Hill Takes Medalist Honours In Playoff Win Over Lyons; Canada’s Ziggy Nathu Earns Conditional Membership

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Category: Inside Golf

Published: 2021-11-29

LUJAN, Argentina — Playing together in the final round of PGA TOUR Latinoamérica’s Qualifying Tournament at Country Club Las Praderas de Lujan, a pair of Americans, John Hill and Landon Lyons, battled all day, eventually tying at the end of regulation atop the leaderboard. A two-hole playoff ensued, with Hill taking medalist honors by draining a 15-foot birdie putt on the second extra hole—No. 10—a putt that Lyons couldn’t match. Hill will be exempt into every PGA TOUR Latinoamérica tournament this season. Lyons joins 10 other players with status through the season’s first half.

“I had a great week on the golf course, and that always makes the rest of the trip more enjoyable,” said Hill, a Texas native who played college golf at the University of Incarnate Word. “Right now there are a lot of feelings. I haven’t won a golf tournament in two years, and this is my first professional win. So, I’m overwhelmed with joy and having so many happy thoughts thinking about what the rest of the year will bring playing on PGA TOUR Latinoamérica.”

Hill fired a final-round 71 to Lyons’ 70, the 16th hole where Hill opened the door for the playoff. He bogeyed there after hitting into the water, while Lyons made birdie, a two-stroke swing where he caught Hill.

After matching each other on the first playoff hole, onto No. 10 they went. Hill hit a 2-iron off the tee and had only 115 yards for his second-shot approach that stopped 15 feet from the hole. From there, he took care of business.

“When I was preparing to come down here, I mentally prepared myself to be down here for three weeks,” Hill said of his first visit to South America. “I talked myself into playing well and getting status, and this is really what I was hoping for.”

Lyons chose to focus on what’s ahead despite the runner-up finish—knowing he has guaranteed starts to begin the season.

“It’s going to be a fun year. Being able to travel to all these different locations and see different parts of the world is going to be awesome,” he said. “I know it didn’t turn out the way I wanted it to in the playoff, but it’s part of the game, and you have to keep plugging away.”

This is Lyons’ third time entering a PGA TOUR Latinoamérica Qualifying Tournament and the first time he’s walked away with status. Hill was successful in his first Q-School venture.

Key Information

How the Tournament Worked
One-hundred-two players started the tournament Tuesday, and 100 completed all 72 holes. Below is a breakdown of the various PGA TOUR Latinoamérica statuses earned this week:

This was a 72-hole, no-cut event. There were playoffs to determine the medalist (John Hill) and the 12th and final position available (Dykes Harbin). Harbin defeated Exequiel Lopez and Gustavo Silva with a birdie on the fourth extra hole to secure 12th place. All three players birdied the first hole, and they all parred the next two holes. Harbin will be exempt for the first half of the season, while Lopez and Silva earned conditional status.

Players in this week’s field came from 14 countries and territories: Argentina, Bolivia, Brazil, Canada, Chile, Colombia, Mexico, Panama, Peru, Puerto Rico, South Korea, Sweden, United States and Venezuela. Of the 12 players who earned for the entire season or for half the season, five came from the U.S. (John Hill, Landon Lyons, Will Cannon, Josh Radcliff, Matt Ryan, Dalan Refioglu and Dykes Harbin), while Puerto Rico (Chris Nido), Bolivia (Jose Luis Montano), Argentina (Alan Wagner and amateur Aram Yenidjeian) and Chile (Agustin Errazuriz and Gustavo Silva) also had representatives.

Starting his round on No. 10, Will Cannon got off to a hot start, holing out from the fairway from 115 yards for eagle. That set the stage for his 5-under opening nine, with birdies coming at Nos. 14, 16 and 17. He cooled a bit after that final first-nine birdie, making 10 consecutive pars before making a birdie at the par-5 ninth to finish his tournament. “To start that way obviously gives you some good vibes for the rest of the round,” he said of his eagle.

