Wichita 15-year-old Kaden Leivian reaches final, chases Kansas Amateur history
Twice Saturday, Kaden Leivian watched a late lead disappear on the 17th hole.
Twice, the 15-year-old from Wichita produced a walk-off finish at Mission Hills Country Club.
First came a chip-in eagle from 25 yards on No. 18. Hours later, Leivian rolled in a 9-foot birdie putt on the 20th hole to complete a 38-hole test of endurance and advance to Sunday’s championship match at the Kansas Amateur.
“It was an absolute grind out there,” Leivian said. “It was pretty stressful at times with the finals on the line, so you’re just in survive-and-advance mode. You know you make one mistake, you’re going home.”
Leivian survived every challenge Saturday at Mission Hills Country Club, defeating recent Blue Valley North graduate Drew Krystyn, 1 up, in the morning quarterfinals before outlasting former Kansas golfer Chase Foth in 20 holes in the semifinals.
Now the Bishop Carroll sophomore will play close friend Charlie Haney, a 16-year-old from Manhattan, in Sunday’s 36-hole final with a chance to break a record that has stood for more than a century.
Fred Salmons was 16 when he won the Kansas Amateur in 1925, making him the youngest champion in tournament history. Leivian could break that record; Haney could match it.
Either result would complete a championship run that seemed unlikely when the 64-player bracket began Thursday. Leivian qualified as the No. 39 seed and entered the week having never advanced beyond the round of 64 in match play.
“It’s a pretty special feeling,” Leivian said. “It feels really awesome to even be in this position, so even if tomorrow doesn’t go my way, I’m really proud of myself for making it farther than I thought I could go.”
Leivian has displayed a level of composure beyond his years throughout the tournament. In five match-play victories covering 74 holes, he has trailed for only five holes. He has never fallen more than 1 stroke down, has never been behind after the seventh hole and has played 49 holes with the lead.
Even when his tee shots have created trouble, Leivian has avoided surrendering holes with recovery shots and clutch putting.
“I feel like a big key has been making some big par saves to tie holes,” Leivian said. “If I have a bad drive, then I’ll come through and hit a good recovery shot and still be in it. I’ve just really been able to do a good job of digging and finding a way to tie holes.”
His position became precarious twice Saturday.
Against Krystyn, a Saint Mary’s signee, Leivian took a 1-up lead at No. 8 and doubled it at No. 11. Krystyn birdied No. 13 to pull within 1 shot, but Leivian answered with a birdie at No. 15 to move 2 up with three holes remaining.
Krystyn refused to let the match end quietly. He birdied the par-5 16th, then won No. 17 to erase Leivian’s lead and send the match to the final tee tied.
Krystyn applied more pressure by hitting his approach onto the green for a birdie opportunity at the par-5 18th. Leivian stood 25 yards away hoping to knock his chip close enough to set up a birdie of his own.
He did one better. The ball rolled across the green and disappeared into the cup for a walk-off eagle.
The afternoon semifinal brought a different challenge against Foth, a Shawnee Mission Northwest graduate who played in college at Kansas and Kansas City from 2012-16.
Foth struck first with a birdie at No. 2, but Leivian immediately answered with a birdie at the par-3 third. Leivian then made eagle at the par-5 fourth to beat Foth’s birdie and take his first lead.
The match continued to swing. Foth squared it with a birdie at No. 5, Leivian moved back in front with a birdie at No. 6 and Foth pulled even for a third time by winning No. 8.
Leivian reclaimed the advantage with a birdie on No. 9. Foth’s bogey at No. 10 doubled the lead, but Foth birdied No. 14 to pull within one and eventually won No. 17 to square the match.
Matching birdies on No. 18 sent the semifinal to sudden death, where the opening playoff hole produced a bizarre sequence.
Foth’s tee shot drifted so far right that he had to take an unplayable lie. Leivian appeared to have the advantage, but his second shot from a difficult lie in the rough was yanked left into the water.
Both players scrambled to give themselves putts of approximately 10 feet for bogey. Foth missed first, opening the door for Leivian, but the teenager left his putt just short. Both made double bogey, sending the match to a 20th hole.
Back at No. 2 — where Foth had opened the match with a birdie — Leivian made the decisive putt. He buried a 9-footer for birdie to secure his place in the final.
Leivian credited his experience traveling the national junior circuit and competing against elite golfers for preparing him to withstand Saturday’s pressure.
One of those familiar opponents is Haney.
The two are close friends who frequently play with and against each other at regional junior tournaments. Both are regarded among the country’s top junior golfers, making it fitting that two of Kansas’ brightest young talents will decide the state’s most prestigious championship.
Their high school seasons offered a preview. Leivian won City League and Class 5A regional championships during his freshman season at Bishop Carroll before placing fifth at the state tournament. Haney tied for the lead at the 6A state tournament as a Manhattan sophomore before finishing second following a playoff.
Haney advanced to Sunday’s final with a 1-up semifinal victory over 39-year-old Nathaniel Spencer of Lawrence.
The stakes may alter the dynamic between the friends, but Leivian does not expect it to transform their games.
“I think we’ll be able to talk and play our normal games like we do when we play together,” Leivian said. “But at the same time, this is a big match. There’s a lot on the line. So there might be a few holes where we don’t talk to each other. But I think it’s going to be a lot of fun, and we’ll be able to keep each other loose.”
This story was originally published July 18, 2026 at 5:05 PM.
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