LI pro Jason Caron earns a spot on the Champions golf circuit

Mill River pro Jason Caron shot a 68 in the final round of the Champions Tour Simmons Bank Championship on Sunday, earning him a spot in the Charles Schwab Cup Championship and an exemption to play the tour in 2025.

Caron finished in a tie for third place, three shots behind winner Padraig Harrington at Pleasant Valley Country Club in Little Rock, Arkansas. Caron made his only two bogeys of the week, both in the final round, but made six birdies, including crucial ones on 15 and 16, to move him up to 35th in the Schwab Cup standings, with the top 36 reaching the championship final in two weeks in Phoenix and guarantee themselves tour status next year.

Despite his newfound Champions Tour success, Caron, 52, says he will not play the tour full-time and plans to remain in Mill River, where his wife, Liz, is also a teaching professional.

“Nothing will change when it comes to my job,” Caron said. “I’m going to stay in Mill River. I don’t want to do this full time. The only thing this would do for me is to have a better knowledge of the events I could play in next year. I could play any tournament I wanted. I would probably participate in 10 to 15 tournaments.”

Caron has played in nine Champions Tour events this year after earning his way to the KitchenAid Senior PGA Championship in May, when he finished tied for fourth and was the low club professional. That earned him a new kitchen from the tournament sponsor. He also tied for third at the Rogers Charity Classic and has won more than half a million dollars this season.