Korn Ferry Tour: Albertson claims first win in four years, as China’s Carl Yuan lets lead slip with victory in sight
- Yuan was two shots ahead with seven holes to play in the final round of the Visit Knoxville Open
- Back-to-back bogeys open door for Anders Albertson to claim wire-to-wire victory
For 13 holes of the final round of the Visit Knoxville Open, Carl Yuan looked like he was going to snatch victory from under the nose of overnight leader Anders Albertson.
Two shots ahead with seven holes to play, the Chinese golfer, who tops the Korn Ferry Tour points list, was perfectly placed to capitalise on the stunning 8-under third round that catapulted him into contention.
But back-to-back bogeys on 14 and 15, coupled with birdies for Albertson wiped out that lead, and the American hit an approach to within 20ft at the last to finish with a birdie and a closing round of 66 at Holston Hills Country Club.
Yuan also signed for a 66, leaving him on 19-under for the tournament, one shot back from Albertson, exactly the same position as he had started on Sunday.
Albertson’s only previous Korn Ferry Tour victory came at the 2018 Memorial Health Championship, where he birdied two of the final three holes for a two-stroke win.
China’s Zhang Xinjun finished tied 24th after a closing 67, while Marty Dou Zecheng settled for a share of 40th place after a 67 as well. Dou slipped down to 10th position on the points list as he seeks to return to the PGA Tour.
“I haven’t won in four years and to be leading every day, to be looking face to face with all that pressure or all those extra thoughts that come with that for four straight days was a challenge that I was embracing,” Albertson said. “I’ve had an incredible amount of people help me, and I’m just so grateful for the team that I have.”
Victory propelled Albertson to ninth on then points list, and left him needing to finish third or higher in one of the remaining regular-season tournaments to secure his PGA Tour card for next year.
The 2022 Korn Ferry Tour season continues on Thursday with the first round of the AdventHealth Championship.
