Live updates from PGA Barbasol Championship: Former Florida State golfer wins 2023 event
Hello and welcome to the Herald-Leader’s live updates page for the 2023 Barbasol Championship, Kentucky’s only annual event on the PGA Tour schedule.
More than 150 professional golfers have descended upon Champions at Keene Trace in Nicholasville — which is about 25 minutes outside of Lexington — to take part in the event.
Held from Thursday through Sunday, the Barbasol Championship offers access to both PGA Tour members and DP World Tour members. The tournament has a $3.8 million purse, with $684,000 going to the winner.
The winner also receives 300 FedEx Cup points and a two-year PGA Tour exemption.
This week’s winner will also gain access to the 2024 PGA Championship, which will be held next May in Louisville.
Follow along all week from Central Kentucky for Barbasol Championship updates.
BARBASOL CHAMPIONSHIP LEADERBOARD
Vincent Norrman wins Barbasol Championship in playoff
For the second time since the tournament moved to Kentucky in 2018, the Barbasol Championship was decided in a playoff.
Unlike 2021’s epic six-hole playoff, the 2023 playoff was decided in much quicker fashion.
After both Vincent Norrman and Nathan Kimsey finished 72 holes at Champions at Keene Trace with a score of 22-under par, Norrman prevailed on the first playoff hole, No. 18.
Norrman made par on that first playoff hole, while Kimsey made bogey.
The triumph for Norrman is even more impressive given what occurred to lead to the playoff: Holding a one-shot lead, Norrman bogeyed the 18th hole, his 72nd and final hole of regulation.
He had to rattle home a 7-foot, 7-inch bogey putt to simply put himself into the two-man playoff.
Now, Norrman is a PGA Tour winner for the first time.
Former Louisville men’s golfer finishes Barbasol Championship
Of the eight players in the 2023 Barbasol Championship field with connections to Kentucky, only one made the cut: Former University of Louisville men’s golfer Matti Schmid.
Schmid, who was born in Germany, recorded rounds of 68 (Four-under par), 71 (One-under), 68 (Four-under) and 72 (Even-par) to finish 72 holes at Keene Trace at 9-under par.
Schmid is currently in a tie for 44th.
At the top of the leaderboard, Vincent Norrman — who was born in Sweden but played college golf at Georgia Southwestern State and Florida State — currently leads by two shots at 22-under par as the leaders begin play on the back nine.
Ball to be played where it lies for final round of Barbasol Championship
Saturday finally brought a long-awaited weather delay to the 2023 edition of the Barbasol Championship.
Fortunately, a delay for lightning and storms only caused about a 45-minute stoppage in play. And despite the presence of a soaking rain during the early part of Saturday afternoon, play continued without interruption for the remainder of the third round.
The weather forecast for Sunday’s final round is looking a lot better.
No rain or lightning is in the forecast, and as such, no preferred lies will be given during the final day of action at Keene Trace: The ball will be played as it lies in the final round.
Leader Trevor Cone (-17) will go off in the final group of the day at 2:50 p.m.
The final player with Kentucky-connections in the Barbasol — former U of L golfer Matti Schmid — will begin his final round at 11:50 a.m.
Trevor Cone takes the lead on moving day
Despite Lucas Glover’s third-round entrance as the leader at -13, a difficult start to Saturday’s play allowed for a few competitors to make a statement.
Most notably, former Virginia Tech golfer Trevor Cone, who finished Saturday afternoon atop the leaderboard after posting a career-best 63 (9-under par) on the day to put him at -17 for the tournament. This is the first time Cone has ever held the lead after any round in the history of his 21 PGA TOUR starts.
Glover, who was Even-par for the day through nine holes, picked up birdies on the 13th, 15th and 17th holes to end the afternoon 3-under par. This back-nine surge also pushed him back into second place, where he is tied with Vincent Norrman at 16-under par for the tournament.
