The sixth edition of the 3M Open at TPC Twin Cities was won by Jhonattan Vegas, who achieved his first victory in nearly seven years and his fourth career PGA TOUR triumph.
With the victory, Vegas moves up to 66th place in the FedExCup rankings and, more significantly, inside the top 70 players predicted to make the playoffs.
With his lowest round of the season, a 63, on Saturday, Vegas climbed to the top of the leaderboard. He led Matt Kuchar, who was attempting to win for the first time in more than five years, by one stroke heading into Sunday.
Round-by-round odds for Jhonattan Vegas to win 3M Open (via BetMGM)
Pre-tournament: +6000
After Round 1: +6000
After Round 2: +1800
After Round 3: +140
On Sunday, Vegas bogeyed the first hole. After Kuchar birdied the second hole, the overnight lead had switched positions. Vegas was currently one stroke behind Kuchar at 15 under par. Vegas was at +140 and Kuchar started the day at +350 to win the 3M Open. After shooting 73 on Saturday, Taylor Pendrith, the leader at 36 holes, dropped to six strokes back, but he was back on track early on Sunday.
Having completed his opening five holes at two under, he was now four shots behind Kuchar’s pace. Pendrith would ultimately shoot 67 on Sunday, good for a solo fifth-place finish.
After making a birdie at number four, Sahith Theegala’s overnight odds were nearly halved, dropping from +1000 to +550, and he won his second career TOUR event. Theegala’s unsteady iron play was something we mentioned in our Draws & Fades column on Saturday night, and it only grew worse in the championship match. Theegala shot 70 on Sunday to tie for sixth place after losing almost three strokes to the field on approach for the week. Theegala is presently eighth in the FedExCup rankings, so he should have little problem traveling to East Lake for the TOUR Championship.
Following the leaders’ birdie on the fourth hole, Vegas made a birdie on Kuchar’s bogey, bringing the score back to 16 under to 15 under, although this time in the Venezuelan’s advantage. Kuchar lost three strokes to Vegas by making two costly bogeys at Nos. 7 and 8, closing out the front nine. Vegas was suddenly a -225 favorite to win, but he was now +650 to record his tenth career victory.
Before reaching the inward nine, Vegas cut the lead to two strokes after bogeying No. 9. Considering that their player had completed the first nine holes in 16 under par for the week, the supporters in Vegas had to be feeling fairly good by now.
He was currently -140 to win the golf tournament after ten holes. Kuchar had +550. Maverick McNealy, the third player in the final pairing, equaled Kuchar for second place at 14 under after going even on his round. McNealy was now +450 to win his first-ever PGA TOUR event.
Results for outright picks from Golfbet experts
Will Gray: J.T. Poston (+3000) MC
Ben Everill: Tony Finau (+1000) T12
Chris Breece: Sahith Theegala (+2200) T6
Matt DelVecchio: Tom Hoge (+3000) MC
Rob Bolton: Tony Finau (+1000) T12
Mike Glasscott: Emiliano Grillo T24
We suddenly had a four-way tie at 15 under at the top of the leaderboard as we reached the 13th hole. Max Greyserman had joined the conversation, working on a round of sixty-three as he was seven under through sixteen holes, while Vegas bogeyed the long par-3. McNealy and Kuchar also made par. The longest shot to convert, at +450, was Greyserman. At +200, McNealy had emerged as the front-runner. Kuchar was at +275 while Vegas had gone to +225.
Not a single one of the 3M Open’s five prior editions had ended in a playoff. With a birdie at the last hole, Greyserman broke the tie. A Sunday 63 that includes a 30 on the inward nine was fired by him. At sixteen under, he led the pack in the clubhouse. At +160 to win, he was the second-shortest option at that moment. At the fifteenth hole, Vegas made a birdie with a 9-foot putt, and two players shared the lead at 16 under. At +120, Vegas took the lead once more and won the game.
Vegas, who needed to win with a birdie on the last hole, mishit his approach shot and fled. He would have to make a two-putt from 96 feet to win, or else he would have to play Greyserman in a playoff.
Vegas has experience winning by birdieing the last hole because he had done so in his last two TOUR victories, the most recent of which came on July 30, 2017, in a playoff at the RBC Canadian Open. Vegas won the match with a single shot after rolling the 96-footer 99 feet and making the comebacker from 3 feet.
For the past 17 seasons, Kuchar has not missed the FedExCup Playoffs. Kuchar climbs from 155th to 111th place on the points list with his tie for third this week. The Wyndham Championship represents the last FedExCup Regular Season chance to advance to the Playoffs, and it takes place in two weeks. Greyserman’s leap from 88th to 63rd was crucial. Sam Burns finished in 12th position this week, moving him up into the top 30 to 28th. Mackenzie Hughes finished in 19th position, putting her within the top 50 at 46. On Sunday, Kurt Kitayama finished tied for sixth after eagleing the last hole. He gains five ranks and climbs from 78th to 73rd, extending his season.
Results from Rob Bolton Sleeper Picks and Golfbet Insider
Pierceson Coody to win (+10000) 72nd
Tom Hoge Top 5 finish (+750) MC
Kevin Yu Top 10 finish (+550) T73
Patton Kizzire Top 20 finish (+400) MC
Ben Warian Top 40 finish (+450) MC
Sam Burns Top 10 finish (+200) T12
Erik van Rooyen Top 10 finish (+350) MC
Mackenzie Hughes Top 20 finish (+210) T19
Patrick Rodgers Top 20 finish (+200) T37
Max Greyserman Top 20 finish (+250) 2nd
Chesson Hadley Top 40 finish (+140) MC
S.H. Kim Top 40 finish (+140) MC
Martin Laird Top 40 finish (+175) MC
S.Y. Noh Top 40 finish (+200) WD
Henrik Norlander Top 40 finish (+200) T12
Taylor Pendrith Top Canadian (+275) 5th
Sam Ryder Top 40 finish (+140) MC
Rico Hoey and Sam Stevens both Top 20 finish (+950) T67/T64
Cam Davis, Maverick McNealy and Erik van Rooyen all make cut (+210) T19/T3/MC