Amateur Golfer Stripped Of Korn Ferry Tour Pro-Am Title After Sandbagging Allegations

An American amateur has been stripped of a pro-am title he won at a Korn Ferry Tour event this season after a “thorough review of information regarding the original championship results” was conducted.

Paired together, Korn Ferry Tour pro David Kocher and amateur Josh Howell romped to victory in the BMW Charity Pro-Am Amateur X3 division at the start of June.

Rounds of 64, 62 and 59 were good enough to earn the duo a nine-shot win from their nearest challengers before eyebrows were raised into the legitimacy of the triumph.

On X, a user with the handle @YipStrickler conducted his own review into the result and claims to have found evidence to suggest Howell competed with a false handicap of 5.0 - declaring a case of 'sandbagging'.

According to Strickler, there is a Josh Howell registered as a 5.0 handicap playing out of Wyoming State Golf Club, but that account was allegedly created just one month out from the tournament and only has five rounds posted on it.

As the @YipStrickler investigation continues, he claims to have uncovered that there is a Joshua Howell registered with a +0.9 handicap playing out of Soldier Hollow Golf Club in Utah. And as it transpires, that is the only account of a Josh or Joshua Howell registered in the state of Utah.

While those facts alone don’t prove any wrongdoing, the tournament tagged Howell in several social media posts and a look at his profile shows that he states he is from Northern Utah.

Howell also names Soldier Hollow Golf Club in some of his social media posts.

A look at the winning scorecards adds more weight behind the allegations.

In the first round at the Country Club of Spartanburg, Kocher shot a one-over 71 while the team put together a six-under 64, with Howell making three gross birdies on the back nine.

Things ramped up on day two at Thornblade Golf Club. A three-over 74 saw Kocher miss the cut, but he had to return on Saturday for the final round of the pro-am after the nine-under 62 that featured five more gross birdies by Howell.

It’s unknown how many birdies Howell contributed to the 12-under 59 in the final round, but tournament organisers clearly felt the situation was suspicious enough to warrant an investigation.

Now that has concluded, Howell has been stripped of his win, with runner-up Chris Harrison, who combined with Korn Ferry Tour pro Dylan Menante to post a total of 18-under, declared the champion.

An official statement from the tournament said: “Congratulations to Chris Harrison, the official and rightful 2026 BMW Charity Pro-Am presented by TD SYNNEX Amateur X3 Division Champion.

“Following a thorough review of information regarding the original championship results, the Tournament has officially recognized Chris as this year’s X3 Division winner. His outstanding performance throughout Tournament play earned him his title, and we are proud to ensure he receives the recognition he rightfully deserves.

“Integrity and sportsmanship will always be at the heart of the BMW Charity Pro-Am presented by TD SYNNEX. Moving forward, we are implementing enhanced registration review procedures and additional handicap verification protocols to help ensure an equitable playing field for every professional, celebrity, and amateur participant.”

The Korn Ferry Tour refused to comment when contacted by Golf Monthly. Josh Howell has made no public comment.