An emotional Sunday is within the books on the Korn Ferry Tour’s penultimate occasion.
Per week after locking up his PGA Tour card, Frankie Capan III picked up his first Korn Ferry Tour title with a two-shot victory on the Nationwide Youngsters’s Hospital Championship.
In the meantime, Matt McCarty clinched No. 1 on the factors checklist with one occasion, the Korn Ferry Tour Championship, to play, which means he’s assured begins in subsequent yr’s Gamers Championship and U.S. Open.
And 5 extra gamers turned #TourBound – Karl Vilips, John Pak, Jackson Suber, Mason Andersen and Jeremy Paul – to push the variety of PGA Tour playing cards clinched to 22. Consequently, eight playing cards shall be up for grabs at French Lick in two weeks. Sam Bennett is the present bubble man at No. 30, about 43 factors forward of Trent Phillips. Ricky Castillo, Noah Goodwin and Aldrich Potgieter are among the many notables contained in the quantity with one event left.
Maybe the largest drama of the week occurred across the top-75 bubble. Not solely just do 75 gamers advance to the KFT finale, however those who punch their tickets to French Lick additionally clinch totally exempt standing for subsequent season on the KFT. Those that did not advance Sunday at Ohio State’s Scarlet Course will start subsequent yr with conditional KFT membership.
By Sunday night, 5 gamers had performed their approach into the highest 75 – and 5 gamers had performed their approach out:
IN
Cole Hammer – No. 79 to No. 66
Dan McCarthy – No. 87 to No. 68
Jacob Solomon – No. 78 to No. 69
Davis Shore – No. 81 to No. 71
Rick Lamb – No. 84 to No. 73
OUT
Cooper Dossey – No. 71 to No. 76
Matthew Riedel – No. 72 to No. 77
Shad Tuten – No. 73 to No. 78
Fabian Gomez – No. 74 to No. 79
Ryan Blaum No. 75 to No. 80
Hammer, a former world No. 1 novice who gained an NCAA staff title on the College of Texas, mentioned it was essentially the most nervous he’d ever been, combating to make the reduce on Friday. He then turned in rounds of 68-69 on the weekend to tie for thirteenth. Hammer, 25, narrowly missed incomes particular momentary standing final season on the PGA Tour earlier than posting two top-10s in his first 5 begins this yr on the KFT. He missed six straight cuts earlier this summer season, although a T-16 on the NV5 Invitational in July received him again into place to make a playoff run, which he has.
Solomon additionally began sturdy solely to droop late. He missed seven of eight cuts coming into this week. The 27-year-old Auburn product, nevertheless, birdied his final gap Sunday to card 5-under 66, and his T-17 end was ok to safe him a minimum of a 3rd straight season on the KFT.
“So many feelings as a result of I’ve simply struggled for like two months,” an emotional Solomon mentioned afterward. “I simply tried so laborious, and it’s a tough scenario for everyone making an attempt to maintain your job out right here. It’s emotional. … I feel I can play the PGA Tour, for positive. And I feel I’m going to get there, however everyone’s timing is a bit of bit completely different.”
On the flip aspect, Tuten, 32, was amongst these falling simply brief. In Tuten’s case, it marked the second straight season that led to heartbreak. He missed out on a PGA Tour card final season due to a two-shot penalty for enjoying from the flawed spot on the fifteenth gap of his remaining spherical on the KFT Championship. He then missed a number of months due to coronary heart points and solely made 12 begins this yr on the KFT.
Dossey, a 26-year-old out of Baylor, recorded 11 bogeys on the weekend, although he nonetheless managed to shoot a pair of 72s. Nevertheless, he ended up T-67 and was the primary man out, lower than two factors behind No. 75 Hank Lebioda.
“That is laborious, you realize,” Dossey mentioned earlier this week. “We’re on the street for a very long time, and my spouse works actually laborious at house. It could imply lots to safe full Korn Ferry subsequent yr. She believes in me, and it’s by no means been a timeline or something. I’m not ever going to present this up. I say that, however I actually don’t assume I’ll. … I’ve at all times been a fighter.”
