Matthews
Brandon Matthews slipped one spot from first to second in the season point standings while moving beyond $200,000 in earnings for the season when the PGA’s Korn Ferry Tour returned from a month off.
Matthews closed with a round of 65 to finish tied for 21st in the Chitimacha Louisiana Open March 17-20. The Pittston Area graduate finished at 9-under-par, 275.
After missing the cut in the tour’s last stop in Central America, Matthews got back in a groove. He has made six out of seven cuts after two more strong rounds Thursday and Friday and has finished under par in all five of his completed four-round tournaments.
Going into this week’s tournament, Matthews was leading the tour with an average driving distance of 329.7 yards, helped along by a 400-yard drive in the Louisiana Open.
Matthews shot 70, 66, 74 in the tour’s first event in four weeks before closing with the 65.
Playing in another Louisiana event, Matthews went into Saturday’s third round in a tie for 19th place after shooting 69-68 to make the midway point of the Lake Charles Championship four strokes out of the lead at 5-under-par, 137.
Matthews had three straight birdies on 12 through 14 Friday before finishing up with a bogey at 18.
Friday represented the 15th time in the last 21 rounds that Matthews shot in the 60s. He has two other rounds of 70 during that time.
Matthews has a win and a tie for second place this season. The 27-year-old from Dupont, now playing out of Jupiter, Fla. has $202,886 in official Korn Ferry Tour earnings through six events after winning $78,012 in 46 events over the previous five years.
