Who could earn a PGA TOUR card Sunday at Korn Ferry Tour Championship

NEWBURGH, Ind. – Consider this collection of professional golfers.

A 15-year pro from Argentina.

A 13-year pro from Florida.

A third-generation professional golfer from Kansas.

An Air Force Captain.

A four-time collegiate All-American.

An Olympian from Germany.

What do these players have in common? Each is chasing his first PGA TOUR card on Sunday at the Korn Ferry Tour Championship presented by United Leasing & Finance, the third and final event of the Korn Ferry Tour Finals.

At the conclusion of play Sunday at Victoria National GC in southern Indiana, the top 25 players on the Finals Eligibility Points List will earn 2022-23 PGA TOUR membership.

Careers are in flux this week at rugged yet picturesque Victoria National GC in southern Indiana, as rising stars battle for their first TOUR cards against veterans striving to retain, regain or improve their TOUR status. It’s a potpourri of storylines and scenarios, to say the least.

Justin Suh leads the Korn Ferry Tour Championship at 17-under through 54 holes. He carded 8-under 64 on Saturday, taking advantage of soft conditions in southern Indiana.

Suh, though, was hardly concerned with his own game. The accomplished Southern California alum earned his first TOUR card via the Regular Season Eligibility Points List (The 25), and although he can improve his TOUR status with a strong finish at Victoria National – he still has a chance at the top spot, as well – he knows that the tournament leaderboard is second fiddle to the Finals Eligibility Points List. His playing partner Tano Goya carded 7-under 65 to move into position to earn his first TOUR card via The Finals 25.

“I know he's around the bubble, but he's a great friend,” Suh said of Goya. “Today I wasn't really even focusing on my game; I was fist pumping for him when he made a birdie, so it was super cool to see him play a good round.”

Goya, 34, turned professional in 2007 and has played on tours across the globe before earning 2022 Korn Ferry Tour membership via Q-School last fall. The Argentina native entered the week at No. 59 on the Finals Eligibility Points List; he carded a final-round 78 at last week’s Nationwide Children’s Hospital Championship to finish a disappointing T65.

Goya quickly shook off the disappointment and his played his way back into contention; he stands T2 on the Korn Ferry Tour Championship leaderboard, projected No. 3 on The Finals 25.

“I've been up and down a lot,” explained Goya on Saturday afternoon at Victoria National. “I had a great start of my career, but I went down pretty quickly. Come to a point that you consider maybe doing something else, quitting, but something inside me said, ‘No.’

“Just kept going and I’m here today, tomorrow having a chance to make it on TOUR. I’ve been working my whole life for it and I'm ready for it.”

If the Korn Ferry Tour Finals era has possessed one defining characteristic, it would be volatility. The final iteration of The Finals 25 has stayed true to form.

Entering this week’s Korn Ferry Tour Championship, 17 spots on the Korn Ferry Tour Finals Eligibility Points List were yet to be determined. Endless permutations can bring heart palpitations.

“It’s Q-School on steroids,” Joseph Bramlett described the Finals. Bramlett has earned a PGA TOUR card via The Finals 25 in three consecutive Finals iterations; he was one of eight players to cross the fail-safe threshold (210 points) across this year’s first two Finals events.

“It’s the culmination of lifelong dreams,” summated Philip Knowles, who clinched a TOUR card with a runner-up at the Finals-opening Albertsons Boise Open presented by Chevron, a week after earning a Finals berth with a top-10 at the Regular Season finale.

“It's a big jump to go from the Korn Ferry Tour to the PGA TOUR,” added Suh. “I mean, this is as pressure as it gets. I met a few guys last year who had to come back down and they've said they don't really get nervous on the PGA TOUR, but like these last two weeks and this week, it's probably the most nerves they've felt.”

Who will best embrace the nerves Sunday in southern Indiana? Time will tell.

Korn Ferry Tour Championship Bubble Watch

Here are the players projected to move inside the top 25 on the Finals Eligibility Points List after the third round at Victoria National GC and earn a PGA TOUR card via The Finals 25.

