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Zac Blair didn't formally secure his PGA Tour status for next season with Sunday's career-best final round at the Travelers Championship.
But he came as close as one can get.
The former BYU golfer shot a career-low 62 Sunday to finished tied for second at 20-under-par 260 at TPC River Highlands in Cromwell, Connecticut.
Keegan Bradley pulled away for his sixth PGA Tour title and second in 2023, clinching the $3.6 million purse with five birdies with three bogeys to finish with a tournament-record 23-under 267.
Blair joined Brian Harman in a tie for second, one shot ahead of Scottie Scheffler, Chez Reavie and Patrick Cantlay, who briefly moved into second after his third-straight birdie on the back nine before falling a shot back with a bogey on the par-3 16th hole.
Rose Park native Tony Finau shot 70 Sunday to finished tied for 45th at 9-under.
On another day, Blair may have challenged for the title. But not against Bradley, who opened with a 62 and carded rounds of 63 and 64 before holding on with Sunday's 68.
"He's, obviously, playing great," Blair said of Bradley. "You know, conditions were pretty good. Obviously, it rained yesterday and got a little softer. I think it made the course a little more receptive, but it's just how it goes. Some weeks they take it deeper than they did the last year. Any time you get to 20-under, at least for me, that's really good."
Blair finished his fourth round at 62, which briefly moved him into a second-place finish with a four-day total of 20-under 260. The Fremont High alum was five shots behind Bradley at that point, but his eyes were as much on the pack behind him as the lone golfer in front of him after firing eight birdies and an eagle while completing his back nine in 5-under 30 strokes.
According to PGA rules officials, a solo-second place finish would've given secured Blair's tour status for next year for the 32-year-old Utah native playing on a medical exemption after missing nearly two years with labrum surgery to repair two tears in his right shoulder.
With eight starts left on his exemption, Blair knows the clock is ticking on a continuation of his pro career.
"I'm hoping I take second place and that takes care of a lot of it," Blair told on-site media immediately following his round, adding a laugh. "It's like there are too many events left. I think I only have eight, and that has to get me through the fall. I don't even know how many events there are in the fall. I don't know if they know how many events are in the fall.
"There is no use really crunching the numbers," he added.
Have a day, @Z_Blair 💪
— PGA TOUR (@PGATOUR) June 25, 2023
Playing on a medical extension, Blair has eight more starts to earn 271 points to retain his card.
With six birdies and an eagle today, he's currently T3 @TravelersChamp. pic.twitter.com/XqMFdTo3Hd
Harman connected with his fourth-straight birdie on the par-3, 273-yard 16th hole to move into a tie for second, and Cantlay passed the duo with three-straight birdies on the back nine before falling a shot back down the stretch to make way for Bradley's coronation.
The tie cost him a few points from securing his PGA Tour card for next year. In addition to the $1.78 million check for finishing tied for second, Blair also added 245 points in the FedEx Cup standings, leaving him 25.482 points short of extending his career. He has seven starts remaining on his medical exemption card, and can now focus on qualifying for the FedEx Cup playoffs after rocketing 54 spots to No. 90 in the points chase.
"It's, obviously, great to play good,'' Blair told CBS Sports after his final round. "Things kind of take care of themselves when you do. I need a few more good weeks probably, but that's a good start."
Blair said he'll play in next week's John Deere Classic at TPC Deere Run in Illinois, while Finau moves to defend his title at the Rocket Mortgage Classic in Detroit.
