RENO (April 27, 2026)–Spencer Tibbits fired a five-under-par 67 and won Medalist honors in the 126th U.S. Open Northern Nevada first-stage qualifier. Daniel Wittlinger, Monte Chumchaivate and Jhared Hack also advanced to the second stage with the hopes of qualifying for the 2026 U.S. Open which will be held June 18-21, 2026, at Shinnecock Hills Golf Club in Southampton, N.Y. The northern 18-hole qualifier was held April 27, 2026, at Hidden Valley Country Club in Reno.–by Bill Bowman
MEDALIST
Spencer Tibbits, who graduated from Oregon State in 2021 following a four-year college golf career, has been working hard to make his way in the golf world.
Tibbits, who calls Vancouver, WA, home, now moves a step closer to playing in the 2026 U.S. Open. If he qualifies, it will be his second time making it into the tournament as he qualified in 2019 while at Oregon State.
Daniel Wittlinger and Monte Chumchaivate finished one shot back with 68s and also moved on as did Jhared Hack who carded a 69 and advanced in a three-way playoff.
Tibbits made his big move in the qualifier at the turn when he strung together four straight birdies on holes 8, 9, 10 and 11.
“Midway through the round I really got the putter going,” he said. “I got it to seven-under through 13 but had a little bit of an unfortunate finish but it was still good enough to move on.”
He bogeyed the 15th with a ball in the water and also bogeyed the 17th with a ball plugged in the bunker.
It was the tee shot on 17, a par-3, that left him shaking his head.
“The shot that really got me was on 17,” he said. “It was 190 yards and it was probably my best swing of the day. But it wound up plugging in the bunker and I ended up making bogey.”
But he still kept a positive frame of mind.
“For the day, I drove it pretty decent,” he said. “I did have a couple of loose shots on the back nine that ended up OK. But, for top-tier courses going forward, I can’t afford to do that. I just need to tighten up a few shots and that will go a long way.”
Now it’s on to Round 2.
“I’ve been here before,” Tibbits said. “I made it in 2019 and missed by a shot last year so I know what it takes.”
He said this victory gives him one more bit of confidence going forward in his golf journey that may—or may not—end up on the PGA Tour.
“There’s no doubt it’s very difficult to get on the Tour,” he said. “I do have status in Europe which is a good start. I’m 0-for-3 in the second stages of Q-School so it’s been all about the timing. There are a lot of very good players who haven’t gotten to the PGA Tour who are better than me so it’s definitely a tough road. We’ll just have to see how it goes. You’ve got to be playing well at the right time.”
Medalist
Spencer Tibbits, 67
Other Qualifiers
Daniel Wittlinger, 68
Monte Chumchaivate, 68
Jhared Hack, 69 (Advanced in three-way playoff)
Alternates
1st-Luke Swanson, 69
2nd-Vineet Vallamsetty, 69
