After firing a career-best 11-under-par 60 on Saturday, Kurt Kitayama picked up where he left off on Sunday, making birdies on his first three holes and six on the front nine to coast to a one-shot victory in the 3M Open at TPC Twin Cities in Blaine, Minn.
It was the second PGA Tour victory for Kitayama, 32, whose final-round 65 gave him a 23-under 261 total. Sam Stevens had five birdies on his back nine to shoot 66 and finish at 22 under. Both men began the day one shot behind co-leaders Akshay Bhatia and Thorbjørn Olesen.
“Getting off to a start like that kind of helps settle you down,” said Kitayama, who earned $1.5 million. “Final round, second-to-last group, there’s definitely some nerves.”
Stevens Comes Up Just Short
Kitayama had two birdies and two bogeys on his back nine, including a bogey on the par-3 17th hole. That allowed Stevens, who was playing in the group ahead of him, to get within a shot.
But Stevens failed to birdie the par-5 18th hole, hitting his third shot from 136 yards in the left rough to just over the green. Stevens barely missed holing his 65-foot chip from the rough, the ball rolling inches from the cup.
With his one-shot cushion still intact, Kitayama hit his second shot on 18 into a greenside bunker, blasted out to 17 feet and easily two-putted for a par. He celebrated the victory with his older brother, Daniel, who was caddying for him for only the second time this season.
“He helped me stay calm out there and make good decisions,” Kitayama said. “It just helps having family on the bag.”
Matt Wallace (64), David Lipsky (64), Pierceson Coody (67) and Jake Knapp (68) tied for third, three strokes back at 20 under.
Playing in the final twosome, Bhatia and Olesen both struggled. Bhatia shot 75 to tie for 25th. Olesen shot 73 to fall into a six-way tie for 14th that included first-round leader Adam Svensson. Svensson, who opened with a 60, bounced back from a 75 on Friday with a 68-65 weekend.
Big FedEx Cup Jump for Kitayama
Kitayama, who won the Arnold Palmer Invitational at Bay Hill in 2023, got a 500-point boost in the FedEx Cup standings to move inside the top 70 and secure a spot in the playoffs. He jumped from 110th to 53rd.
The native of Chico, Calif., has missed seven cuts this season and tied for fifth twice, at the John Deere Classic and the CJ Cup Byron Nelson. The victory moved him from 97th to 39th in the world rankings.
Stevens, 29, who is seeking his first win, has had a strong season with three top-three finishes. He was second at the Farmers Insurance Open and third at the Byron Nelson. He moved from 44th to 29th in the FedEx Cup with one event left in the regular season.
“With Kurt shooting 29 on the front nine, it’s like, well, I’m six or seven back, whatever it was at the time. I can just play as freely and as aggressively as I want to,” Stevens said. “I really didn’t feel that many nerves on the back nine, which is good. Normally I get very nervous, so I had a lot of peace out there today.”
Last Chance to Make Playoffs
The Wyndham Championship, the 36th of 36 events in the FedExCup regular season, is at Sedgefield Country Club in Greensboro, N.C. The top 70 players in the standings after the tournament advance to the FedEx St. Jude Championship, the first playoff event.
The field includes 21 of the top 50 in the world golf rankings, led by No. 7 Keegan Bradley, No. 12 Hideki Matsuyama, No. 14 Robert MacIntyre and No. 17 Ben Griffin.
Every player ranked from Nos. 60-80 in the FedExCup standings is in the field, including No. 60 Tony Finau, Rickie Fowler (61st), Erik van Rooyen (64th), Matti Schmid (70th), Nicolai Højgaard (71st), Chris Kirk (73rd), Gary Woodland (75th), and William Mouw (80th).
Adam Scott, who has five top-25 finishes in 16 starts this season, is No. 85 in the FedExCup standings. He needs to finish in a two-way tie for third or better to move inside the top 70. He finished inside the top 30 in the 2024 FedExCup standings.
