Troy Merritt eyes back-to-back FedExCup Playoffs appearances

LEXINGTON, Ky. – A year ago, it was a matter of survival. And not just because of the seemingly relentless rain that forced a Monday finish at the Barbasol Championship.

Troy Merritt had come to the tournament ranked No. 131 in the FedExCup and fighting to keep his job for the second year in a row. He walked away with the victory, though, riding the momentum of a first-round 62, and locked up his card through the end of the 2019-20 season.

Merritt’s goals in his title defense are slightly different.

He missed the better part of three months at the start of 2019 when he had surgery to remove a rib that was too close to the clavicle on his left side. Merritt’s goal for the rest of the year was to get to 20 events and he’s on track to make that a reality – and the FedExCup Playoffs, to boot.

The Barbasol Championship marks Merritt’s 17th start with two more events remaining to be played in the regular season. Depending on what happens in these final three weeks, at No. 108 currently in the FedExCup he looks to be assured of at least one – and possibly more – Playoff starts.

“So, goal achieved,” Merritt said with a smile of satisfaction. “Looking forward to some good golf, reliving some fun memories from last year out here and moving on forward from this point.”

A tie for seventh at the inaugural 3M Open two weeks ago – Merritt’s third top-10 of the season and best since his surgery – was a big boost. He went to high school 15 minutes away from TPC Deere Run and was pleased to be in the mix as the PGA TOUR made its debut there.

“That was a fun week,” Merritt said. “… Having a bunch of family and friends and local support, it was just fun to play good golf and listen to a lot of people cheer. That's why we're out here, we love to make people happy.”

A missed cut at last week’s John Deere Classic may have been a bit of a hangover after the hometown heroics. But Merritt is feeling positive vibes at Keene Trace where he never lost the lead after shooting 10 under in the first round and went on to beat Billy Horschel, Tom Lovelady and Richy Werenski by one.

The Champions Course could pose a different challenge this week, though. The rain forced multiple weather delays on multiple days last year – Merritt, in fact, didn’t hit a shot on Sunday and had to play a full 18 on Monday – and the course was soggy.

This year, though, Mother Nature appears ready to make amends. There is no chance of rain the first three days, although the summer standby of afternoon or evening thunderstorms enters the picture on Sunday.

And with temperatures in the mid-90s and a heat index in the triple digits, the Champions Course will have a chance to firm up considerably over the next three days.

“We played it pretty much in a swamp last year and it's playing a lot different this year,” Merritt said. “After we left last year, we were kind of wondering what it would be like to play it dry.

“It seemed like it would be a much sterner test when you've got to control your ball a little bit more and I think we're going to get that this week.”

Suffice it to say, Merritt doesn’t expect to see anyone get to 23 under like he did last year.

“The greens are the biggest change right now,” he explained. “Last year it was easy to get the ball in close to the pins because it was so soft. This year it's so much firmer, it's hard to control the ball on the greens.

“Sometimes you get a little bit of a softer bounce and sometimes you can land it on the front edge and run it over the back of the green. So, if you're not playing from the fairway this week, you're going to have a hard time finding greens. And chipping around here isn't the easiest.”

Regardless of what happens this week, Merritt knows he’s come a long way in the last 12 months.

A year ago, while he could make a golf swing, he inexplicably couldn’t lift his left arm over his head. Finally, 10 weeks after the Barbasol Championship and with his arm turning purple, Merritt’s wife made him go to the doctor who discovered a huge blood clot from his chest to his elbow.

The clot was removed, and Merritt was diagnosed with thoracic outlet syndrome where that rib crowding his clavicle was pinching on a vein. He treated the condition with blood thinners and played with a compression sleeve – then decided to have the rib removed after he played in the Sentry Tournament of Champions.

Merritt says he’s even played better without the rib that was removed.

“It was a lot more stress last year, that's for sure,” he said. “This year, just kind of playing stress‑free golf. It's fun to come back to a place where you have good memories.

“Last year was awesome being able to win, but yeah, it freed up this year. I don't know. Hopefully the golf's as good as last year for me, but we'll have fun regardless.”