‘Up and Down’ the Iowa Golf Scene – World Traveler
Globetrotting Knutzon Comes by Nomadic Golf Lifestyle Naturally
Jason Knutzon is all smiles after capturing the Asian Tour’s 2007 Motorola International Bintan event in Indonesia.
Chances are, if any given country has hosted a professional golf tournament, Jason Knutzon has probably teed it up there.
After all, the former Iowa State Cyclone star figures he has played professional golf tournaments in nearly 40 different countries, logging more than 1.8 million miles through the air to get there.
Now headquartered out of Altoona, IA., the 49-year-old Knutzon sat down with “Up and Down the Iowa Golf Scene” recently to reflect upon a remarkable golf career that has taken him to all levels of the game and all parts of the globe, including Russia and China. A handful of American pros compete internationally in select DP World Tour (formerly known as the European Tour) and Asian Tour events. Fewer yet choose to make a career like Knutzon did for a 15-year span (2003-2018).
And play he did, Knutzon may arguably have been one of the highest ranking, least known Americans out there, ascending to a World Golf Ranking of 254th and spending the majority of his career ranked somewhere between the 400th and 500th best player in the world.
“Not many American players go down this path, and I certainly have no regrets,” Knutzon remarked. “I’ve made a good living, got to experience so many different cultures, traveled to so many countries and developed friendships with so many notable international players, including major champions.”
Following standout collegiate and amateur careers, Knutzon turned professional in 1999 and played various mini tours, including The Dakotas Tour, a summer circuit based primarily in South and North Dakota. He later advanced through PGA Tour qualifying school far enough to earn status on the 2001 Buy.Com Tour, now known as the Korn Ferry Tour. In his first event, the Buy.Com Louisiana Open, Knutzon registered a tie for 10th and appeared to be on his way. Instead, he struggled for the rest of the season, making seven cuts in 19 events and won $27,299 in earnings to finish 118th on the money list, ultimately losing his card.
Knutzon had reached a crossroads early in his pro golf career.
“I actually gave some thought to quitting the professional game to become a pilot, like my father, who was a Lt. Colonel in the Air Force and flew F16’s for a living,” he said. “I didn’t want to grind it out on the mini tours but still loved to play. I went over to Asia because the purses were competitive, and it was a pathway to a major (European) tour.”
He advanced through the Asian Tour qualifying school and became eligible for the 2003 season
What followed was a highly successful international playing career. Knutzon spent 15 consecutive seasons on the Asian Tour, finishing high enough on the Order of Merit to retain playing privileges. The pinnacle of his career came with victories in the 2004 Macau Open in China and the 2007 Motorola International event in Indonesia. He defeated none other than three-time major champion Padraig Harrington by three shots in China, firing a 16-under-par 268. In all, Knutzon had 226 starts on the Asian Tour, charted 21 top ten finishes along with his two victories and registered more than $1.7 million in earnings. In 2014, he finished 14th on the Order of Merit and had a career-high $209,121 in winnings.
“I had some early success on the Asian Tour and was able to pick my starts, playing 15-20 weeks per season and allowing me to spend more time at home in the states,” he said.
The Asian Tour schedule led Knutzon to places like Malaysia, Indonesia, Qatar, Thailand, Myanmar, Korea, Singapore, Philippines, India, Hong Kong, Vietnam, United Arab Emirates and more. Among the many adjustments of international golf include the rugged travel and the food.
“The first few years I really struggled with the food,” he said. “I kept ordering the American club sandwich and the spaghetti Bolognese. I quickly learned the native dishes were rather good after all.”
There were other challenges. Aside from the occasional poisonous snake or wild animal meandering across the fairway, Knutzon also witnessed the group ahead of him being attacked by a swarm of hornets, suspending play and forcing the players to disrobe and head for the nearest water hazard to seek relief.
“My journey’s been a wild one, to say the least,” he said.
Knutzon found time to play a handful of events on the European Tour (now DP World Tour) from 2003-2010 and then a regular schedule from 2011-2016, emerging through qualifying school three times. In all, he played in 138 European Tour events, making 77 cuts and charting six top ten finishes. He earned $532,905 in euros with his top finish being a tie for fourth in the 2015 True Thailand Classic, finishing ahead of current PGA Champions Tour star Migel Angel Jimenez by a shot.
Former Iowa State linkster Jason Knutzon played the Asian Tour for 15 years. In his second season in tour, he captured the 2004 Macau Open in China, defeating Paidraig Harrington, among others.