Matti Schmid, the only remaining golfer in the field with ties to the commonwealth, finished his day tied for 32nd at -9 for the tournament after shooting 68 (-4) in the third round.
First tee time Sunday was scheduled for 9:05 a.m., with the lead group of Cone and Glover getting underway at 2:50 p.m.
Crowded leaderboard as third round of Barbasol Championship continues
After a brief weather delay Saturday morning, the third round of play at the Barbasol Championship has continued, and a crowded leaderboard sits atop the field.
The leader after 36 holes, Lucas Glover, has failed to get going during his third round and is Even-par for the day (-13 for the tournament) after nine holes Saturday.
A gaggle of players have joined him at -13 for the tournament, and several others are one shot ahead at -14 to share the tournament lead.
This includes several international players like Marcus Kinhult (Sweden), Vincent Norrman (Sweden) and Adrien Saddier (France).
While the action at the top of the leaderboard has heated up, the weather conditions have worsened at Keene Trace.
Saturday morning’s lightning delay was followed by brief rain showers, and the rain returned early Saturday afternoon.
Play has continued through the afternoon rain shower, though.
Play suspended, set to resume at Barbasol Championship
The first weather delay of the 2023 Barbasol Championship occurred Saturday morning.
At 9:05 a.m., play was halted due to lightning in the area and other dangerous weather.
Play was set to resume at 9:50 a.m.
Preferred lies to be played at third round of Barbasol Championship
Also because of the threat of inclement weather, preferred lies will be played Saturday morning and afternoon during the third round of the tournament.
Saturday’s forecast calls for a high chance of rain and storms as we move into the early afternoon hours.
Lucas Glover to begin Saturday Barbasol Championship round at 8:46 a.m.
As mentioned earlier, the third round of the Barbasol Championship will featuring three-player groupings going off both the No. 1 and No. 10 tees, starting at from 6:45 a.m.
This is because of forecasted inclement weather later in the day Saturday in Nicholasville.
Lucas Glover, who leads the tournament by two shots at 13-under par, will go off at 8:46 a.m. and is paired with Adam Long and Vincent Norrman, who are tied for second place (-11). This grouping will play from the No. 1 tee.
The lone player with Kentucky connections left in the field — former U of L golfer Matti Schmid — will begin his third round at 7:18 a.m. off the No. 10 tee.
Barbasol Championship cut set at 4-under par
This year’s Barbasol Championship cut has been set at 4-under par, and some notable names are set to miss out on playing the weekend at Keene Trace.
This includes seven of the eight golfers with Kentucky connections in the field. Only Matti Schmid, who was born in Germany but played college golf at Louisville, will play the weekend from this group.
Other notable golfers that missed the cut include former major champion Geoff Ogilvy, Harry Higgs, Sebastian Garcia Rodriguez (who shot an 81 on Thursday and a 66 on Friday), past Barbasol winner Jim Herman, Kiradech Aphibarnrat and 2022 Barbasol runner-up Kevin Streelman.
Amateur David Ford to play weekend at Barbasol Championship
There were only two amateur golfers in the field this week at the Barbasol Championship, and one of them will stick around for the weekend.
David Ford, a sponsor’s exemption into the field, shot a pair of under-par rounds (One-under 71 on Thursday and 5-under 67 on Friday) to comfortably make the cut at 6-under par.
Ford recently completed his sophomore year at North Carolina and was named the 2023 ACC Player of the Year.
Ford is currently fourth in the World Amateur Golf Ranking and is making his PGA Tour debut this week.
Worst 36-hole score recorded at Keene Trace for Barbasol Championship
In 2021, Smylie Kaufman shot rounds of 87 (+15) and 78 (+6) to miss the Barbasol Championship cut at 21-over par.
That set a new mark for the worst 36-hole score for the Barbasol Championship at its current venue of Keene Trace in Central Kentucky, where the tournament has been played since 2018.
That record was broken Friday afternoon.
Daniel Chopra, a Swedish-born golfer who grew up in India, shot rounds of 79 (+7) and 88 (+16) to finish two rounds of the Barbasol Championship at 23-over par.
