Finals update: Bryson Nimmer keeps Korn Ferry Tour season alive at Albertsons

The Korn Ferry Tour’s pressure-packed window has arrived, as field sizes begin to reduce across the four-event Korn Ferry Tour Finals.

The top 156 on the season-long Korn Ferry Tour Points List were eligible for the Albertsons Boise Open presented by Chevron, but only the top 144 after the Albertsons will qualify for the Finals’ second leg, the Simmons Bank Open for the Snedeker Foundation, Sept. 12-15 outside Nashville, Tennessee.

From there, the field size will reduce to 120 for the third Finals event, the Nationwide Children’s Hospital Championship, where players will work to position themselves inside the top 75 on the Points List to earn fully exempt status on the Korn Ferry Tour next season and advance to the Korn Ferry Tour Championship presented by United Leasing & Finance. Those ranked between Nos. 76-100 on the Points List after the Nationwide Children's Hospital Championship will earn conditional status on the Korn Ferry Tour in 2025, subject to reshuffle. The top 30 on the Korn Ferry Tour Points List after the Korn Ferry Tour Championship will earn 2025 PGA TOUR membership.

There’s no shortage of stakes during the Korn Ferry Tour Finals, which kicked off at the Albertsons Boise Open with Matt McCarty earning a Three-Victory Promotion to the PGA TOUR. Here’s a look at the clutch performances at Hillcrest Country Club, where three players moved inside the top 144 to keep their season alive.

The winner

Matt McCarty won his third Korn Ferry Tour event of the year on Sunday at Hillcrest Country Club in Boise, Idaho, all three wins coming in his last six starts. His other two victories came at the Price Cutter Charity Championship presented by Dr Pepper and the Pinnacle Bank Championship presented by Woodhouse. McCarty, playing his third season on the Korn Ferry Tour, is leading the Points List and had secured his 2025 PGA TOUR card prior to arriving in Boise. He’s the 13th player in Korn Ferry Tour history to earn the Three-Victory Promotion and the first to win three Korn Ferry Tour events in a year since Wesley Bryan in 2016.

McCarty nearly earned his PGA TOUR card after the 2023 season, finishing 35th on the Korn Ferry Tour Points List. He has taken the next step, and then some.

“It means a lot for all this hard work to pay off. I’ve been through it all in professional golf, so finally getting to this point is very satisfying,” McCarty told Golf Channel.

Big mover

Okatie, South Carolina native Bryson Nimmer made a notable move up the Points List at the Albertsons Boise Open presented by Chevron. The Clemson University product finished T12 after rounds of 65-67-68-69, moving from No. 154 to No. 128 on the season-long Korn Ferry Tour Points List, earning his spot in the Simmons Bank Open presented by the Snedeker Foundation via his spot in the top 144.

“Not really,” Nimmer replied when asked if the Points List was on his mind in Boise. “My mind was going there early in the week. I just tried to shut it down and not think about it because I figured if I got too caught up knowing exactly where I needed to finish, I wouldn’t play my best golf.”

A five-year pro, Nimmer said that he wasn’t confident in his game on Monday and Tuesday. After multiple six-hour range sessions and a call to his swing coach, Nimmer fixed the issues with his driver and had a productive week off the tee in Boise, finishing T6 in Driving Accuracy.

“Overall, it was a really good week. I didn’t play as well as I was hoping for today, but it for sure gets me into next week,” said Nimmer. “That was the goal going into this week. To keep playing.”

Nimmer played 16 Korn Ferry Tour events before the Finals, making 11 cuts and earning one top-25 finish before this week (T11 at the NV5 Invitational presented by Old National Bank).

Nimmer will need another strong finish at the Simmons Bank Open for the Snedeker Foundation if he’s going to move inside the top 120 that will compete at the Nationwide Children’s Hospital Championship and have a chance to keep Korn Ferry Tour status without relying on Q-School.

Moving in

Bryson Nimmer

The Clemson alum finished T12 in Boise, moving from No. 154 to No. 128 on the season-long standings, a 26-spot jump that keeps his Korn Ferry Tour season alive.

Bill Haas

The six-time PGA TOUR winner entered the Albertsons Boise Open presented by Chevron ranked No. 146 on the Korn Ferry Tour Points List, qualifying for the Finals despite making just two prior Korn Ferry Tour starts in 2024.

Haas will play onward, as he finished T24 at Hillcrest Country Club to move to No. 134 on the Points List, earning his spot in the top 144 that qualifies for the Simmons Bank Open for the Snedeker Foundation. It marked Haas' second top-25 on the Korn Ferry Tour this season (T6 at the BMW Charity Pro-Am presented by TD SYNNEX) in three starts; he has also made 10 PGA TOUR starts in 2024.

Haas, the 2011 FedExCup champion, has not played a full season on the PGA TOUR since 2022. Haas competed in that year’s Korn Ferry Tour Finals, with his best finish coming at the Nationwide Children’s Hospital Championship (T28).

Morgan Hoffmann

Hoffmann was ranked 148th on the Korn Ferry Tour Points List before the Albertsons Boise Open presented by Chevron after making seven cuts in 17 starts.

Winner of the 2020-21 PGA TOUR Courage Award, Hoffmann is finding his way back to the PGA TOUR after missing three years of professional golf due to his battle with facioscapulohumeral muscular dystrophy that began in 2017.

Hoffmann finished T24 in Boise with rounds of 66-67-70-68, good for a 12-spot jump to No. 136 on the Points List – enough to cement his place in the Simmons Bank Open for the Snedeker Foundation.

Moving out

Jared du Toit, Hunter Eichhorn and Erik Compton fell outside the top 144 at the Albertsons Boise Open, ending their Korn Ferry Tour season. All three players missed the cut at Hillcrest Country Club after entering the week at Nos. 142, 143 and 144 on the Points List respectively.