Live Oak graduate Erick Justesen qualified for this week’s Northern Trust Open with a second-place finish in the tournament’s qualifier at Industry Hills Golf Club on Monday.
Justesen, 26, shot a 4-under-par 68 to secure one of four spots for the PGA Tour event, which begins Thursday at Riviera Country Club in Pacific Palisades.
It will be his fourth tour event and first since the 2011 Frys.com Open, where he placed 42nd.
“I am excited for the opportunity to prove myself again,” Justesen said in a press release. “I know I have what it takes to play out here, so I look forward to every opportunity I get.”
Justesen was coming off a 2-under finish in a prequalifier at Los Serranos South Course on Feb. 7.
“The hard work (had) just begun,” Justesen said in the release. “With only four spots available, I am going to have to go low and shoot lights out to make it through.”
Justesen finished one stroke behind winner Justin Itzen.
The Northern Trust Open will feature a strong field that includes Phil Mickelson, winner of last week’s AT&T Pebble Beach National Pro-Am champion, and two-time tournament champion Aaron Baddeley. Coverage can be found on The Golf Channel for the opening two rounds, and on CBS for Saturday and Sunday’s action.
Justesen, a Cal State Stanislaus graduate, will be out to secure PGA or Nationwide Tour status. He currently holds a Canadian Tour card.
