There’s still plenty of ground to cover, but Tom Hoge and Michael Kim aren’t waving the green towel — not even close.
Known as Team Clean Strikes, the pair faces a sizeable uphill climb in the 2026 Jani‑King Spring Clean Challenge. Still, momentum has finally swung their way. With a series of steady performances, Hoge and Kim have taken the first real step toward a comeback, moving past the team directly in front of them and climbing into second place.
Through four of the seven events on the schedule, Clean Strikes has surged ahead of Carolina Clean — the duo of Andrew Novak and J.T. Poston — signaling that the chase is officially on. What remains daunting is the distance to the top. Leaders Jacob Bridgeman and Chris Gotterup have been nothing short of brilliant to open the 2026 season, setting a blistering pace few teams have been able to match. Bridgeman sits fourth on the PGA Tour money list, while Gotterup isn’t far behind at No. 8 — a testament to just how dominant their start has been.
Still, with three events remaining, the Challenge is far from settled. For Hoge and Kim, the path forward is clear: keep pressing, stay clean, and keep giving themselves a chance.
Here’s where the Jani‑King Spring Clean Challenge standings stand after four of seven tournaments:
But Hoge is clearly trending in the right direction. His showing at the Zurich Classic last week was his best of the season as he and teammate Billy Horschel finished sixth at the event in Louisiana.
"Just go out and keep playing well," Hoge said.
Meanwhile, Gotterup hasn't slowed much as he finished in the top 25 in each of his last two starts, the Masters and the RBC Heritage.
He still has lofty goals, but understands that things can turn quickly in this sport.
"I think just trying to be like, all right, great start, but I have 20 more events left the rest of the year, to not be like kind of roll into the end of the season and kind of slack off a little bit," Gotterup said. "I think I've gotten humbled the last couple weeks a little bit. I feel I'm ready to kind of a fresh start and get going.
"I think it's been more of trying to not be complacent and be happy with what I've done and try to keep pushing forward and be ready for the rest of the year. And I think having all the majors this year and hopefully the Presidents Cup at the end of the year, that's kind of my goal and I'm going to do whatever I can to be on the team."
What began quietly in 2015 as a pilot program involving just 12 caddies has evolved into one of the most visible and enduring partnerships in professional golf. The relationship between Jani‑King and the Association of Professional Tour Caddies (APTC) now stretches across dozens of bags each week, with caddies carrying the unmistakable Jani‑King golf towel — a fixture inside the ropes and on television screens around the world.
Week after week, the towel is everywhere: slung over shoulders, draped on belts, pressed into service from the opening tee shot to the final putt. It cleans grooves, wipes grips and, almost by accident, places the Jani‑King brand front and center in golf’s most important moments — often alongside players squarely in contention.
During the Jani‑King Challenge, those towels take on added meaning. Caddies for participating players carry a distinctive green towel to signify their involvement in the competition, turning an everyday tool into a subtle badge of rivalry.
Still, the race is far from settled. With marquee events looming, opportunity remains. Next up is this weekend's Cadillac Championship, marking the first time a PGA Tour event has called Doral home in a decade. If the early leaderboards suggest dominance, the road ahead offers plenty of chances to tighten things up — and plenty more moments for those green towels to be seen when the stakes are highest.
This article originally appeared on Golfweek: Jacob Bridgeman, Chris Gotterup maintain big lead in Jani-King Challenge