WISCONSIN STATE OPEN
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Write-Up provided by Gary D’Amato (garydamatogolf@gmail.com) and Wisconsin.Golf
FRANKLIN — The Wisconsin State Open had been played 105 times since 1919 and had featured virtually every luminary who ever swung a club in our state, from Manuel de la Torre to Andy North to Steve Stricker.
It’s safe to say, however, that there has never been a final-round duel quite like the one that unfolded Wednesday at Tuckaway Country Club. And it may be many years before there is another one like it.
Hyperbole? If anything, we undersold it.
Kaylor Steger of Mount Pleasant and former Marquette University all-American Mike Van Sickle of Wexford, Pa., put on a dazzling display of shot-making and putting, one-upping each other time after time and combining over the final 18 holes for 13 birdies, an eagle and a double-eagle.
The 106th Suter Ward Group at Morgan Stanley State Open went to a sudden-death playoff — because, of course it would — before Steger ended an incredible day of golf with a par on the first extra hole.
“Just grinding for so many years, and I had so many chances in this tournament,” said Steger, a mini-tour veteran who had three consecutive top-eight finishes in the State Open from 2020-‘22. “To finally get it done, I’m just so thankful.”
Said Van Sickle, “Congratulations to him. He played great and he earned it. I played great and I earned it. But there’s only one trophy to hand out. That’s how it goes sometimes.”
Steger, 30, closed with an 8-under-par 64 and Van Sickle, a 39-year-old teaching professional, shot a 65. They finished the regulation 72 holes tied at 14-under 274.
David Bach of Sheboygan, an assistant pro at Whistling Straits, finished third at 278 after a closing 67. Barrett Kelpin of Madison, a teaching pro at Bishops Bay Country Club, shot a 69 and finished fourth at 279.
Kelpin, who rounded out the final threesome with Van Sickle and Steger, had a front-row seat for the fireworks.
“They just separated themselves from the field and played some quality golf,” Kelpin said. “It was fun to watch. It was fun to be in the group. … They just went back and forth all day and looked like they had no fear of any of the hole placements out there and putted great to boot. It was pretty good stuff.”
In the morning round of the 36-hole finale, Van Sickle shot a 68 and took a one-stroke lead over four golfers, including Steger, with another dozen or so still in the hunt.
But this was destined to be a two-man showdown from the first hole of the final round. Van Sickle and Steger shared a cart, and after both hit good shots to the first green, Van Sickle turned to Steger and said, “Let’s make this a two-horse race today.”
Van Sickle went on a tear with birdies on Nos. 3, 4, 5 and 6 to go out in front by three shots. He still led by three when they arrived at the par-5 12th hole, which measured 535 yards.
Then lightning struck in the form of Steger’s 3-iron from 242 yards. His ball covered the flagstick all the way, landed eight feet short of the hole and rolled in for a rare double-eagle.
“It was just a laser, straight at it,” said Steger, who had never made an albatross. “I yelled at it to go a little bit. It dropped in and everyone (around the green) went crazy and I was like, ‘That go in?’”
Yes, that go in.
Just like that, Steger was tied for the lead. But it was temporary, because Van Sickle, not backing down an inch, stepped up to his second shot, knocked it on the green and then rolled in a 25-foot eagle putt to go back up by two.
Two guys playing a hole in a combined 5-under over the closing stretch of the Wisconsin State Open? They’d have a story to tell their grandkids someday.
“If you told someone that that happened in the final round of an event, it sounds ridiculous: ‘He holed out for double-eagle and then I made an eagle,’” Van Sickle said. “It’s like, ‘OK, grandpa, I’m sure that happened.’”
As hot as Van Sickle was on the front nine, Steger was even hotter on the back. After the double-eagle, he rolled in a six-foot birdie putt on No. 13 and followed it by knocking his tee shot to two feet on the par-3 14th for another ho-hum birdie.
“He just stuffs it in there,” Van Sickle said. “These are hard par-3s and tough pins. It’s like, holy crap.”
“Congratulations to him. He played great and he earned it. I played great and I earned it. But there’s only one trophy to hand out. That’s how it goes sometimes.”
