BYU Sophomore Kihei Akina Is Now Halfway to a PGA Tour Card
Kihei Akina is halfway to a PGA Tour card, and he got there faster than almost anyone expected.
The BYU sophomore finished ninth Sunday at the PGA Tour's Bank of Utah Championship, earning two points toward his PGA Tour University Accelerated total. That puts him at 10 points. He needs 20 to earn a card.
It was his third start in the event and his first time playing the weekend.
"Just a great week to be back here in Utah again," Akina said. "Just really lucky to have the privilege to be able to play here for the third time, and to be able to play well, it's pretty awesome."
Akina was born in Hawaii, played high school golf in Utah, and committed to BYU. He is now 10th in the World Amateur Golf Ranking. Last month he was a member of the U.S. Walker Cup team. When the year began, he had zero Accelerated points.
He has made three cuts on the PGA Tour this season. In June he finished top 10 at the NCAA Men's Golf Championship. He played on both the Palmer and Walker Cup teams. Add a top-10 finish on Tour, and the points added up quickly.
Only one player, Texas Tech junior Connor Graham, has more Accelerated points. Tennessee freshman Tyler Watts also sits at 10.
Three players — Gordon Sargent, Luke Clanton and Jackson Koivun — have already earned their PGA Tour cards through Accelerated. Akina is chasing the fourth.
His top-10 finish in Utah also earned him a spot in the field for the Butterfield Bermuda Championship later this month at Port Royal in Southampton. Another made cut and top 10 there would be worth two more points.
"It's in the back of your head," Akina said of the card. "At the end of the day, you've just got to play golf, and that's what I did this week."
If his 2026 trajectory holds, the math says he could get there by year's end.
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