Longbella Gets Kia Open Victory when the 4th Round Is Rained out

quit

National

QUITO, Ecuador -- It was a good thing Thomas Longbella shot a 7-under-par 65 in the third round of the Quito Open, rather than waiting for the fourth to do it -- because there was no fourth round. 

Heavy rains Saturday night into Sunday morning made the Quito Tennis & Golf Club unplayable Sunday. Four groups started play, but the decision was made to cancel the final round with the fifth group on the first tee, which meant the scores after 54 holes were final -- and Longbella was the winner.  

As it turned out, the hole that decided the tournament was the 17th, a 585-yard par 5 that Longbella eagled on Saturday. And with that, the 26-year-old former University of Minnesota All-American scholar from Chippewa Falls went from one shot behind Gunn Yang to one shot ahead of him.

Longbella was at 200 (66-69-65) for 54 holes. Yang, who won the U.S. Amateur in 2014, shot 68 on Saturday and was at 201. Ben Carr, Ricardo Celia and Harry Hillier tied for third at 203. Shad Tuten shot the low round of the day, and tournament, a 64, and that put him in a tie for sixth at 204, along with Sandy Scott. 

For the effort, Longbella earned $40,500. That elevated him from No. 34 on the PGA Tour Americas money list to No. 4, with $47,874 in four events. He is also fourth on the points list, with 603. The top 10 on the points list at the end of the 2024 season will be promoted to the Korn Ferry Tour, which is the last stepping stone on the way to the PGA Tour. 

Longbella, who won the 2020 Wisconsin State Amateur by 10 shots, could also get partial status on the Korn Ferry next year by ending the Latin American portion of the PGA Tour Americas schedule in one of  the top two spots on the points list. The sixth -- and last -- Latin American event on the schedule will be the Rapidisimo Golf Championship in Bogota, Colombia, and it will be played in two weeks. 

The PGA Tour Americas is new this year. It combines the old PGA Tour LatinoAmerica and the PGA Tour Canada. The Canadian -- plus U.S. --  part of the new tour will begin June 20 with the Beachlands Victoria Open in Victoria, British Colombia. There will be nine Canadian/U.S. tournaments, ending in Minnesota with the CRMC Championship at the Cragans Legacy Course in Brainerd, Aug. 29 through Sept. 1. After that, the top 120 players on the points list will play in the Fortinet Cup Championship, Sept. 5-8 at TPC Toronto.  

It will be at the conclusion of the Fortinet Cup that PGA Tour Cards for 2025 will be awarded to the top 10 guys on the points list.

Derek Hitchner, the former Minnesota State Amateur champion (2021) from Minneapolis, is also a regular on the PGA Tour Americas this year. He tied for 54th in Ecuador (67-71-74--212), but he's had two top-10 finishes in the five tournaments he's played so far. He's No. 16 on the money list ($17,841) and 16th on the points list, as well, with 479.    


KIA Open

At Quito Tennis & Golf Club

Quito, Ecuador

Final results (the 4th round was rained out on Sunday)

1. Thomas Longbella      $40,500         66-69-65--200

2. Gunn Yang                     $24,300        67-66-68--201

T3. Ben Carr                       $11,700       70-67-66--203

T3. Ricardo Celia                $11,700       68-67-68--203

T3. Harry Hillier                   $11,700        65-71-67--203

T54. Derek Hitchner               $726        67-71-74--212