Now, they were tied at 14-under. Both players, however, dropped a shot on the par-4 15th — Steger failing to get up and down after missing the green and Van Sickle three-putting from 45 feet.
Then they made matching birdies on the par-5 16th after hitting the green in two, though Van Sickle had to make a nervy come-backer after powering his downhill eagle attempt 15 feet past the hole.
“That was pretty cool to clutch up and make a 15-footer when you have to,” he said.
Steger finally took the lead when he hit another laser-beam iron on the par-3 17th, his ball spinning to a stop three feet from the hole.
But he couldn’t close it out on 18. His second shot went through the green to the back fringe and he faced a lightning-fast downhill chip — in terms of difficulty, a 10 on a 10-point scale.
“I got up there and I’m looking at it and I’m like, ‘I’ve got to get this up and down to win? You’ve got to be kidding me,’” Steger said.
His chip barely trickled onto the green and he missed a 12-footer for par. Van Sickle made a routine par and they went back to the 18th tee for the first hole of sudden death.
“I told him as we were going back out for the playoff, ‘Hey, great golf played great golf today,’” Van Sickle said. “That’s all you can ask for.”
Both golfers hit the green in two and Steger cozied his 30-foot birdie attempt to within two feet. Van Sickle had a 25-footer, but his putt broke hard from left to right. His birdie attempt trundled eight feet below the hole and he then missed his par putt.
All Steger had to do was make his two-footer and it would be over. Easier said than done.
“I got over that (par) putt and I’m looking down at it and I told myself, ‘You’ve hit this putt a million times. Just stroke it,’” he said. “And I put a good stroke on it.”
At long last, Steger was the winner. He had shot a 30 over the final nine holes, with two bogeys.
“I’ve been in a lot of playoffs in my life and the record is pretty good,” he said. “In my head, I was telling myself, ‘I don’t lose playoffs.’ I hit two good golf shots in there. Sad to see Mike three-putt; you’d rather make a birdie (to win). But I’m obviously very happy I came out on top.”
With the victory, Steger earned $15,000 and a lifetime State Open exemption. Now an assistant pro at River Bend Golf & Country Club in Great Falls, Va., he plans to head down to Florida this fall and enter PGA Tour Q School.
“This gives me some confidence going into Q School,” he said. “I don’t know. I just can’t quite seem to give the dream up.”
Van Sickle, though disappointed, managed a smile as golfer after golfer congratulated him on his performance. He’d taken a one-shot lead into the final round and shot a 65.
“Yeah, that wins 100 times out of 100,” he said. “We have to go into the thousands before it doesn’t. So hat’s off to him.”
Next year’s Wisconsin State Open will visit Horseshoe Bay Golf Club in Door County for the first time. It marks just the second time that the championship has taken place on the Peninsula and the first since 1947.
2026 Suter Ward Group at Morgan Stanley Wisconsin State Open Final Results
On behalf of the Wisconsin PGA, we would like to express our appreciation to The Suter Ward Group at Morgan Stanley for their ongoing sponsorship of the Wisconsin State Open. Over the past decade, their dedicated support and key funding have truly elevated this event. We are incredibly grateful for their continued partnership.
Additionally, the WPGA extends its sincere thanks to supporting partners TaylorMade Golf and Sentry. Their continued involvement was vital to the championship’s success, and we are deeply grateful for their support.
Finally, a special thank you goes to the entire team and membership at Tuckaway Country Club. From opening up their facility to providing exceptional support throughout the week, the way they embraced the championship was instrumental in making it a resounding success.
Morgan Stanley Wealth Management, a global leader, provides access to a wide range of products and services to individuals, businesses and institutions, including brokerage and investment advisory services, financial and wealth planning, cash management, lending products and services, insurance, retirement and trust services. Vince Suter, a Family Wealth Advisor is well-positioned to have meaningful conversations about money; to help families set priorities, protect their family enterprise, practice impactful philanthropy and put estate plans in place. He takes great pride in connecting with the next generation to engage them in becoming educated about how family finances affect them. Vince has demonstrated a disciplined, diligent approach to understanding how family circumstances and dynamics can influence and impact short and long-term personal and financial goals. His ability to work with families to develop a framework for their financial future helps them achieve their financial goals.
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