Doeden Loses PGA LatinoAmerica Tour Finale in Playoff

TULUM, Mexico -- Having won the rain-shortened Tapemark Charity Pro-Am three weeks earlier, Justin Doeden had to work overtime this weekend in the Bupa Tour Championship. But this time, it didn't turn out quite as well. The 28-year-old former University of Minnesota star tied Chandler Blanchet and Jeremy Gandon for first with a 72-hole aggregate of 282 (6 under), but then lost on the second hole of a playoff, when he made a par, and the other two made birdies.

This was the season-ending event for the PGA Tour LatinoAmerica, and it seemed fitting that Blanchet should be the winner. The 28-year-old from Gainesville, Fla., was the only player on the tour to win twice this season, and with his victory he wrapped up Player of the Year honors.

In the Tapemark, Doeden was tied for the lead after a first-round 65 at Southview Country Club. He went off early for the second round on Saturday -- and shot 62. More than two inches of rain fell on Southview that afternoon, with half the field still on the course, and as a result, the scheduled third round had to be cancelled. So Doeden got Sunday off, and no one was able to match his 36-hole total of 15-under-par 127. He won by two strokes.

He got off to another fast start at PGA Riviera Maya on Thursday, posting a 5-under 67 on a day when only one other player broke 70. Doeden led after both the first and second rounds, and even though he was over par Saturday with a third-round 73, he still had a share of the lead at 211, along with Alvaro Ortiiz. A 1-over 37 on the front nine Sunday didn't help Doeden's cause, but he birdied the 11th and 12th holes. Jeremy Gandon did him one better, however, making birdies at the 10th, 12th and 13th holes. Chandler Blanchet birdied the 13th, too.

As they got to the last three holes, Gandon led by one over Doeden and Blanchet.

Par 5s on back nines tend to play pivotal roles in deciding the outcomes of tournaments. That was the case on Sunday at Riviera Maya, but not in the usual way. None of the three contenders birdieed the 596-yard, par-5 16th, but Gandon and Doeden both bogeyed it. That dropped Gandon back into a tie with Blanchet for the lead, and Doeden was one behind. But he then birdied the 174-yard, par-3 17th, and they all parred the 18th -- which meant a three-way playoff. Gandon closed with a 68, Gandon with a 70 and Doeden 71.

Harry Hilllier matched Gandon's 68, which was the low score of the day, and he tied Ortiz for fourth, one shot out of the playoff at 283. Ortiz shot 72.

The playoff started on the 18th hole, a 436-yard, par 4, and all three contestants parrred it. So they went back to the 18th tee. Doeden had made more birdies (18) than anyone else in the field during the regulation 72 holes, but both Blanchet and Gandon birdied No. 18 when they played it for the second time in the playoff -- and Doeden made a par. That ended the tournament for him.

When Blanchet and Gandon played the 18th one more time, Gandon got into trouble with his tee shot and made a bogey. Blanchet two-putted from 20 feet for the winning par.

The victory was worth $36,000, and it boosted Blanchet's 2023 earnings to $93,423. What's more important, by taking Player of the Year honors, he guaranteed himself full status on the Korn Ferry Tour next year.

Doeden and Gandon earned $18,000 each. Gandon moved up from No. 35 on the money list to No. 17, with a total of $35,048. Doeden lifted himself from No. 37 to No. 18, with $34,057.

This, by the way, was the last year of the PGA Tour LatinoAmerica. Next year, it will be combined with the PGA Tour Canada into a PGA Tour Americas, which will consist of 16 events contested across Latin America, Canada and the United State from February through September.


PGA LatinoAmerica

Bupa Tour Championship

At PGA Riviera Maya

Par 72, 7,272 yards

Tulum, Mexico

1. Chandler Blanchet $36,000 73-71-68-70--282 (won playoff with par-birdie-par)

T2. Jeremy Gandon $18,000 73-70-71-68--282 (par-birdie-bogey in playoff)

T2. Justin Doeden $18,000 67-71-73-71--282 (par-par in playoff)