Holt is first to win twice in season openers

American Holt captured the Panama Championship to become the first Korn Ferry Tour player to win two of the season’s first three tournaments.

The 30-year old golfer won the Bahamas Great Abaco Classic last week and came back from two strokes behind to capture the title in Panama by two strokes this time.

Holt fired a closing 3-under 67 to finish at 8 under, two shots better than Adam Hadwin. It was the Canadians first Korn Ferry Tour event since 2014.

Trevor Cone was solo third at 4 under while Cole Hammer, Ian Gilligan and Jeremy Gandon tied for fourth at 3 under. Hammer was tied with Holt at the turn Sunday before shooting 4 over on his final nine.

Cone, a two-time Korn Ferry Tour winner recorded his highest finish on Tour since winning the 2022 AdventHealth Championship, a victory which propelled him to PGA TOUR membership at season’s end.

For Hammers, it was his first top-10 on Tour since the 2025 Chile Classic where he finished T3. Gilligan, who finished No. 4 in the 2025 PGA TOUR University Ranking, converts his first made cut of the 2026 season into his career-high finish on Tour.

It was also the highest finish Korn Ferry Tour winner Gandon since winning the 2025 Club Car Championship.

Third-round leader Tyler Duncan closed in 75 to slip to T-7. He carded two double bogeys and a triple in that final round.

Holt, who carded six birdies on the final day, now leads the Korn Ferry Tour points list by over 500 points. More notably, he is just one victory away from a promotion to the PGA Tour.

He is the first player in Korn Ferry Tour history (established 1990) to earn two victories in the first three events of a season; the last two players to win twice within the first six events of the season went on to earn the three-victory promotion (Wesley Bryan/2016; Carlos Ortiz/2014)

In his only previous appearance in the event last year, he only managed a T54 finish. Holt won the $180,000 winner’s share of the $1,000,000 purse.

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