Early in the week at the Utah Championship on the Web.com Tour, Chad Collins had a very realistic shot at 59 -- or even lower. He wound up tantalizingly close, shooting 60.
On Sunday, Will Wilcox did Collins one better. With a 6-foot birdie putt at the final hole, Wilcox carded 12-under 59 to finish the week at 21 under par.
It may not be enough to win the tournament in Sandy, but it put Wilcox into special company, becoming just the fourth player in the tour's history to shoot 59.
The last player to shoot 59 on the developmental circuit was Jason Gore, who did it in 2005 in the second round of the Cox Classic. Gore went on to win the tournament in a playoff as the last of three consecutive wins that landed him on the PGA Tour through a Battlefield Promotion.
In 1998, both Doug Dunakey and Notah Begay III shot 59 on the circuit.
Begay III did it first in the second round of the Dominion Open in Richmond, Va., before ending up tied for sixth place.
Dunakey did it at the Miami Valley Open, finishing the job after starting 10 under through his first 11 holes. However, he could have shot 59 were it not for a three-putt bogey at the last hole. He finished T-2.
Of the five 59s shot in PGA Tour history, three went on to win the tournament that week (Al Geiberger, David Duval, Stuart Appleby).
Wilcox will become the third player to shoot 59 on the Web.com Tour and not win, but his round will still go down in lore. Beginning on the 10th tee, Wilcox made four straight birdies to open the round. A birdie at No. 16 followed by an eagle at the par-5 17th had him turning at 7 under on the round.
After a par at his 10th hole, Wilcox dropped three consecutive birdies, followed by a pair of pars. Needing to birdie out to shoot the magical 59, he did just that, including the 6-footer to close.
Wilcox, 27, is already a winner on the Web.com Tour this season, taking the South Georgia Classic in April.
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