Lardon wins Sun Country

Brad Lardon fired rounds of 65-74-71 for a 6-under 210 at the Inn of the Mountain Gods in Mescalero and beat Scott Lieberwirth by four shots to win the Sun Country PGA Professional Championship. The event doubles as the Section Championship and qualifier for the 2017 PGA Professional National Championship.

Lardon is director of golf at Las Campanas. Liberwirth is men’s golf coach at UTEP.

The event was held on Monday (36 holes) and Tuesday with 45 players taking part.

Three spots were up for grabs in next year’s National Championship. The section also has three players already exempt: Lardon and David Muttitt of Los Altos because of their top-20 finish in the PGA Professional National Championship earlier this summer, which also earned both of them spots in the PGA Championship, and Jeff Roth of San Juan Country Club. Roth has a lifetime exemption because he won the national event in 1993.

Lardon and Muttitt entered the final round at 5 under. Lardon was 6 under and Muttitt 4 under on the 10th. Lardon 4-putted from 30 feet for double bogey. Muttitt birdied to lead.

But Muttitt made bogey on 12 and lost a ball on the par-5 14th, leading to a triple bogey.

Liberwirth, Albuquerque’s Scott Gates (3 over) and Las Cruces’ Henry Stetina (4 over) got the three available qualifying spots. Ladera Golf Course head pro Bill Harvey lost to Stetina in a playoff.

“I lipped out on 16 and 17, then I bogeyed 18,” Harvey told the Journal. “That cost me getting a spot.”