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IVINS — The final round of Matt McCarty's first win on the PGA Tour looked more like a victory lap than a grudge match.
The rookie who won three times on the Korn Ferry Tour to earn instant promotion in August to professional golf's highest level took his third-round lead and shot 4-under-par 67 to finish two shots clear of the inaugural title at the Black Desert Championship at Black Desert Resort in Washington County.
Making just his second start on tour, the former Santa Clara golfer from Scottsdale, Arizona, collected the $1.35 million purse and 500 points in the FedEx Cup fall series with a two-stroke win over Germany's Stephan Jaeger that earned an exemption to next year's Masters and PGA Championship (McCarty already earned a spot in the U.S. Open after leading the Korn Ferry Tour points list, per the Associated Press).
Lucas Glover and Kevin Streelman finished tied for third at 19-under, one shot ahead of Matti Schmid.
"I think Utah is good vibes," said McCarty, who tied for second at the Utah Championship on the Korn Ferry Tour in August before winning his fourth tournament in 10 professional starts Sunday. "Kind of figured out how to play at elevation a little bit this year in Denver, to be honest. I think growing up in Scottsdale I was always kind of comfortable with it. Sometimes over I thought it a little too much with percentages and everything, and more so just get my numbers early in the week and just go from there.
"Like if you hit one hard, still goes a little farther. If you take it off. ... So it's all relative. Yeah, it's just, I don't know, just kind of desert vibes is good for me."
Crazy couple months capped off with a PGA TOUR victory 🏆 pic.twitter.com/XtU8aCsoJH
— PGA TOUR (@PGATOUR) October 14, 2024
McCarty started the day with a pair of birdies on the front nine, gave one back with a bogey on the par-4 12th hole, but began to pull away with an eagle at the par-4 14th hole before sprinkling birdies on the 16th and 18th.
The only native Utahn to make the cut, Zac Blair shot 4-over 75 Sunday to finish with a 72-hole total of 2-under 282.
The former BYU golfer who prepped at Fremont High opened his final round with birdies on the par-4 first and fifth holes. But a triple bogey to go along with three bogeys derailed his round as he limped to the finish line in the first PGA Tour event held in his home state in 61 years.
"It's always good to make the cut," said Blair, who has won both the Utah state amateur and Utah Open championships. "Wish I would've had a little better week. You know, it was kind of just one of those weeks where nothing really went my way, unfortunately.
"But it was a lot of fun."
The 10-year professional golfer with two top-10 finishes and four top-25 appearances this season plans to finish out most of the remaining FedEx Cup fall series stops on the PGA Tour, including next week's Shriners Children's Open at TPC Summerlin in Las Vegas.
"I feel like I should play well there," Blair said of the Las Vegas event. "I played OK there last year. It's a good one; a lot of wedges. Got to keep it in play. A little less penal than out there, but kind of the same sort of stuff. You got to keep it in the fairway."