Matt Ryan said the pars he made on Nos. 11 and 12 were the keys to his round, especially on the 12th. After a poor drive and a recover shot, he had a 140-yard approach shot for birdie, and once on the green he buried the putt for the unlikely par. “I had no business making pars there,” he said.

It turned out that Bolivia’s Jose Luis Montano’s 3-over 75 was the aberration this week. After opening 66-69, he put himself in bit of a hole with his 75 in the third round. No problem, though, as Montano came back with a 5-under 67 to finish at 11-under overall and tied for fifth to earn status for the first half of the season.

Canada’s Ziggy Nathu had an impressive final 36 holes after a disappointing start that saw him sitting at 2-over at the halfway mark. He fired a third-round, 4-under 68 then came back with a 66 Friday to finish at 8-under and tied for 15th, a stroke out of the playoff for the 12th and final spot but good for conditional status this season.

Low-round-of-the-day honors belonged to American Colin Monagle. He shot a 7-under 65 that allowed him to earn conditional status. Monagle began the day tied for 49th. With five holes to play Friday, he was at 3-under for the day and not looking good to get membership. All he did, starting at No. 14 was finish birdie-birdie-birdie-birdie-par. The 65 left him at 5-under for the tournament.

Argentina’s Aram Yenidejian was the low amateur this week, opening with a 1-under 71 and firing three consecutive 69s after that to finish at 10-under and tied for ninth. American Jon Moles picked up conditional status by tying for 34th, finishing at 2-under. Three other amateurs failed to earn membership.

Seven Argentines earned PGA TOUR Latinoamérica status this week, with Alan Wagner the low Argentine, finishing at 11-under—good for a tie for fifth. He is joined by amateur Aram Yenidejian as players exempt through the season’s first half. Five other players earned conditional status: Exequiel Lopez, Maximiliano Godoy, Puma Dominguez, Matias Simaski and Jesus Montenegro.

Quotable

“I had some good looks at birdie but wasn’t able to hole either one of them. John hit a good putt on the second playoff hole. You can’t be disappointed about it.” –Landon Lyons on his extra-session battle with winner John Hill

“It’s a weird feeling because every year I’ve come to Q-School because I’ve lost my Korn Ferry (Tour) status. It’s not something you can take for granted because no matter which Q-School you go to there could be 10 guys who lost Korn Ferry status. Q-School is always tough.” –Matt Ryan

“I played great in the first round but rounds two and three I struggled a lot. I hung tough, and today my only goal was to stay as calm as possible, which is easier said than done.” –Matt Ryan

“I didn’t make a bogey, and I putted the lights out.” –Matt Ryan

“It was fun. I really liked it. I’m from Indiana, but playing and living in Florida, we don’t get a lot of roll out (on drives), so I enjoyed it.” –Tyler Gray

“It was definitely playing easiest today. I’m just happy I went out there and played a round that I knew I could.” –Tyler Gray

“I had been scraping it around the first three rounds, and I definitely got off to a bad start each of the first three rounds. It was nice to go bogey-free for once.” –Tyler Gray

“It feels great to have a job for this coming year. I’ve been working hard for this moment.” –Chris Nido

“It’s second to none. I can’t thank him enough. It’s very special.” –Chris Nido on having his father, Miguel, serving as his caddie this week.

“I didn’t have my best this week, and the first three rounds I had a couple of hiccups that slowed me down. Today I knew it was out there and a good round would close it out.” –Chris Nido

“I didn’t really make any mistakes and gave myself a lot of birdie opportunities—especially on my first nine. I minimized my mistakes. It was pretty fun.” –Will Cannon

“What the PGA TOUR has put into this Tour, and all the opportunities we’re going to have this year. It’s great to have a schedule and a place to play.” –Will Cannon

This is my first time down here, and there are a lot of great players. To have an opportunity to compete against some great people in unfamiliar places—challenging myself in different ways—is something I really looking forward to.” –Will Cannon

Final-Round Weather
Sunny and warm. High of 85. Wind E at 6-11 mph.

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