Kiwi left-hander Tim Wilkinson is within reach of a return to the PGA Tour in 2020 after coming within centimetres of claiming the LECOM Health Challenge on the Korn Ferry Tour in New York.
After Ryan Brehm made double-bogey on the final hole of the tournament, Wilkinson had a putt to win on the 72nd hole but his putt from 20 feet slid just left of the hole.
The pair then headed back down the par-5 18th hole to commence the playoff with Brehm’s birdie consigning Wilkinson to a runner-up finish, his fourth top-10 result of the year and equal to his best finish on the US secondary tour in six years.
Brehm’s winning putt was lucky to topple in…
Wow!
Ryan Brehm wins the @LECOMHC with a birdie on the first playoff hole @peeknpeak, securing a @PGATOUR return!#LiveUnderPar pic.twitter.com/hvsdVyCkqY
— Korn Ferry Tour (@kornferrytour) July 7, 2019
While Wilkinson can feel more than just a little hard done by:
Wilkinson burns the edge. pic.twitter.com/XOpopWZqA4
— Korn Ferry Tour (@kornferrytour) July 7, 2019
Starting the final round on top of the leaderboard, Wilkinson didn’t put a foot wrong with a bogey-free final round of three-under 69, Brehm drawing level with a four-under 68 despite his two dropped shots on the closing hole.
With just five missed cuts in 17 events coming into the LECOM Health Challenge, Wilkinson was just outside the top 25 in 33rd position on the moneylist, his cheque for $US64,800 rocketing him into 19th with just five events until the Korn Ferry Finals.