Brandon Matthews wins Astara Golf Championship presented by Mastercard with birdie-birdie-eagle finish
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BOGOTA, Colombia – As four players held a share of the lead on the final hole of regulation, Brandon Matthews’ eagle-three at the par-5 18th of Country Club de Bogota’s Lagos course capped a birdie-birdie-eagle finish and a one-stroke victory at the Astara Golf Championship presented by Mastercard.
Matthews’ first Korn Ferry Tour victory came in his 50th Tour start. The 2020-21 PGA TOUR Latinoamérica Order of Merit winner, Matthews began the final round in T3 position and reached 19-under par for the week, one stroke ahead of runner-up finishers Ryan McCormick and Ben Griffin, with a 5-under 66 Sunday.
“It's pretty special,” an emotional Matthews said. “My game has been trending in the right direction for the past few years – been playing really, really good golf. Support system I've had is absolutely unbelievable. I can't thank everyone enough. My fiancée has been unbelievable and she's supported me through everything. I can't wait to get home to her, my dog, and I can't wait to see my dad, share this with him, because without them I wouldn't be here.
“Growing up as a kid, hitting balls for hours upon hours, dreaming of this, it’s pretty awesome to see it come true.”
Matthews made the turn at 1-under par, as bogeys at Nos. 7 and 9 dampened his birdies from Nos. 3, 5 and 6. The Temple University alum parred the first four holes of the back nine and squandered a birdie at the par-4 14th with a bogey at the par-3 15th. It looked as though Matthews was headed for a second consecutive top-five, but a win appeared out of reach.
Instead, the 27-year-old caught fire and birdied the par-4 16th and 17th, and hit a 9-iron to 5 feet and poured in his eagle putt on the 72nd hole.
“Hit a great drive on No. 16, set up a perfect little pitch in there that I honestly thought I made, which was great to get there, because I knew that I was going to have to do something special down the stretch to either win or get a playoff,” Matthews said. “Hit a great drive on No. 17. Didn't hit the best pitch shot. Left it about 20 feet short. Such a good putt there. I made that dead center, and that was so big for me, especially with some of the putts I hit in the middle of the round. To be able to get there and really make that putt was awesome.
“And coming down the 18th, I hit three perfect golf shots,” Matthews continued. “Hit a great drive over the trees. Hit a really nice little cut 9-iron in there to about 5 feet behind it, and it was fun going into that putt realizing that this could be the one.”
The win today may have been the first career Korn Ferry Tour victory for Matthews, but he won three times on PGA TOUR Latinoamérica (twice in 2020-21, once in 2017). This week’s win also followed a near-miss at The Panama Championship last week, where Matthews finished T2 and one stroke behind the champion.
Matthews, a native Pennsylvanian, turned professional out of Temple in 2016. He enjoyed immediate success on PGA TOUR Latinoamérica in 2017, winning his second start and adding a solo third three months later. A T42 finish at Final Stage of the 2017 Korn Ferry Tour Qualifying Tournament awarded him conditional status, but Matthews finished 82nd in the 2018 regular season standings and had to retain status via Final Stage at year’s end. Matthews missed 14 cuts in 21 starts on Tour in 2019, bouncing him back to PGA TOUR Latinoamérica.
“If PGA TOUR Latinoamérica didn't exist, I wouldn't be here,” Matthews said. “It's pretty amazing what's culminated out of all that and where I am now compared to when I first got out here.”
Matthews already had fully exempt status like the Korn Ferry Tour’s tournament winners, but now he is well positioned to earn a PGA TOUR card at season’s end, as he moved to No. 1 in the Regular Season Points Standings. With 766 points, Matthews sits 245-plus points ahead of the other three winners this season.
“In my opinion, I think I should be in contention and be winning golf tournaments all the time,” Matthews said. “My game feels great. My mental has been really, really good over the last few years. If we can continue on this path, I'm pretty excited to see what we can do.”
The 2022 Korn Ferry Tour season continues Thursday, February 17 with the first round of the LECOM Suncoast Classic at Lakewood National Golf Club in Lakewood Ranch, Florida.