But Chopra wasn’t the only golfer to shoot a big number this week in Nicholasville.
Jazz Janewattananond shot two rounds in the 80s: 85 (+13) and 80 (+8) to finish at 21-over par.
While that’s not ideal, full credit to Chopra and Janewattananond for not withdrawing and finishing out their PGA Tour starts.
Barbasol Championship third round altered due to weather threat
If you were planning on coming to watch the third round of the Barbasol Championship on Saturday, you’ll have to get to Nicholasville earlier than expected.
On Friday afternoon, the PGA Tour announced that because of forecasted weather, the third round tee times for the Barbasol will feature groupings of three players off both No. 1 and No. 10 tee.
These third round tee times will run from approximately 6:45 to 8:45 a.m.
Through two days at Keene Trace, we are yet to have an actual weather delay.
That streak of good luck could run out Saturday, though.
Chip McDaniel, Josh Teater among Kentuckians set to miss the cut
Everyone knows that to make the cut at the Barbasol Championship, you have to go low.
Unfortunately for a couple fan-favorite Kentuckians, they were unable to do just that.
Josh Teater — a longtime Barbasol fan-favorite and former standout golfer at Henry Clary High School and Morehead State — along with Chip McDaniel — a former UK men’s golf star and now an assistant men’s golf coach at Kentucky — will both miss the cut.
After completing their second rounds on Friday afternoon, Teater was at even-par and McDaniel was at 1-over par.
That’s a ways off from the most likely cut line of 4-under par, according to Data Golf.
Other players with Kentucky ties who have already finished their second rounds are:
▪ Matti Schmid: -5
▪ Stephen Stallings Jr.: -1
▪ Robin Sciot-Siegrist: -2
▪ Vince Whaley: +3
▪ Trey Cox: +11
Low scores abound, again at Barbasol Championship
Since the Barbasol Championship moved to Kentucky in 2018, the winning score has always been 21-under par or better.
That doesn’t look like it’s going to change in 2023, the fifth edition of the Barbasol at the course.
During Friday’s morning wave, plenty of low scores were to be had.
The low round so far on Friday has come from Frenchman David Ravetto, who carded an 8-under par round of 64 that featured two eagles.
Just one day after firing an 81 (+9) to open the tournament, Spaniard Sebastian Garcia Rodriguez shot a 6-under par round of 66.
That score was matched by Taylor Pendrith, who unlike Garcia Rodriguez, kept his nerve during the first round with a 3-under par 69. At 9-under par, Pendrith is currently in a tie for fourth.
Brian Stuard, Justin Lower, Ryan Brehm, Jason Scrivener and Nathan Kimsey are all also in the clubhouse already today with 66s.
Lucas Glover finishes in style, extends Barbasol Championship lead
Friday wasn’t as straightforward as Thursday was for Lucas Glover at Keene Trace.
The first-round leader didn’t drive it as well as he did over his opening 18 holes. Some scrambling was required to keep his ship afloat, and to continue to keep his perch atop the leaderboard.
It also helps when you finish your second round in the fashion that Glover did.
Glover buried a 35-foot birdie putt on the par-3 ninth hole, his final hole of the day, to card a 4-under par round of 68 Friday.
That put Glover at 13-under par for the tournament, and two shots ahead of Adam Long (-11) in second place.
Glover has now shot 10 consecutive PGA Tour rounds in the 60s.
Leader Lucas Glover begins second round at Barbasol Championship
The sun has barely risen to start Friday in Nicholasville, but the top golfer in the field for the 2023 Barbasol Championship is already on the course.
Lucas Glover — who carded an opening round 63 (-9) on Thursday afternoon — began his second round of the tournament early Friday morning.
Glover is in one of the tournament’s featured groups, playing alongside Taylor Pendrith (the second-highest ranked player in the field, per the OWGR) and Peter Kuest, whose recent PGA Tour performances have turned heads.
