Kurt Kitayama wasn’t sure he would qualify for the final two rounds of the 3M Open. It turned out to be a weekend to remember.
Kitayama shot 6-under-par 65 and held on to win the 3M Open by one stroke Sunday in Blaine, Minn., for his second PGA Tour victory.
“I feel like the game has been trending, and for it finally to kind of pay off now has been awesome,” Kitayama said.
Kitayama finished at 23-under 261 at TPC Twin Cities for a one-stroke decision on Sam Stevens, who posted 66 on Sunday. Kitayama made a total of 20 birdies in the two weekend rounds.
Prior to that, he wasn’t certain he would make the cut in this tournament.
“On Friday, I was fighting my swing trying to find something,” Kitayama said. “Went to the range, trying to find something.”
He definitely discovered what was needed.
Kitayama, who tied a course and tournament record with a third-round 60 on Saturday, pretty much rode that wave of momentum. He had birdies on the first three holes Sunday — including a chip-in from the greenside rough on No. 3 — and was 5 under through six holes on the way to a 29 on the front nine.
But after a bogey on No. 11, his lead was just two on England’s Matt Wallace, who had already completed his round. Kitayama rebounded with birdies on two of the next three holes.
Yet it took him three putts to finish the par-3 17th, with the bogey cutting the margin to one stroke. But Stevens, who had birdies on Nos. 14-16 to pull within striking distance, was all over the place on the 18th with his first three shots into the rough and scrambled for par.
Kitayama, in the next group, had a smooth final hole and won it with par.
The tournament title locked up a position for Kitayama in the FedEx Cup playoffs with one regular-season tournament remaining.
“Jumping up that much is great,” he said. “The goal is to make the playoffs and give yourself a chance.”
There was another special aspect of the result for Kitayama because his older brother, Daniel, was his caddie for the second week in a row.
Stevens settled for his third top-10 finish of the season.
David Lipsky and Wallace both registered 64s to share the distinction for the best score of the round, and they finished tied for third place at 20 under, along with Pierceson Coody (67) and Jake Knapp (68).
Wallace produced a bogey-free round, but finished with pars on his final three holes.
Chris Gotterup, who was aiming for his second title in three weeks, didn’t make a charge en route to a 69, tying for 10th place at 18 under.
Third-round co-leaders Thorbjorn Olesen (73) of Denmark and Akshay Bhatia (75) tumbled down the leaderboard and finished tied for 14th (16 under) and tied for 25th (14 under), respectively. Bhatia had seven bogeys Sunday.
Kevin Roy also registered 64 on Sunday, ending at 13 under.
–Field Level Media
