It’s safe to say that the 26-year-old Matt McCarthy is playing the best golf of his career.
Just three months ago, McCarty was grinding on the Korn Ferry Tour, hoping to make it carve a path to the Big Show. He had posted several close calls — T3 in March at the Astara Chile Classic, T4 in May at the AdventHealth Championship, T5 in July at Ascendant — but was still in contention for his first Korn Ferry title.
Matt McCarty picks up first PGA Tour win in just third start at Black Desert Championship
Jack Hirsch
Then, it happened. A week after his T5 finish, McCarty won the Cutter Charity Classic Award with rounds of 65-67-65-66. Two weeks later, he was runner-up at the Utah Championships. A week after that, McCarty won for the second time at the Pinnacle Bank Championship. And two weeks after that, he won by one the third time at the Albertsons Boise Open, automatically punching his ticket to the PGA Tour.
McCarty finished the 2024 Korn Ferry season as the tournament’s top performer, earning more than $1 million.
But his story gets even better. In just his second event as a member of the PGA Tour, McCarty won his first PGA Tour title in the Black Desert Championship. For those keeping track, that made four wins in two tournaments in less than three months. Wow!
How did McCarty do it? The Scottsdale, Ariz. resident joined the hosts of Subpar Colt Knost and Drew Stoltz to explain how his experience on the Korn Ferry Tour laid the foundation for his rapid success on the PGA Tour.
“I played a lot of good golf last year as well,” McCarty said. “I was close to getting my card. Finished 35th, and in Indiana for the final event, was leading the event through 53 holes.
“So on the 18th, made like an 8. Up until that point, I had played the last nine holes in seven under, probably the best round of golf I had played up to that point, given what was on the line with the tournament card that week and everything,” he continued. “But, you know, making some mistakes and feeling that pressure and realizing the difference in how the club feels in your hands and how fast things can move sometimes. I mean, they all build. And it’s been a lot of fun this year to put myself in that situation a lot more and honestly be able to perform feeling those things as well.”
McCarty said spending an extra year on the Korn Ferry Tour also helped him feel more prepared for the PGA Tour.
What clubs does Black Desert Championship winner Matt McCarty play for? Winner’s bag
Jack Hirsch
“I think everything happens for a reason in the sense that, you know, I played well this year to begin with,” McCarty said. “I was in the Bahamas on the Korn ferry, not playing so well. And in early spring, playing good golf, but nothing great. But there on the Korn ferry, being my third year, it was okay. I am comfortable with the courses. I knew things were moving in the right direction.
But you know, you’re starting on Tour and you miss a few cuts early, and things start moving faster,” he continued. “You are not taking in so many events. Who knows how this year would have gone for me too.
“So everything happens for a reason, and everything is like a learning element to it and you have to take advantage of the opportunities that come your way and just try to keep your head down and play golf and stay patient, honestly. “
For more from McCarty, including how he celebrated his win in Las Vegas, watch the full episode of Subpar below.
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