Nathan Kimsey would have been the first player to win on his PGA Tour debut since 1988; Vincent Norrman claimed a play-off victory, while Adrien Saddier and American Trevor Cone finished a shot back in tied third
Last Updated: 17/07/23 6:41am
Vincent Norrman (right) defeated Nathan Kimsey (left) to win the Barbasol Championship
Sweden’s Vincent Norrman secured his maiden PGA Tour title after defeating England’s Nathan Kimsey in a play-off to win the Barbasol Championship in Kentucky.
Norrman made an eight-foot bogey on his final hole at Keene Trace Golf Club to close a six-under 66 and finish on 22 under alongside Kimsey, who had charged up the leaderboard with a bogey-free 64.
The players returned to the par-four 18th for the play-off, where Kimsey was unable to get up and down from a greenside bunker and allowed Norrman to see out victory with a close-range par.
Norrman now holds full exempt status on the PGA Tour and DP World Tour until 2025
“I don’t think I can process this for a while,” Norrman said. “I’m lost for words. It’s amazing. It has been a crazy week and obviously [on Sunday], the first nine was almost flawless. How I finished the front nine I’m really proud of, then hung in there on the back. I’m happy to be sitting here.”
Norrman had birdied his opening hole of the day and added five more in a six-hole stretch to reach the turn in 30, then took advantage of the par-five 14th before the final-hole bogey saw him miss out on the victory in regulation.
Norrman is the first Swedish player to win on the PGA Tour since 2017
The 25-year-old earns 300 FedExCup points and moves to 61st in the standings, with the top 70 players following the Wyndham Championship advancing to the FedExCup Playoffs, while winning the co-sanctioned event means he is exempt on the PGA Tour and DP World Tour until 2025.
Kimsey, seeking to become the first player to since Jim Benepe at the 1988 Western Open to win his PGA Tour debut, had made an eagle and six birdies during his final round but then narrowly missed on the first extra hole.
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“I feel like I barely missed a shot all day,” Kimsey said. “Holed a few nice putts and just kind of did a really good job of executing kind of the whole back nine and keep pushing really. Yeah, like I can’t complain with anything I did [on Sunday].”
Frances Adrien Saddier posted a six-under 66 to finish a shot back in third alongside overnight leader Trevor Cone, who held a share of the lead until a double-bogey at the par-three 16th, with former US Open champion Lucas Glover rounding the top five.
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