Former PGA Tour, Korn Ferry Tour players reach all-ex-pro final at 2026 U.S. Mid-Amateur - Golfweek

After five grueling days, the 2026 U.S. Mid-Amateur final is down to an Idaho homebuilder and a national sales manager for a golf apparel company. Both are also former pro golfers, continuing a trend in recent U.S. Golf Association events.

Nate Smith, 43, was born in Santa Monica, California, but calls Tetonia, Idaho, home these days. His profession is that of a homebuilder, but he got the bug to return to amateur golf, doing so in 2022, nine years after he left the pro ranks. He has one Korn Ferry Tour win and made about $171,000 in earnings in 25 starts on the PGA Tour.

In an interview with idahoga.org, he admitted to some trepidation about competing in high-level am events as a former tour pro.

“I was hesitant initially to compete on the amateur level again because I was worried, possibly, there would be some people that would say, ‘you’ve already been a professional; how can you play amateur golf again.,” he said. “But, the reality is that so much time has passed, and I still loved the game. I wanted to compete and the opportunity for me to do [so was] on the amateur level. The USGA granted me my amateur status back in a matter of three days.”

Smith with face off against Andrew Bailey, 34, of Cleveland, Ohio. Bailey turned pro in 2014 out of Cleveland State and played on the Korn Ferry Tour as well as the PGA Tour Americas but he regained amateur status and has since won the Ohio Amateur in 2024 and 2025. He's now a national sales manager for the golf apparel firm Holderness & Bourne.

This all-former-pro final continues a recent theme that is a hot-button issue for many.

The 36-hole match-play final starts at 8:30 a.m. on Thursday at Sand Valley Resort's The Lido in Nekoosa, Wisconsin.

Todd Kelly is the assistant managing editor of Golfweek.