Troy Merritt cracked a smile after sinking a par putt on No. 9 at Champions at Keene Trace Monday. Merritt won the Barbasol Championship by one stroke. (Kentucky Today/Keith Taylor)
By Keith Taylor
Kentucky Today
Troy Merritt didn’t lead the Barbasol Open from start to finish but did just enough to capture his second PGA TOUR victory.
Merritt, tied with four others going into the final round, fired a 5-under-par 67 Monday at Champions at Keene Trace to win the event by one stroke over Billy Horschel, Richy Werenski, and Tom Lovelady.
Several rain delays and other weather-related issues forced the tournament to be spread over five days instead of the usual four-day format. Merritt played his entire final round on Monday after getting washed out Sunday.
During his final round, Merritt made four birdies and had an eagle on No. 8 and closed out the tournament with a pair of birdies and three straight pars to seal the deal. Merritt finished 23-under-par, while Horschel, Werenski, and Lovelady tied for second at 22-under. J.T. Poston finished at 21-under.
Merritt earned $630,000 for winning the tournament and climbed from 131st to 65th in the FedEx Cup standings and will be an exempt player for the next two years after earning 300 points and claiming his second PGA TOUR victory. He also claimed a spot in next month’s PGA Championship.
Merritt admitted, “it’s been a struggle” to earn another victory on the circuit.
“To get a win like this late in the season and move up to No. 65 on the points list and secure a job for two more years, it’s a pretty good feeling,” Merritt said.
Horschel, one of four players tied for the lead going into the final round, said putting woes led to his inability to overcome Merritt, who shot a course record 10-under-par 62 in the opening round.
“In the last two days, I just couldn’t get a putt to fall,” he said. “In a shootout like this, you need to have a little bit of luck and I just didn’t have any.”
Morehead State graduate Josh Teater finished with a 276 and 12-under, 11 strokes behind Merritt.
“It came together with the first three rounds,” Teater said. “Today wasn’t the best, but I’m still pushing forward and nothing but good things came from this.”
In addition to a solid showing, Merritt enjoyed his first visit to the state.
“It was my first time actually spending some time in Kentucky,” he said. “I’m looking forward to the next time I get the chance to play in Kentucky again.”
Keith Taylor is sports editor for Kentucky Today. Reach him at keith.taylor@kentuckytoday.com or twitter @keithtaylor21.
