Nick Dunlap, a 20-year-old two-time PGA Tour winner, is one of the youngest players competing in the 2024 Sanderson Farms Championship. On the other end of the age spectrum, 71-year-old Reed Hughes is the oldest competitor in the field, teeing it up for his first PGA Tour start since 2007. Hughes, who got into the field thanks to his win in the 2023 Gulf States E-Z-GO Section Championship, made his PGA Tour debut in 1984 and has played on the Tour eight times, missing the cut each time.
Hughes, whose last PGA Tour-sanctioned start was in 2012 at the Senior PGA Championship, has made 19 starts in PGA Tour-sanctioned events in his career. Despite his age, Hughes earned his spot in the Sanderson Farms Championship field by winning the Gulf States PGA Section event with a final round 68 that was the best of the event by 3 strokes and beat the field average by 10 strokes. Of the top 20 players in the Official World Golf Ranking, only Adam Scott was born before Hughes made his debut, showcasing the generation gap between the two players.
As Hughes prepares to tee it up at the Sanderson Farms Championship, golf fans can look forward to seeing if he can break his age while playing alongside some of the best players in the world. This unique matchup of generations on the course is sure to provide an intriguing storyline for viewers and spectators. Despite the age difference between Dunlap and Hughes, both players bring their own set of skills and experience to the tournament, making for an interesting dynamic on the leaderboard.
With Dunlap’s youth and recent success on the PGA Tour, and Hughes’ decades of experience and persistence in pursuing his passion for golf, the Sanderson Farms Championship offers a platform for players of all ages to showcase their talent and compete at the highest level. As Hughes prepares to take on the challenge of competing against much younger players, the golfing community can rally behind him and cheer for his success in defying the odds and continuing to pursue his dream on the PGA Tour. Stay tuned to see how the young and old players fare in this exciting tournament.
