THE FLATS – Paul Haley II comes from behind in final round to win on the Korn Ferry Tour for the second time, secures return to PGA Tour … Will Dickson earns his third pro victory this year and big payday at Waterloo Open … Three Jackets make cut at Barracuda Championship … More details below in this week’s Georgia Tech #ProJackets Report.
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HALEY ROLLS IN FINAL ROUND AT MEMORIAL HEALTH CHAMPIONSHIP
Three thousand, seven hundred and 80 days.
For many, the journey to the PGA TOUR is a long, slow grind, but Paul Haley II’s perseverance and determination was rewarded today when he lifted the trophy for the 2022 Memorial Health Championship presented by LRS, earning his first Korn Ferry Tour victory since the 2012 Chile Classic Presented by Pacific Rubiales on March 11, 2012.
“Obviously, it’s been a long time, but I’ve been really close here these last four years, so very excited to get it done today,” said Haley following Sunday’s final round. “It was kind of just my time today.”
Over 10 years ago – three thousand, seven hundred and 80 days to be exact – Haley won by three strokes at Prince of Wales Country Club in Santiago, Chile, a victory which propelled him to a PGA TOUR card at season’s end. During the 2012-13 PGA TOUR season, the Dallas, Texas native made just three cuts in 18 TOUR starts and once again found himself on the outside looking in. During a three-year stretch from 2016-18, Haley competed on mini-tours and, while struggling for consistency, managed his find his way back to the Korn Ferry Tour.
“Just getting my status back out here in 2018 was huge for me,” said Haley. “My dad and Randy Smith, my swing coach, when it got really bad for me, they just did not even second guess quitting as bad as I almost wanted to. They just said, ‘No, we’re not letting you do it.’”
Fast forward to Sunday at Panther Creek Country Club in Springfield, Illinois, where Haley shot a final-round 7-under 64 to finish the week at 27-under par and win by three strokes over Austin Eckroat in solo second. With the victory, the 34-year-old Haley improved his season total to 1,318 points, officially becoming #TOURBound and securing a PGA TOUR card for the 2022-23 season.
He’s going to the big leagues. 💪 #TOURBound @PaulHaleyGolf @PGATOUR pic.twitter.com/QfaX3ImOXy
— Korn Ferry Tour (@KornFerryTour) July 18, 2022
Got it done in the Land of Lincoln 🏆 pic.twitter.com/lZjCnh2DGP
— Korn Ferry Tour (@KornFerryTour) July 18, 2022
This win was worth the wait @PaulHaleyGolf pic.twitter.com/MsNSoaqFzi
— Korn Ferry Tour (@KornFerryTour) July 18, 2022
Back in the winner’s circle at last 🏆
Paul Haley II wins for the first time in 10 years and is heading back to the @PGATOUR. #TOURBound pic.twitter.com/6E6Cg89Zkx
— Korn Ferry Tour (@KornFerryTour) July 17, 2022
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DICKSON CAPTURES THIRD PRO VICTORY AT WATERLOO OPEN
Will Dickson relished the chase and got hot at the right time.
Dickson, a former Georgia Tech golfer, entered the final round of the 2022 Waterloo Open two strokes off of the leader, Brady Calkins, after two rounds of play.
Calkins recorded two straight rounds of nine-under 63s and looked to be in route to a $50,000 payday. Nonetheless, Dickson quietly put together two solid rounds, a 65 and 63, to settle into second place at 16-under.
“Off the tee box, I had a pretty solid plan in place,” Dickson said. “I wanted to be aggressive from the start of the week…For me, the better I drive the ball, the closer I am, so I can use that as an advantage…It was going to be a putting contest, no matter what.”
Pairing procedures placed Dickson and Calkins in the same group with the leading amateur, Connor Peck, for the final 18 holes. According to Dickson, neither Calkins’ two-stroke lead nor the fact that he participated in a PGA tour event this summer phased the first-year pro.
More from the Waterloo-Cedar Falls Courier
With a tournament total of 27 under par, @will_dicksongt is our 2022 #WaterlooOpen Champion!
He has not only won the $50,000 purse, but will also take home the lowest round bonus of $1,000 shooting 11 under par for a 61. Congratulations Will! pic.twitter.com/NcgxzR9eT3
— Waterloo Open (@waterlooopen) July 17, 2022
Will Dickson, one of the better golf stories of the year, just shot a 61 in the final round of the @waterlooopen to win by 7. He wins $50,000.
He’s gone from not being able to break 80 in college for multiple days to Monday Q and winning huge dev tour events. Awesome.
— Monday Q Info (@acaseofthegolf1) July 17, 2022
Congratulations @will_dicksongt So happy for you kid! @waterlooopen You make all Rhode Islanders proud. https://t.co/DFnE5sgFx8
— Billy Andrade (@BillyTAndrade) July 18, 2022
Yesterday Will Dickson won the Waterloo Open, after the trophy presentation at 530, Drove 7 hours with former GT teammate Ben Smith to the KFT Mon Q. Got to bed at 1:30 am. Got up at 530am to drive Smith to his 7am tee time. Went back to bed for couple hours. Shot 65 and got thru
— Monday Q Info (@acaseofthegolf1) July 19, 2022
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THREE JACKETS PLAY THE WEEKEND AT BARRACUDA
Chesson Hadley, Vincent Whaley and Richy Werenski all made the cut and played the weekend at the Barracuda Championship, the PGA Tour’s alternate event opposite the Open Championship.
Hadley and Whaley tied for 31st in the event, which featured a modified Stableford scoring system that awards points for birdies and better, and subtracts points for bogeys and worse. Hadley and Whaley collected 22 points each. Werenski, the 2020 champion in this event, tied for 44th with 19 points. Seth Reeves missed the cut.
All but Whaley (No. 106) sit outside the top 125 on the FedEx Cup points list as the 2021-22 PGA Tour season begins its final stretch of three regular-season events with the 3M Open this week in the Minneapolis-St. Paul area.
Hadley (No. 143) and Reeves (No. 181) are in the field in the Twin Cities along with Stewart Cink (No. 130) and Cameron Tringale (No. 126).
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TRINGALE ONLY JACKET TO ADVANCE TO WEEKEND AT ST. ANDREWS
Cameron Tringale, among the top 50 in the Official World Golf Ranking, was the only Yellow Jacket to survive the cut and play the weekend at the 150th Open Championship last weekend at St. Andrews Golf Links in Scotland. The highest-ranked Yellow Jacket on the FedEx Cup points list at No. 26, Tringale fired a pair of 71s to make the cut, then shot 74-69 on the weekend to tie for 62nd place.
Stewart Cink, the 2009 Open Champion, and David Duval, the 2002 Open Champion, each struggled in the first round and did not make the cut.
🏌️Part golfer
🏃♂️💨Part sprinterYou can’t match Cameron Tringale’s intensity! #The150thOpen 😄pic.twitter.com/iWEA2WruLR
— Sky Sports (@SkySports) July 17, 2022
