Sizzling final round carries Quincy native Luke Guthrie to championship of Waverly Open

WAVERLY, Ga. — Luke Guthrie found his way back to the top of the leaderboard.

A sizzling final 18 holes got him there.

The Quincy native shot a 9-under 63 in the final round of the GPro Tour’s Waverly Open on Thursday to play himself into a three-person playoff at 15-under. Guthrie then parred two playoff holes at Sanctuary Golf Club to win the championship — his first as a professional golfer since winning the WNB Classic on the Korn Ferry Tour in September 2012.

Guthrie opened the 54-hole event with back-to-back rounds of 3-under 69 and then went low over the final 18 holes.

He opened the final round six strokes off the lead and played the first nine holes in 3-under 33. He opened the back nine with four consecutive birdies, bogeyed the par-4 15th and came right back with a birdie on the par-4 16th.

Guthrie eagled the par-5 17th hole to get to 15-under and a tie for the lead.

In the playoff, Guthrie and Cody Proveaux both parred the par-4 18th, while Conner Godsey took a bogey. Playing the 18th hole again, Guthrie took par and Proveaux bogeyed to give Guthrie the title.

Guthrie played the four par-5s in the final round in 5-under with three birdies and an eagle.

The GPro Tour is a mini-tour headquartered in High Point, N.C., with tournaments played in seven states throughout the southeast.