He’s played with major champions like Ernie Els, Cameron Smith, John Daly, Fred Couples, Ian Woosnam, YE Yang and Steve Elkington and current international players Thongchai Jaidee, Richard Green and Ricardo Gonzalez, who are now making a name for themselves on the PGA Tour Champions. He competed collegiately and on the Iowa golf circuit with Zach Johnson, and the two have remained good friends.
In addition to competing in more than 350 Asian Tour and DP World Tour events, Knutzon has other significant golf achievements. He qualified for the 2003 US Open contested at Olympia Fields and the 2011 Open Championship at Royal St. George’s Golf Club. He also played two PGA Tour events late in the 2014 season, the CIMB Classic in Malaysia and the World Golf Championship HSBC event in Shanghai.
“It would have been easier playing stateside, competing on the PGA or Korn Ferry Tours,” Knutzon remarked. “But when you are playing tournament golf, you are away from home, whether across the world or across a few states. I never spent any off weeks on the road, always flying back home to be with family.”
Knutzon and his wife, Rustina, and two children Landon and Libby, now 16 and 13 respectively, would occasionally join him in Europe.
Born in Lubbock, TX., into a military family, being on the go was par for the course growing up as Knutzon says “we moved every couple of years.” His father Kip served the U.S. Air Force as an F16 pilot and was stationed state-side and internationally. Prior to his senior year, Knutzon moved from Virginia to live with his grandparents in Eagle Grove, IA.
There, he caught the attention of former Iowa State golf coach Dale Anderson and played four successful seasons for the Cyclones, posting 18 top ten finishes, and setting the school’s single season stroke average as a senior, a record that stood for 11 years. He dominated the 1998 Iowa Golf Association schedule by capturing titles at Fort Dodge Amateur, Iowa Masters, and Northwest Amateur.
Today, Knutzon operates the Golf Barn in rural Altoona, a multi-purpose facility equipped with a golf simulator, putting green and the latest swing technology to assist players of all levels, ages, and abilities. Although he has not competed much over the past five years, the fires still burn. In 2023, Knutzon received a former champion exemption into the Asian Tour’s SJM Macao Open, where at age 47 he fired a 17-under par 267 and tied for sixth.
He’s a year away from being eligible for the PGA Tour Champions. To earn status, he’ll have to gain entry through the qualifying school or advance through various Monday qualifiers. His advice for younger players?
“The farther you advance in the game, the more you have to treat it like a business,” Knutzon said. “You have to develop a game where you can hit the ball on the button, on the number, repetitively and with control. When you’re under pressure, swing mechanics and fundamentals have to take over. At the same time, have the inner confidence to love the game, smile and just go play.”
Now living in rural Altoona, Knutzon operates The Golf Barn where he gives lessons and analysis of golf swings for beginners, high school and college players and adults alike. His competitive fires still burn, and Knutzon looks forward to playing opportunities on the PGA Tour Champions in 2026, when he reaches 50 years of age.
“Up and Down” the Iowa Golf Scene
A regular feature column written by IGA Foundation board member Mark Gambaiana, Up and Down the Iowa Golf Scene is designed to take the reader beyond the headlines and scoreboards to share stories of those who help make Iowa golf so rich and rewarding. Profiles will spotlight those who advance the game through volunteerism, service, extraordinary achievement, competition, human interest and the many other dimensions of golf in Iowa.
Click the links below to read previous Up and Down features
– IGA Rules Official Sean Flanders
– R&A, USGA Champion Gene Elliott
– Nervig Reflects on Decades of Service to The Iowa Masters
– Arseneault Finds Fulfillment in Life’s Next Chapter After Competitive Golf
– Ivan Miller remembers the days of the Minnows
– Kinney adjusts to life on tour
– Standard Golf’s roots run deep
– Pettersen sets sights high
– McCoy, Norton Put Iowa Stamp on Florida Senior Golf
– Moreland Reflects on his Extraordinary Club Pro, Playing Career
– From Sibley to the LPGA Tour – Barb Thomas Whitehead Fulfills Her Dream
– At 88 Years Young, Cleo Brown Remains a Fixture at the Principal Charity Classic, IGA Events
– Love of the Game, Service to Others Propel Charlie Taylor to IGA’s 2023 George Turner Award
– The Calling Card for Ottumwa’s Matthew Walker in Quest to Reach Golf’s Highest Level
– Following the Rules Leads Katelynn Hogenson Down a Path Through Magnolia Lane
– State Golf Champions Gather, Reminisce, 50 Years after Surprise Title
– High-Level Competition, Boatwright Internship Preps Hoffman for Career in Golf
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