How former Rebels, Las Vegas locals fared in Shriners Open
Kevin Na (Summerlin resident) — 15-under 269, tied for second
Tied for the lead with two holes to play, Na fired his tee shot short of the green on the par-3 17th before chunking his approach shot and missing a 12-foot putt for par.
Trailing by one stroke on the par-4 18th, Na found the green in two, but pushed an 18-foot birdie putt just right of the hole. He tapped in for par to finish 4-under 67 for the final round and 15-under for the tournament – good for second place.
“The lie was actually sitting up too high like it was on a tee and I just went under it,” Na said of his approach on 17. “With the bermuda into the grain, I don’t know what happened.”
Na, ranked 24th in the World Golf Rankings, finished in second place for the second consecutive week, and the eighth time in his PGA Tour career. His lone career PGA Tour win came at the 2011 Shriners Hospitals for Children Open.
Chad Campbell (UNLV 1994-1996) — 14-under 270, tied for eighth
Campbell was in striking distance of Sunday’s leaders, just two strokes off the lead entering the final round. But a 1-over 36 on the front nine left him with too much ground to make up. A 4-under, bogey free back nine catapulted Campbell back to where he began the day – two strokes off the lead.
This week’s tournament was Campbell third top-10 finish of 2015, and his best event since June’s FedEx St. Jude Classic, where he also finished tied for eighth.
Nick Watney (Henderson resident) — 12-under 272, tied for 11th
After firing a 1-over 72 on Saturday, Watney rebounded with a 4-under 67 on Sunday to nearly earn his first top-10 since the AT&T Byron Nelson Championship in May. The world’s 123rd ranked player shot 1-over on the front nine, but birdied the par-4 10th, the par-4 11th and par-5 13th holes and added an eagle on the par-5 16th.
Scott Piercy (Bonanza High School 1992-1996) — 9-under 275, tied for 25th
After barely making the weekend cut, Piercy posted a 3-under 69 on both Saturday and Sunday to finish on the upper half of the leaderboard. Piercy, whose strong 2015 has catapulted him from 184th in the world rankings to 43rd, eagled the par-5 ninth hole, birdied the par-4 13th, bogeyed the par-4 15th and birdied the par-4 16th.
Ryan Moore (UNLV 2002-2005) — 5-under 279, tied for 43rd
The most decorated golfer in UNLV’s program history made the weekend cut right on the 2-under cutline, then shot a 3-under 68 on Saturday and an even-par 71 on Sunday. Moore, who finished 11 strokes behind winner Smylie Kaufman, dropped strokes on the par-4 second hole and the par-4 fifth before posting birdies on the par-5 ninth. He birdied the par-4 10th, bogeyed par-5 16th and birdied par-3 17th.
Contact Chris Kudialis at ckudialis@reviewjournal.com or 702-380-4593. Find him on Twitter: @kudialisrj