Pendrith shot 69 (-3) and Kuest shot 72 (even par) on Thursday.
Pendrith has gotten off to a flying start in his second round, though: He’s 4-under through eight holes.
Glover’s recent uptick in form — after nearly 10 years of subpar golf — has come, partially, as the result of a revamped putting routine.
In an insightful post-round interview Thursday, Glover uttered golf’s off-limits word, “yips,” when describing why his putting routine needed to change.
It’s hard to argue with the results from Glover’s new putting style, which now features a long putter.
Glover has carded nine consecutive rounds in the 60s on tour, including consecutive top 10 finishes.
It’s helped Glover rediscover the form that saw him win the 2009 U.S. Open, among other tournaments.
The current projected cut line for the 2023 Barbasol Championship is 3-under par, but that number will become lower as the day progresses.
Only one player has withdrawn so far from the Barbasol: S.Y. Noh withdrew during the first round due to a back injury.
Preferred lies were used in the first round of the Barbasol due to the threat of inclement weather, but balls will return to “played as it lies” status for Friday’s second round.
Kentucky golfers wrap first rounds at Barbasol Championship
A total of eight golfers in the field of 150-plus golfers taking to Keene Trace this week have strong ties to the commonwealth.
Here’s a quick update on the play of Kentucky-connected golfers after 18 holes.
▪ Robin Sciot-Siegrist — played college golf at Louisville.
Shot a 3-under par 69. Is six shots back of the lead and one shot ahead of the cut.
▪ Matti Schmid — played college golf at Louisville.
Shot a 4-under par 68. Is five shots back of the lead and two shots ahead of the cut.
▪ Trey Cox — Born in Lexington and attended Paul Laurence Dunbar High School.
Shot a 6-over par 78. Is 15 shots back of the lead and eight shots behind the cut.
▪ Stephen Stallings Jr. — Attended St. Xavier High School in Louisville and played college golf at Kentucky.
Shot a 3-over par 75. Is 12 shots back of the lead and five shots behind the cut.
▪ Josh Teater — Attended Henry Clay High School and played college golf at Morehead State.
Shot a 1-under par 71. Is eight shots back of the lead and one shot behind the cut.
▪ Jesse Massie — Attended Trinity High School in Louisville and played college golf at Eastern Kentucky.
Shot a 3-over par 75. Is 12 shots back of the lead and five shots behind the cut.
▪ Vince Whaley — Born in Lexington.
Shot a 3-over par 75. Is 12 shots back of the lead and five shots behind the cut.
▪ Chip McDaniel — Attended Clay County High School and played college golf at Kentucky. Former assistant coach at Eastern Kentucky who was recently named a UK men’s golf assistant coach.
Shot a 1-under par 71. Is eight shots back of the lead and one shot behind the cut.
Lucas Glover leads after first round of Barbasol Championship
Sometimes, the cream simply rises to the top.
There’s still 54 holes to play in the 2023 Barbasol Championship, but the best golfer in the field is already leading the way.
Lucas Glover — one of the pre-tournament favorites and the highest ranked golfer in the field, per the Official World Golf Rankings — shot an afternoon round of 9-under par (63) and leads the Barbasol by one shot over Ryan Armour and Ryan Moore.
Glover made eight birdies and one eagle during his round. During one stretch from the fifth through the ninth holes, Glover made five consecutive birdies. His eagle came on a hole out from 138 yards on the par-4 12th hole.
This marked Glover’s ninth straight round in the 60s on the PGA Tour.
With the field all having completed 18 holes (with no weather delays), the cut currently sits a 2-under par.
S.Y. Noh was the lone player to withdraw during the first round of the Barbasol (back injury).
Kentucky golfers, other top players begin Barbasol Championship
Thursday afternoon is bringing some heavy hitters — no pun intended — to the Barbasol Championship stage.
