Paul Barjon wins Memorial Health Championship presented by LRS

Sometimes it can be hard to get a read on Paul Barjon.

Whether it’s smooth sailing or a rough go, the Frenchman maintains a pleasant disposition, confident that the next day will be a good one. As he matter-of-factly assessed his play early in the week at the Memorial Health Championship presented by LRS, it could be surmised he was well positioned on the Points List, not mired in a distant 147th, his career very much in jeopardy at the time.

But then again, the better days were very much around the corner. Barjon, 30, polished off rounds of 65-62-66-65 at Panther Creek Country Club, good for a one-stroke victory over Jackson Suber at 26-under 258, his second career Korn Ferry Tour title.

His early-week demeanor proved prescient, after all.

“I feel like every week's a new week,” Barjon said. “Just try to work hard and make it happen if you can … 156 guys have a chance to win, so might as well be that guy.

“I told my caddie at the beginning of the day, I was like, well, that's what we practice for. Like, you don't want to come in the day five, six shots behind. You want to be ahead and try to get the trophy.”

Suddenly Barjon stands No. 28 on the Korn Ferry Tour Points List, a seismic jump of 119 spots from his position as he arrived in the Land of Lincoln. The top-30 at season’s end will earn 2024 PGA TOUR membership.

As he commenced his winner’s interview Sunday afternoon, having just delivered a closing par on the water-logged 18th hole to cement the win, he spoke calmly of the “game plan” and related topics. But then the early-season struggles were touched upon – including a “heartbreaking” missed cut at last month’s U.S. Open, making double bogey on the final hole Friday to miss by one – and he paused.

Barjon, a new father, began to tear up.

“Just keep practicing,” he said after taking a moment to compose himself. “My wife’s very supportive; we have a young daughter … I had a great week at the U.S. Open, missed the cut again for the third time in a row, so that was kind of a heartbreak. It reminded me of this (18th) hole … you need to make a bogey to make the cut, need to make a par here to win. It’s harder than it looks, for sure.”

For the most part, Barjon made it look easy at the Memorial Health Championship. He assumed the lead with a scintillating 9-under 62 in the second round, and he maintained pole position with a third-round 66 in a week of abundant birdies.

Barjon started fast out of the gate Sunday with five birdies in his first seven holes, providing a cushion that allowed him to withstand a modest 1-under 35 on the final nine, including a bogey at the stout par-3 17th hole, despite the best efforts of spirited challengers.

Korn Ferry Tour rookie Jackson Suber played his first 16 holes in 10-under, including eagles at the par-5 13th and 16th holes, but was undone by a bogey at the pivotal 17th and made a closing par to post 25-under, one back of Barjon’s eventual winning total.

Air Force alum Tom Whitney made six consecutive closing birdies to finish 24-under, two back, while rookie Frankie Capan finished in solo fourth at 23-under.

The final round included two weather delays; play was first suspended at 1:11 p.m. local time and delayed for 75 minutes. After resuming at 2:16 p.m., play was again suspended at 3:10 p.m. and delayed for 71 minutes. Play resumed at 4:21 p.m. and continued to the finish.

Barjon was born in France but moved to New Caledonia, an island in the southwestern Pacific Ocean, at age 2. He grew up in New Caledonia but moved back to France at age 16, then attended college at Texas Christian University, where he befriended TOUR pro Tom Hoge among others.

After turning pro in 2016, Barjon earned 2017 Korn Ferry Tour status but struggled to find a comfort zone, finishing outside the top 100 on the season-long standings and losing status. He spent two seasons on PGA TOUR Canada, winning the season-long race in 2019 to earn back Korn Ferry Tour status, and then earned his first TOUR card via the 2020-21 combined campaign – including a victory at the 2021 Huntsville Championship.

Now he’s back in the winner’s circle, his sights set on the PGA TOUR once again.

What a difference a week makes.

Final-Round Notes

The final round had two suspensions due to inclement weather Sunday. The first delay lasted 1 hour, 5 minutes from 1:10 p.m. through 2:16 p.m. CT, and the second suspension lasted 1 hour, 11 minutes from 3:10 p.m. through 4:21 p.m. local time.

Paul Barjon (winner/-26) earns the second victory of his Korn Ferry Tour, first since 2021 HomeTown Lenders Championship, and moves up from 147th to 28th on the Points List

- Barjon posted the lowest 72-hole score by any player this season with a 258 (-26) which was one stroke shy of the tournament course record of 257 (set by Taylor Moore in 2021 and matched by Paul Haley II in 2022)

- He held a share of the 36-hole lead as well as the outright 54-hole lead

- Barjon’s win at the Memorial Health Championship presented by LRS marks his fifth title in a PGA TOUR-sanctioned start after winning twice on Korn Ferry Tour and three times on PGA TOUR Canada

Korn Ferry Tour rookie Jackson Suber (2nd/-25) carded a career low 9-under 62 in the final round via six birdies, two eagles and one bogey

- After logging two back-nine eagles on the par 5s 13th and 16th, Suber tied Barjon for the lead at 26-under par, but a bogey at the par-3 17th dropped him to 25-under par, resulting in a solo second finish

- Suber moved up from 53rd to 22nd on the Points List

In his 109th start on Tour, Tom Whitney (3rd/-24) posted a final-round 10-under 61, a new career low round

- Whitney had three bogey-free rounds this week, with the only blemish all week being a double bogey at the par-4 15th in the second round (26 birdies, one double bogey)

- Whitney played the final two rounds at 19-under par, including six straight birdies on Nos. 13-18 to end the final round

Frankie Capan III (4th/-23), who tied for the most birdies by any player this week with 28, recorded the third top-10 finish of his rookie season on the Tour

Making his third start as a professional, Adrien Dumont de Chassart (T8/-21) notched his third consecutive top-10 finish after posting a final-round bogey-free 8-under 63 that included six straight birdies on Nos. 12-17