Georgia Tech #ProJackets Golf Report

THE FLATS – Matt Kuchar came up a stroke shy of another victory at the RBC Heritage … Jackets teaming up this week in two-man event in New Orleans … James Clark, Drew Czuchry qualifying for Canadian Tour … this and more in the Georgia Tech #ProJackets Golf Report.

Kuchar played steady golf the entire weekend at the RBC Heritage, an event he won in 2014, by posting four rounds in the 60s on the par-71 Harbor Town Golf Links. He briefly held a share of the lead Sunday with eventual winner C.T. Pan, but finished one stroke behind at 11-under-par 273 after his closing 67.

Already atop the FedEx Cup points list for the last few weeks, Kuchar strengthened his hold on the No. 1 position, expanding his lead to 468 points over Xander Schauffele.

Kuchar posted his sixth top-10 finish this season, and his second runner-up performance to go with his victories at the Mayakoba Classic and the Sony Open. The nine-time winner on tour has 104 top-10 finishes in his career and 12 runner-up finishes, and is less than $900,000 short of $50 million in career earnings (ninth all-time).

Of the five Yellow Jackets in the field, Richy Werenski was the only other to make the cut, finishing in a tie for 58^th place.

Kuchar takes this week off, but several Yellow Jackets will be in the field at the Zurich Classic of New Orleans, a two-man event featuring foursomes and four-ball play in which some former Jackets are teaming up. Roberto Castro and Cameron Tringale make up one team, while Anders Albertson and Seth Reeves also will be playing partners. For the second straight year, David Duval and Jim Furyk will make up a team of former major champions, while Chesson Hadley (Brice Garnett) and Richy Werenski (Nicholas Lendheim) keep their 2018 teammates, and Ollie Schniederjans is paired up with Sam Ryder.

Hadley and Garnett tied for fourth place last year.

Web.com Tour:  Paul Haley II, Nicholas Thompson and Vincent Whaley returned to action last week in Prattville, Ala., at the Robert Trent Jones Golf Trail Championship. Whaley, a rookie on the tour, tied for 35^th place (-3) and stands 13^th in points on the tour, while Haley tied for 57^th place (+3) and stands 106^th. The top 25 at the end of the regular season earn PGA Tour cards for 2019-20.

The trio moves to San Antonio, Texas, this week for the Dormie Network Classic, where J.T. Griffin joins them in his third start of 2019. Griffin finished fifth at the LECOM Suncoast Classic in February.

Mackenzie Tour: James Clark, a fifth-year senior on Georgia Tech’s current team, and 2015 graduate Drew Czuchry will attempt to qualify for the Canadian Tour this week (Tuesday-Friday) at its USA East 2 qualifier at TPC Sawgrass (Dye’s Valley Course) in Ponte Vedra, Fla. Clark, not in the lineup for the Jackets at last week’s ACC Championship, used the time to prepare for the qualifie and is competing as an amateur. Czuchry has played in developmental tours since his graduation. Chris Petefish, who has played some SwingThought.com Tour events in 2019, finished 18^th at the Canadian Tour’s USA West Q-school event in Litchfield Park, Ariz., falling short of qualification. The Mackenzie Tour schedule begins May 23-26.

Elsewhere: Petefish, who has played events on the Canadian Tour and the G Pro Tour since his 2018 graduation, entered his second All Pro Tour event of 2019 last week and tied for fourth place, three strokes off the lead, at the Business First Bank Classic in Mandeville, La., earning $4,278 with a 13-under-par score of 275.

UPCOMING EVENTS

• PGA Tour:  RBC Heritage • April 18-21, 2019 • Harbor Town Golf Links • Hilton head, S.C.. • Purse: $6,900,000 • FedExCup Points: 500
• Web.com Tour:  Dormie Network Classic • April 25-28, 2019 • Briggs Ranch Golf Club • San Antonio, Texas • Purse: $550,000
• PGA Tour Champions:  Bass Pro Shops Legends of Golf • April 26-28, 2019 • Top of the Rock • Ridgedale, Mo. • Purse: $1,800,000
• Mackenzie Tour:  MacKenzie Tour Q-School – USA East 2 • April 23-26, 2019 • TPC Sawgrass-Dye’s Valley Course • Ponte Vedra Beach, Fla. • Purse: n/a
• PGA Tour China:  qualifying events in progress
• All (formerly Adams) Pro Tour:  Sand Creek Station Classic • May 8-11, 2019 • Sand Creek Station Golf Club • Newton, Kan. • Purse: $125,000
• SwingThought Tour:  3 Ridges Golf Club • May 10-11, 2019 • Knoxville, Tenn.
• G Pro Tour: Verdict Ridge Golf and Country Club • May 1-2, 2019 • Denver, N.C.