The early afternoon grouping of Lucas Glover, Taylor Pendrith and Peter Kuest represents the two highest-ranked players in the Official World Golf Rankings (Glover at No. 112 and Pendrith at No. 113), and a player in Kuest who has put together some strong showings of late on tour.
Another afternoon pairing Thursday is sure to spark plenty of local golf interest.
Chip McDaniel, Josh Teater and Matti Schmid will play together starting at 2 p.m.
McDaniel is a former UK golfer who is now a Kentucky men’s golf assistant coach. He Monday qualified into the event.
Teater is a fan-favorite at the Barbasol and a former Henry Clay High School and Morehead State standout.
Schmid, who was born in Germany, played college golf at Louisville and comes with significant pedigree. He was the low amateur at the 2021 Open Championship and earned 2021 Rookie of the Year honors on the DP World Tour.
He was also tied for the lead at the Barbasol after two rounds last year.
Historically bad score posted Thursday
Thursday brought history to the Barbasol Championship, and not in a good way.
Jazz Janewattananond became just the second golfer to complete a round in the 80s at the Barbasol Championship since the tournament moved to Kentucky in 2018.
Smylie Kaufman shot an 87 (+15) in the first round in 2021, while Janewattananond shot an 85 (+13) today.
Janewattananond made nine bogeys or worse during his round, and no birdies or better.
Low scores posted already at 2023 Barbasol Championship
The Barbasol Championship is a birdie fest. Low scores win at Keene Trace, which means that from the opening round on, players must be aggressive and opportunistic with their abilities to make birdie or better.
This theme has again taken center stage as the Thursday morning wave of players finished their opening rounds.
The early clubhouse lead was established by Ryan Armour with an 8-under par 64 on the par-72 course. Ryan Moore soon joined him atop the leaderbaord with the same score.
Englishman Daniel Brown was one shot behind him after an opening-round 65 (7 under), as are two Americans in Wesley Bryan (who played college golf at South Carolina) and Cody Gribble.
An early candidate for the shot of the tournament also emerged Thursday morning from Peter Malnati on the 199-yard, par-3 ninth hole.
Malnati, known for wearing a bucket hat while playing, stuck his tee shot to within 1 inch of the cup, barely missing out on a hole-in-one.
2023 Barbasol Championship underway at Keene Trace
Balls are in the air at Keene Trace.
The 2023 Barbasol Championship is underway, with the first groups going off both the No. 1 and No. 10 tees at 6:45 a.m. Thursday.
Former major champion Jason Dufner birdied the first hole for the first birdie of the tournament.
Best bets for 2023 Barbasol Championship
It may be too late to place a pre-tournament wager on the Barbasol, but that doesn’t mean you can’t take some action live.
Earlier this week, we identified five bets we like this week at Keene Trace, from the final winning margin of the tournament, to an outright winner and golfers to finish in the top five, top 10 and top 20.
Check out our best bets for the 2023 Barbasol Championship.
Who is playing in 2023 Barbasol Championship?
A field of 150-plus golfers is expected in Central Kentucky this week for the Barbasol Championship.
This includes members from both the PGA Tour and the DP World Tour, as well as plenty of players with connections to Kentucky such as fan-favorite Josh Teater, former UK golfers Chip McDaniel and Stephen Stallings Jr. and more.
Here’s a complete breakdown of the 2023 Barbasol Championship field.
What you need to know for 2023 Barbasol Championship
This week marks the fifth, and potentially final, edition of the Barbasol Championship at Keene Trace in Nicholasville.
The tournament’s five-year sponsorship deal with Barbasol, an American shaving brand, is set to end after the 2023 event.
Tournament Director Darren Nelson told the Herald-Leader in May that “there’s no news as of yet,” about the future of the event in Central Kentucky.
Like the 2022 event, this year’s Barbasol features a strong international presence with several top players from the DP World Tour crossing the Atlantic Ocean to play.
More information about this year’s tournament — including information on parking and tickets — can be found here.
This story was originally published July 13, 2023 at 7:02 AM.
