Zac Blair on verge of keeping job after Travelers runner-up

CROMWELL, Conn. – There were two scoreboards in play for Zac Blair during Sunday’s final round of the Travelers Championship.

The one that mattered the most – where he stood in his quest to pile up FedExCup points to fulfill his major medical extension – was one he had no control over and one that wouldn’t even come into focus until his round was long over. He needed a solo second to secure his card; a two-way T2 would move him to the precipice.

So Blair tried to push that out of his mind and focus on the leaderboards at every green. There, he saw his name prominently placed near the top and he was able to take deep breaths and feel a sense of achievement.

“There was a time where I was way back,” said Blair, who began the day tied for 15th, nine behind 54-hole leader Keegan Bradley, who proceeded to win by three strokes over Blair and Brian Harman. “So I was just trying to play well and (the putts) kept going in.”

Did they ever, especially after back-to-back bogeys at Nos. 4 and 5 seemingly had knocked Blair out of it. But he came alive with three straight birdies to turn in 32 and push to 15-under. Then it really got exciting for the 32-year-old who had sat out most of the 2021 and 2022 seasons after surgery for a torn labrum in his shoulder.

Blair ripped a shot from 254 yards to 5 feet to eagle the par-5 13th, then followed with birdies at the 14th (14 feet), 15th (7 feet), and par-3 16th (3 feet).

“He was flushing it,” said caddie Nik Kroisi. “He’s actually been flushing it all week.”

When he signed for 8-under 62, Blair was the clubhouse leader at 20-under. But winning wasn’t in his vision, not with Bradley early on the back nine at 26-under. No, Blair’s focus was now on the dynamics of his major medical quest.

When the 2023 season began, Blair knew he needed to earn 437.455 FedExCup points in 24 starts to match No. 125 from the 2021 standings and earn back his card. He had bitten into that a little bit, so he arrived at TPC River Highlands needing 270.482 points.

So, was he crunching numbers? Blair laughed, having only signed his card minutes earlier. “I’m hoping I take second place (alone) and that takes care of it,” he said, laughing.

That’s because he did know second place was worth 300 FedExCup points. But plenty of action remained on the course, and Blair figured others would equal his 20-under 260.

“There is no use, really, in crunching the numbers,” he said.

Turns out, the savvy veteran was correct, because Brian Harman (64) came a short time later with a 64 to tie at 260.

He didn’t reach the requisite number (his two-way T2 netted 245 points), but there are seven starts remaining, including each of the next two weeks – the Rocket Mortgage Classic and John Deere Classic – and the greater point is, this is a young man who loves playing the PGA TOUR and even more thrilled to have shot 65-65-68-62.

Short on points (for now), but huge in perspective, Blair smiled widely.

“It’s just nice to have a good week,” he said.

Now just 25.482 points from the threshold (equivalent to a top-31 finish at a Full-field TOUR event), that good week could set up the next act of his career.