PONTE VEDRA BEACH, Fla. – Lanto Griffin didn’t need any extra motivation, but the email that arrived in his inbox Wednesday night didn’t hurt.
After finishing outside the top 150 in FedExCup points this season, Griffin thought his status for next year wouldn’t be great. He was shocked, however, to read that he had no guaranteed Korn Ferry Tour departures in his back pocket.
“It kind of pissed me off,” Griffin said.
So what did Griffin do? He took his frustrations out on the course at the final stop of the PGA Tour Q-School, capping his first trip to the qualifying school in eight years with a 7-under 63 on the Dye’s Valley course at TPC Sawgrass for s escape with medalist honors.
Griffin doesn’t have to worry about Korn Ferry Tour starting now.
He was one of six players to become a full member of the PGA Tour during this second year of the latest iteration of Q-School.
“When your back is against the wall, you don’t have a choice,” Griffin said. “Obviously I could have taken a different path this week, but my concentration was good. The ride and everything is still there, and I really didn’t want it to end.
Griffin’s victory at Q-School marks his first victory of any kind since his first PGA Tour title at the 2019 Houston Open. A lot has happened since then: breaking a disc in his lower back in July 2022 and the subsequent microdiscectomy that kept Griffin, No. 65 in points at the time, out until the following January; marrying his longtime girlfriend, Maya, in December 2022 and welcoming their first child, daughter Navy Collins, earlier this fall; helping his longtime instructor, Steve Prater, build a new indoor facility at Blacksburg Country Club; and become something of a spokesperson and public advocate for the PGA Tour grassroots.
Griffin now admits that he returned too soon, perhaps even six months prematurely, and that he struggled under the pressure of competing for a medical extension. He didn’t finish in the top 10 last year, and he only had one this season, at the ISCO Championship in July, before losing his card.
But he gained confidence by making nine straight cuts, and if he could just start making putts – he was No. 123 in strokes gained: putting this season – he would have no problem regaining his place on the big tour .
The hot flatstick, thanks to a setup reveal Monday morning, appeared this week as Griffin three-shotted into the 60s, the lone outlier a respectable 72 in brutal scoring conditions Friday at Sawgrass Country Club. He opened Sunday’s final round with an eagle and made four more birdies before the turn, allowing himself into the clubhouse for what would be a three-shot victory over Hayden Buckley, another former PGA player. Tower looking to bounce back. injury. Buckley tore a rib muscle two summers ago, fell in strokes gained: off the tee (No. 10 to No. 90 this year) and finished two spots ahead of Griffin in points. Unlike Griffin, however, Buckley was not given a start in any tour he was offered.
“A big relief,” said Buckley, who put a new driver and 3-wood into play this week, which he capped with back-to-back 67s. “There was a time today where I felt like it was going away, but I had a great feeling all week from the second I stepped foot on the property. … It’s no secret I played poorly this year, but I knew I was so close to playing good golf.
Along with Griffin and Buckley who wore #TourBound hats Sunday night around the sprawling TPC Sawgrass clubhouse, four others were in attendance: Takumi Kanaya, the former world No. 1 amateur from Japan who began the week as second highest ranked player on the field, but with no status; Alejandro Tosti, the very talented but very emotional Argentinian who overcame a 5-under start to shoot 9 under this weekend and keep his card after an inconsistent rookie season; Will Chandler, who struggled at the University of Georgia but continued Monday’s momentum by qualifying for five Korn Ferry Tour events this year; and Matthew Riedel, who had perhaps the most stressful Sunday.
Riedel started the final day tied for the lead with Alistair Docherty. Both were relaxed as they warmed up on a soggy driving range, Docherty on the far left, right against the amateurs swaggering corners before taking on the nearby Stadium Course. Riedel’s caddy was even throwing golf balls, trying to land them on a target green about 75 yards away.
The pair would then combine to shoot 6 on the front nine.
Docherty, who missed out on his PGA Tour card a few months ago at the Korn Ferry Tour Championship, made a double bogey on the par-5 first hole and didn’t make a birdie until the penultimate hole, to finally find yourself alone. seventh, again just one shot off his PGA Tour card. Riedel made just two pars in his first 10 holes, adding three birdies, four bogeys and a double.
“I’ve been in some nervous situations,” said Riedel, the recent Vanderbilt standout who punched his ticket to the final stage after finishing in the top five in the PGA Tour University race. “He was by far the most nervous. It was a bit of a tunnel not being able to see anything. … But I had a lot of confidence in myself and I’m glad it worked out the way it did.
Riedel later added: “I have to go and improve a little bit.”
Riedel is fully aware of the next challenge he will face. The same goes for Griffin, who earlier this week called next year the toughest ever to maintain his PGA Tour card. Last season, no Q-School graduate appeared in more than three of the first 10 tournaments, and none of them retained their card, with Hayden Springer coming closest at 127th in points. But as Griffin points out, the problem will likely be exacerbated in 2025, as fully exempt players play more in an attempt to clear the new job security threshold, No. 100 in the FedExCup, or 25 spots shy of previously. This year, only five of the 29 Korn Ferry Tour graduates (not counting Ben Kohles, who was in a better category as the tour points winner in 2023) finished in the top 100.
This isn’t the first time Griffin has spoken out about the ever-changing landscape of the PGA Tour. After months of expressing his opinion, Griffin joined the Players Advisory Council this year, but admitted he was frustrated by the politics, which influenced the creation of a simpler, meaner circuit in 2026.
“I don’t agree with that,” Griffin said. “I think the changes that have been made are not the best thing for golf and I don’t think they’re the best thing for the PGA Tour, in my opinion, and a lot of guys agree with me . I hope we can find a happy medium, unite the world of professional golf and get back to competition which is the most important thing.
This Sunday, that was the case.
And no one has competed more masterfully than Griffin, who after recent setbacks — and nearly one more this week — is hungrier than ever.
“It’s like an addiction,” Griffin added. “We work so hard for so many years. And the last two, just the injuries and the different body feeling, you’re not sure if you’ll ever be able to do it again, get back to that level. You see, these young children have been successful so far, they are healthy and they are single; they have no family. I want to experience this with my family now, with my baby, and you just don’t want it to end.
“It’s like going to a really good concert; you just want there to be a few more songs.
