Chesson Hadley won the Web.com Tour Championship, but he finished $566 behind the runner-up, John Peterson for the top spot in the Web.com Tour Finals.
Hadley began the day at Dye’s Valley Course with a two-shot lead, posted a final round one-under par and won the $180,000 first-place check.
It was Hadley’s second win of the season and his eighth top-10 finish. He was the Web.com Tour’s leading money winner with a total of $535,000.
John Peterson won a total of $230,000 and was the most consistent performer throughout the Web.com Tour Finals. He finished T-5 at the Hotel Fitness Championship, T-3 at the Chiquita Classic, third place alone at the Nationwide Children’s Hospital Championship and runner-up to Hadley at the Web.com Tour Championship.
A former standout at LSU, Peterson played in six events on the PGA Tour in 2013 and his best finish was a T-8 in New Orleans.
He collected six top-10 finishes on the 2013 Web.com Tour winning over $300,000. His first-place finish in the Web.com Tour Finals gives him full priority status on the 2014 PGA Tour and automatic entry into the Players Championship.
Peterson has the game to succeed on the PGA Tour and should be one of the young guys to watch when the 2014 season begins at the Frys.com in just two weeks.
Michael Putnam finished first at the end of the Web.com Tour’s regular season and also gains priority status on tour, as well as, entry into the Players.
The biggest mover on Sunday was another LSU Tiger, Andrew Loupe. He was ranked No. 116 on the Web.com Tour Final rankings at the beginning of the week. He shot rounds of 68-69-67-69 to finish tied for sixth place in the championship and earn the last PGA Tour card.
His former LSU teammate, Peterson met him as he walked off the last hole and gave him the good news.
Scott Gardiner, Brendon Todd and Brad Fritsch all finished tied with Peterson for runner-up. They all have former PGA Tour experience and earned their way back to the big show.
Russell Knox, Sean O’Hair, Billy Hurley, Ryo Ishikawa, Joe Durant, Heath Slocum, Daniel Chopra and Bud Cauley all earned return trips to the PGA Tour through the Web.com Tour Finals.
Will MacKenzie, a 38-year-old PGA Tour veteran, will be making a return trip to the tour. He first played on the PGA Tour in 2005 and won two events, the 2006 Reno-Tahoe Open and the 2008 Viking Classic.
Other PGA Tour veterans that did not fare as well; Tim Petrovic, Roberty Karlsson, Nick O’Hearn, Rod Pampling, Chad Campbell, Dickey Pride and Rickey Barnes all finished outside the top-25. They will be forced to play on the Web.com Tour and seek sponsor’s exemptions to play in a select few PGA Tour events next season.
The Web.com Tour Championship was the last event of the 2013 PGA Tour season. The Presidents Cup will be held next week at Muirfield Village in Dublin, Ohio.
The 2014 PGA Tour season begins October 10-13 with the Frys.com Open in California. Six tournaments held in October and November will offer 2014 FedEx Cup points and include stops in Malaysia, China and Mexico.