Matt McCarty takes 54-hole lead at The Ascendant presented by Blue

Things to know

• Matt McCarty cards bogey-free 8-under 64 and holds a three-stroke lead over Cristobal Del Solar (second/-16) at 19-under 197, breaking the previous 54-hole tournament scoring of 15-under 201 (Alejandro Tosti/2023).
• Alistair Docherty (T3/-14) cards bogey-free 9-under 63, tying the 18-hole tournament scoring record and TPC Colorado course record.
• Open qualifier Timmy Crawford (T26/-9), making his first PGA TOUR-sanctioned start, aces the 365-yard par-4 third, recording the fifth hole-in-one on a par 4 in Korn Ferry Tour history, and the first since Rob Oppenheim at the 2012 Korn Ferry Tour Championship presented by United Leasing & Finance.
• Final-round tee times will run in groupings of three from 7:18-9:30 a.m. local time off the first and 10th tees.

Charting the leader

Matt McCarty (First/-19)

• Seeking his first Korn Ferry Tour win in what is his 67th career start, holds his first 54-hole lead/co-lead on Tour (previous career-high 54-hole position: T3/2023 Panama Championship/finished T6)
• Holds the seventh 54-hole lead of three-plus strokes this season; only two of the previous six converted the lead into a win (Ryan Gerard/BMW Charity Pro-Am presented by TD SYNNEX/led by three, won by six; John Pak/Compliance Solutions Championship/led by seven, won by three)
• Bidding to become the 12th first-time winner on the Korn Ferry Tour this season (there were only 10 first-time winners all of last season)
• At 19-under 197, breaks the 54-hole tournament scoring record and posts his second-lowest 54-hole score on Tour (196/2024 Memorial Health Championship presented by LRS)
• One of three players with two scores of bogey or worse through 54 holes (Alistair Docherty/T3, Mitchell Meissner/T3 – two bogeys each); his bogeys came at the par-3 14th in Round 2, and the par-3 16th in Round 1
• Making third appearance at The Ascendant presented by Blue (missed cut in both previous appearances)
• Had not broken par in any of his four previous rounds at The Ascendant presented by Blue (77-75/2022; 73-72/2023)
• Finished in the top 75 of the Korn Ferry Tour Points List each of the last two seasons (No. 55 as a rookie in 2022, No. 35 in 2023) and is fully exempt for 2024
• Earned Korn Ferry Tour membership for the first time ahead of the 2022 season with a T39 at Final Stage of 2021 Korn Ferry Tour Qualifying Tournament (now PGA TOUR Q-School presented by Korn Ferry)
• Turned professional in 2021 after five seasons at Santa Clara University (2016-21), where he earned three All-West Coast Conference honors (2018, 2019, 2021)

Cristobal Del Solar (Second/-16)

• Equals his career-high 54-hole position (2nd/2024 BMW Charity Pro-Am presented by TD SYNNEX/finished career-high solo third)
• Seeking his first Korn Ferry Tour victory in what is his 41st career start on the Korn Ferry Tour
• Already has five top-10s this season, three of which are top-five finishes, including a career-high solo third at BMW Charity Pro-Am presented by TD SYNNEX
• Carded a 13-under 57, the lowest 18-hole score ever recorded in a PGA TOUR-sanctioned event, in the first round of the 2024 Astara Golf Championship presented by Mastercard on the satellite course (Pacos) at Country Club de Bogota
• Finished No. 52 on the 2023 Korn Ferry Tour Points List as a rookie, logging four top-10s in 25 starts
• Won four times on PGA TOUR Latinoamérica (now PGA TOUR Americas since merging with PGA TOUR Canada), tying him for the second-most career wins in the Tour’s history
• Turned professional in 2017 after five seasons at Florida State University (2012-17), winning once and garnering 2017 All-America Third Team recognition, as well as All-Atlantic Coast Conference laurels in 2016 and 2017
• Moved to the United States when he was 15 years old and attended IMG Academy in Bradenton, Florida
• Plays from Palm Beach Gardens, Florida, but originally born in Vina del Mar, Chile, roughly 76 miles from Santiago, where the Korn Ferry Tour’s Astara Chile Classic presented by Scotiabank is contested

Timmy Crawford (T26/-9)

• Aces the 365-yard par-4 third for the fifth hole-in-one on a par 4 in Korn Ferry Tour history, and the first since Rob Oppenheim at the 2012 Korn Ferry Tour Championship presented by United Leasing & Finance
• Crawford is an open qualifier who turned professional this summer after four seasons at Loyola University Chicago and a fifth season at University of Illinois.

Par-4 holes-in-one in Korn Ferry Tour history

Quotables

Matt McCarty on breaking the 54-hole tournament scoring record… “I feel like I'm just playing the golf course really well. Last couple years out here… I haven't made a cut yet and probably haven't really shot anything under par, to be honest, so felt like I've grown a lot over the last couple years. Two years ago out here I was completely different than I am now, but just staying within myself. With everybody hitting it 400, 450 yards out here, I'm not going to overpower this place obviously, so really stick with my game plan, staying true to what I do. I would say long courses… the course maybe doesn't set up for my game with accuracy and not hitting it the farthest, but I know if I play good golf, my good golf's good enough anywhere.”

McCarty on missing the cut at this event in his previous two appearances… “I just wanted some redemption. Tomorrow, kind of have an opportunity for the ultimate aspect of that redemption. But, yeah, it's a good golf course. It's tough. You've got to hit a lot of good iron shots, you've got to hit a lot of good shots everywhere, putt and chip well around these greens. It's tough. Job's not finished, but just try to do the same thing tomorrow and stay patient.”

Additional player notes

• Alistair Docherty (T3/-14) cards 9-under 63 to tie the 18-hole tournament scoring record and TPC Colorado course record previously established by Chase Johnson (2020/R4), Greyson Sigg (2020/R4), Taylor Moore (2021/R1), and Richy Werenski (2024/R1).
• Docherty establishes a new career-high 54-hole position, stands inside the top 10 after 54 holes of a Korn Ferry Tour event for only the second time (T7/2024 LECOM Suncoast Classic/finished T20).
• Mitchell Meissner (T3/-14), older brother of PGA TOUR rookie and Class of 2023 Korn Ferry Tour graduate Mac Meissner, established a new career-high 54-hole position, stands inside the top 10 after 54 holes of a Korn Ferry Tour event for the third time (T5/2023 BMW Charity Pro-Am presented by TD SYNNEX/finished T11; T9/2024 Visit Knoxville Open/finished 11th).
• Peter Kuest (T9/-12), who shared the 36-hole lead with McCarty, falls out of the top five after 1-under 71.
• Korn Ferry Tour winner Rick Lamb (T9/-12) is seeking his first top 25 on Tour since the 2021 Visit Knoxville Open, where he finished T22.
• Cheyenne, Wyoming, native Joshua Creel (T9/-12) remains in the top 10 following a 2-under 70, marks his highest 54-hole position on Tour since the 2023 Visit Knoxville Open (T9 through 54 holes/finished T52).
• University of Colorado alum Jeremy Paul (T21/-10), winner of the 2024 season-opening The Bahamas Great Exuma Classic at Sandals Emerald Bay, moves into the top 25 with a 4-under 68, highlighted by an eagle at the par-4 sixth.