Projected In

Tano Goya (No. 59, projected to No. 3). The 34-year-old Argentinian is the man of the moment in Indiana. After earning a Finals berth in his first Korn Ferry Tour season, he stands 16-under through three rounds at the Korn Ferry Tour Championship, one off Suh’s lead, and will secure his first PGA TOUR card with a solid Sunday at the final event of The Finals 25 era.

Austin Eckroat (T64, projected to No. 8). After finishing top-five on the inaugural 2021 PGA TOUR University Order of Merit, Eckroat finished T50 at Final Stage of Q-School but has parlayed conditional status into a Korn Ferry Tour Finals berth and has taken advantage. He stands T3 into the final round of the Korn Ferry Tour Championship, two back of Suh’s lead.

Sam Stevens (T36, projected to No. 14). A third-generation professional golfer from Kansas, Stevens finished No. 2 on the 2021 PGA TOUR Latinoamerica Order of Merit and has made a quick impact as a Korn Ferry Tour rookie. Stevens missed the cut in Boise, rallied with a T28 in Columbus and fired a third-round 62 at Victoria National to move into position for his first TOUR card. He’s T6 into Sunday.

Eric Cole (No. 44, projected to No. 16). The 34-year-old has spent the better part of a decade on mini-tours, winning 50-plus times on the Minor League Golf Tour, and now he strives to take his talents to the highest level. The son of two professional golfers, Cole finished T56-T34 in the first two Finals events, and he stands T6 into the final round at Victoria National.

Brent Grant (No. 29, projected to No. 19). The feisty Hawaii native fell just short of a TOUR card through the Regular Season, and he’s giving it his all as he strives to make amends in the Finals. The 26-year-old finishes T32-T34 in the first two Finals events, and he stands T12 into the final day of the Korn Ferry Tour Championship.

Ryan Armour (T30, projected to No. 23). The wily veteran has battled back from a rib injury that sidelined him for the Finals-opening Albertsons Boise Open, giving himself a chance to improve his TOUR status into the final day of The Finals 25 era. After a final-round 65 and T22 at last week’s Nationwide Children’s Hospital Championship, Armour stands T21 into the final round at Victoria National. He’s set up to be one of the central bubble figures down the stretch.

John Augenstein (T64, projected to No. 25). The four-time All-American at Vanderbilt struggled in his debut Korn Ferry Tour season, recording just one top-25 in 21 starts, but earned a Finals berth via the top-200 non-member FedExCup points category, on the strength of a T6 at the Fortinet Championship last fall. The native of nearby Owensboro, Kentucky, has thrived in familiar terrain this week; he carded a third-round 66 at Victoria National and stands T12 into the final round. He enters Sunday squarely on the bubble.

Projected Out

Satoshi Kodaira (T16, projected to No. 26). Missed the cut in finale (2 over) and now awaits his fate.

Patrick Fishburn (No. 24, projected to No. 28). Utah native struggled to a third-round 76 in Indiana, falling from a top-10 position on the leaderboard into a tie for 44th. With a strong Sunday, he could move back into The Finals 25; he’s set up to be one of the central bubble figures down the stretch.

Norman Xiong (No. 19, projected to No. 29). Missed the cut in finale (11 over) and now awaits his fate.

Hurly Long (T21, projected to T31). Stands T58 into Sunday and will need a strong finish for a chance to hold his spot in The Finals 25.

Sean O’Hair (T21, projected to T31). Stands T58 into Sunday and will need a strong finish for a chance to hold his spot in The Finals 25.

William McGirt (No. 20, projected to No. 34). Missed the cut in finale (1 over) and now awaits his fate.

Seung-Yul Noh (T21, projected to No. 36). Missed the cut in finale (1 under) and now awaits his fate.

Grayson Murray (T25, projected to No. 37). Stands T53 into Sunday and will need a strong day for a chance to maintain his position inside The Finals 25.