The Sentry finally dishes out its winner! The first signature event on the 2024 PGA Tour calendar saw nothing short of a scintillating performance as Chris Kirk took the lead to clinch the much-anticipated victory. Moreover, he was able to do the same by scoring an 8 under 65 during the final round, dominating over the likes of Sahith Theegala and Jordan Spieth, who were hot on the American’s tail. He beat the runner-up, Theegala, who ended the last round with 63, by 1 stroke.
The golfer was able to put up a 29-under 263 to propel himself to the top of the scoreboard and rake in a total of $3.6 million as part of the winner’s cut from the prize pool of a whopping $20 million. The victory marks the sixth for the 38-year-old on the PGA Tour, the last of which came off back in February at the 2023 Honda Classic.
A win to start the 2024 season 🏆
Chris Kirk claims his sixth TOUR victory @TheSentry! pic.twitter.com/WXAX7BK9sY
— PGA TOUR (@PGATOUR) January 8, 2024
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Chris Kirk cards his sixth PGA Tour victory
Kirk managed to mark his name in the history books at the Plantation golf course in Kapalua, Maui. He did so while holing eight birdies in the last round, pushing his score past Theegala, who had cemented his spot at No.1 up until the last moment before the champ played his final two holes.
Currently at No. 52 on the Official World Golf Rankings, his 65 (-8) in the last round, just three shy of his lowest ever, which was scored at the Honda Classic, would push him much higher on the board. Moreover, his win would award him approximately 21% of the total points being given, a huge increase from the previous year, which saw Jon Rahm earning 37.67530.
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In addition to the OWGR points, the American would be granted a total of 700 FedEx points as well, along with the prize money. Besides, being the first champion of the PGA Tour in 2024 has also propelled him to first place on the FedEx Cup standings, followed by the runner-up of the tournament at T2.
The golfer had teed off the final day with Akshay Bhatia and Xander Schauffele, who came to finish at T14 and T10 respectively. Nevertheless, the action-packed final day managed to satiate the hunger of many fans who were awaiting the new champion following Rahm’s defection to LIV Golf. All in all, it was a thrilling finish by Chris Kirk!
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