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ELEPHANT BUTTE, N.M. — Under clear skies and with the winds of Turtleback Mountain at his back, Aidan Thomas did more than tee up his professional debut. He carved his name into New Mexico golf history.
Thomas, the 2018 state high school champion from St. Pius X, returned home to win the 2025 New Mexico Open in his very first professional tournament. With rounds of 68–64–71, he finished at 13-under to claim the $20,000 winner’s check and the trophy, etching a story that felt both inevitable and unbelievable.
“Whoever wins this year or finishes in the top five, you’re going to hear their name down the road on the PGA Tour,” said Todd Kersting, PGA Professional at Puerto Del Sol. “Aidan proved that true on day one.”
The road wasn’t smooth. The final round brought gusting winds that tested every player in the field of 137. Hole No. 15, the hardest hole of the week, gave up only two birdies on the last day. Thomas leaned into patience, posting just enough steady golf to hold off Jhared Hack, who finished one shot back at 12-under.
Hack’s week will also be remembered for history of another kind. He got a hole in one on No. 17, on the very same day, on the very same hole, that Devin Miertschin also made a hole-in-one. Two aces on the same hole in one championship round feels scripted, but it was as real as the cheers that echoed through Elephant Butte.
Behind Thomas and Hack, Ryan Sullivan, A.J. Crouch, and Brian Stark tied for third at 11-under. Low Amateur honors went to New Mexico State’s Javier Delgadillo, who closed with a steady 71 to finish eight under for the week.
Beyond the leaderboard, the tournament itself was a landmark. The 2025 New Mexico Open carried a record purse of $100,000, placing it among the top 10 sectional tournaments in the nation. That milestone, supported by sponsors and the resort, reflects a growing vision.
Notah Begay III, the four-time PGA Tour champion and New Mexico native, stated: “I think when people come here, what they’re really going to go away with is the great hospitality we have here in New Mexico. This championship means a lot to the section, but also the quality of the venue.”
That hospitality, paired with Turtleback’s dramatic desert backdrop, is changing perceptions. New Mexico is no longer a hidden gem. It’s a stage. Thomas’s win, his first as a pro, in front of his home state crowd, is proof of what’s possible here. The state’s courses, its people, and its players are stepping into the spotlight. The New Mexico Open is no longer just another stop on the calendar; it’s where careers can begin, stories can turn, and history can be made.
-Clay Adelizzi
SANTA FE, N.M. — Collin Pratt, from Isleta Golf Course, claimed the 2025 E-Z-GO Stableford Championship at Santa Fe Country Club, tallying 106 points over two rounds of golf. His steady blend of birdies and timely eagles set him apart from other players in the tournament.
Round One set the tone. Pratt carded a 65 worth 58 points, highlighted by six birdies and a towering eagle on the 7th hole which is the 581-yard, par-5. While the field battled narrow margins and the challenge of Hole 13, the toughest of the day at a 4.47 average, Pratt’s persistence built him a cushion that mattered.
The second round brought more of the same. With four birdies and a decisive eagle on Hole 16, the par-5, Pratt’s 69 added 48 points.
Pratt’s second round was impressive. He gave a shot back with bogeys on the 1st and 4th, but quickly combatted that with birdies at 2, 5, and 6 to steady the front nine at 34. Coming in, his eagle on the 16th hole, a par-5, proved the difference, keeping him just ahead of El Paso’s Devin Miertschin, who was right on his heels all day.
El Paso’s Devin Miertschin (Lone Star Golf Club) finished just two points shy with 104, posting seven birdies on the final day. Veteran PGA Life Member Kent Jones (Albuquerque, N.M.) closed at 103, highlighted by his own eagle on the seventh hole.
In the Stableford system, where risk is rewarded, Pratt’s eagle late in the final round wasn’t just a shot, it separated him from other players participating in the E-Z-GO Stableford Championship.
In the end, Pratt’s 106 points earned him the championship and a place alongside the past winners of this distinctive Sun Country PGA event.
