Doug Ireland, Journal Services
MEMPHIS – Choudrant resident Sam Burns jumped into contention Friday with a second-round 63 and battled through unusually erratic drives a day later in Round 3 to record a fifth-place tie and collect a $760,000 paycheck Sunday at the FedEx St. Jude Championship.
The event at TPC Southwind was the first in three steps to the FedEx Cup Championship. Burns, who plays out of Squire Creek Country Club, finished with a 13-under score of 267 (67-63-70-67), four shots back of winner Hideki Matsuyama, the bronze medalist in golf at the Paris Olympics.
Burns entered the week at 29th in the FedEx Cup standings, and rose to 18th Sunday. The top 50 advance to the BMW Championship next weekend at Castle Pines (Colorado) and the top 30 after next Sunday go the final event at East Lake Country Club in Atlanta.
Burns, a native of Shreveport and product of Calvary Baptist Academy, upped his season winnings total to $4.7 million. The 28-year-old former LSU All-American, a pro since 2019, jumped over $26 million in career earnings to $26.4 million with his seventh top 10 finish of the 2024 season in 19 starts.
He had a volatile Saturday round, marked by a badly hit drive on the ninth tee that prompted him to slam his driver into the ground, breaking off the head. He played the back nine without a driver. Burns carded seven birdies, three on the back side, and had only four pars in Round 3.
Burns, who leads the PGA Tour this season with 15 eagles due in no small part to his typical control on long drives, eagled the par-5 16th on Sunday , but bogeyed No. 18 for the second straight day to miss tying his good friend Scottie Scheffler for fourth place at 14-under. The pals and their wives and infant sons shared a rented home on the 18th tee at the tournament.
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