021)
After finishing No. 9 in the 2021 Velocity Global Ranking, Werbylo won his fifth pro start last summer and topped the 2021 PGA TOUR Canada Order of Merit for fully exempt Korn Ferry Tour membership this season. He took full advantage of the opportunity, winning the Lake Charles Championship in March en route to finishing 16th on the Korn Ferry Tour Regular Season Eligibility Points List. In his rookie season this summer, the University of Arizona product was a featured cast member in the Korn Ferry Tour’s YouTube series, One Shot Away.
“When I was writing down some goals for the season, number one was to get a PGA TOUR card,” Werbylo said. “To be in such a great position to achieve that is really cool and really satisfying. There is still so much to motivate me still.”
Davis Thompson, University of Georgia (Class of 2021)
The No. 2 player from the Class of 2021 posted four top-10s this season, including a win at the REX Hospital Open on his 23rd birthday, and finished 14th on the points list. Thompson will continue the long lineage of Georgia Bulldogs on the PGA TOUR, and his preparation is already well underway, as he frequently plays with fellow Georgia alums Harris English and Keith Mitchell.
"This is a huge step in the right direction, but the ultimate goal is to be one of the top players on the PGA TOUR and I’m just going to try to keep working towards that," Thompson said. “I try to stay even-keeled, but on the inside I’m a very competitive individual. I think it comes from just growing up playing all sports, and I’ve always tried to be the best I could in everything.”
Kevin Yu, Arizona State (Class of 2021)
The Arizona State graduate finished No. 4 in the PGA TOUR University Class of 2021 and posted five top-25s in eight Korn Ferry Tour starts last summer. This year, he tallied a pair of runner-up finishes and a solo-third en route to finishing 20th on the points list. Yu joins his mentor C.T. Pan as the only Chinese Taipei players in history to earn a PGA TOUR card via the Korn Ferry Tour.
"It's amazing, it's a dream come true to me,” Yu said. “I've been dreaming of this moment since I was five years old and since I just started to play golf. Now it's a dream come true and I'm looking forward to next season.”
Austin Eckroat, Oklahoma State (Class of 2021)
Eckroat started the 2022 season as a conditional member on Korn Ferry Tour and he ended it with a PGA TOUR card. He finished runner-up at the season-ending Korn Ferry Tour Championship presented by United Leasing & Finance and earned his first PGA TOUR card by finishing No. 3 in The Finals 25. In all, his season included 10 top-25 finishes and two runner-ups, and at one point he recorded 33 consecutive rounds of par or better.
"I started with Monday qualifiers, had conditional status so it was a short year," said Eckroat, who was the No. 3 player in the PGA TOUR University Class of 2021. "I had to do something special just to get into the top 75 and now I'm TOUR Bound. It happened quick."