PONTE VEDRA BEACH, Fla. (AP) — Lanto Griffin holed a 40-foot putt for eagle on his first hole that sent him to a 7-under 63 in the final round of Q-school, the leader of six players who earned PGA Tour cards for next year.
Griffin was the medalist at 9-under 271, but all that mattered was being among the the top five and ties to get full status as the PGA Tour goes through sharp changes that include smaller fields starting in 2025.
Hayden Buckley (67) and former world No. 1 amateur Takumi Kanaya of Japan (69) also made it through. Kanaya holed 8-foot par putts on his last two holes.
They were followed at 4-under 276 by Alejandro Tosti of Argentina (66), Will Chandler (66) and Matthew Riedel (72).
Chandler looked to be running out of time until he shot 30 on the back nine on the Dye Valley course at the TPC Sawgrass. That included a 45-foot eagle putt on the 16th hole that paved the way for a PGA Tour card.
Riedel had his own nervous moments. He was right on the cutoff when his drive on the tough par-4 17th turned left and hopped down the bank toward the water. But the thick Bermuda kept it dry and Riedel managed to save par.
On the final hole, Riedel pushed his tee shot far from the water on the left. He came up short of the green and chipped 4 feet past the cup. The par putt for his card narrowly fell on the left side of the cup.
Alistair Docherty, tied for the lead going into the fourth and final round, didn’t make a birdie until the 17th hole. He needed one more to get his PGA Tour card for the first time but his approach sailed over the green. He shot 73 and missed by one shot.
Players who didn’t earn cards will have various levels of status on the Korn Ferry Tour.
