Marcus Byrd birdied the last two holes Sunday for a four-stroke win, his third career APGA Tour victory at the APGA Tour Farmers Insurance Invitational.
Coming off a stellar end to the 2022 season which saw the Georgia resident, 24, win the APGA Tour Farmers Insurance Fall Series bonus, he took home the $30,000 winner’s check and a PGA Tour exemption into the Honda Classic.
The chill had an effect on golfers at the South Course at Torrey Pines Golf Course – Byrd finished with a 3-over-par, the low round of the day, to stay ahead of Joey Stills for the win.
“The conditions today were extremely difficult, but that’s really what we want as players,” Byrd said. “We want to be tested and measure ourselves against the best. To be able to birdie the final two holes and win this event is extremely gratifying and a great way to start my season.”
Byrd has two starts coming on the PGA Tour in the next four weeks. On Monday, he was named the Charlie Sifford Memorial Exemption at the Genesis Invitational in Pacific Palisades – his second career start on the tour. The Honda Classic in Palm Beach comes up the following week.
Byrd wants to “just to be a sponge” at the tournaments.
“I feel like I have the game to be there,” he said. “Most importantly, I just have to learn. A lot of those guys, they’ve been out there for years. I’m going to take advantage of these two opportunities and learn as much as I can. And hopefully the game is in a good spot to where I can play well and perform well those weeks.”
He won the APGA Tour Valley Forge for his first win of the 2022 season and followed with a runner-up finish at the APGA Charlie Sifford Centennial.
Stills, son of PGA Tour player Adrian Stills, finished alone in second with a birdie on the 18th hole. His best finish on the APGA Tour in 2022 came at the Billy Horschel APGA Tour Invitational, where he finished third at TPC Sawgrass. He also won the 2022 Jim Thorpe Invitational and recorded two wins on the OGA Tour.
The APGA Tour was established in 2010 with the goal of bring greater diversity to the game of golf. The tour plans 18 tournaments, awarding close to $1 million in prize and bonus money, in 2023, along with a Player Development Program to aid minority golfers as they chase their goals in professional golf.