Chris Kirk exited the three-way play-off at the Rocket Classic on the second hole, after three-putting the 15th green.
Kirk could have wrapped up the win on the first play-off hole of the Rocket Classic, but he missed his nine-foot putt to let Aldrich Potgieter and Max Greyserman off the hook.
Aldrich Potgieter took the spoils in the end, and he became only the fifth player from outside of the USA to win on the PGA Tour before the age of 21.
Kirk has been in poor form on the PGA Tour this season, with six missed cuts and no top-10s to his name in the 16 events he has played before the Rocket Classic this week.
The 40-year-old’s form has been a far cry from what he displayed in the 2024 season where he has a win and three top-10s.
The six-time PGA Tour winner will undoubtedly come back stronger from this setback.
He certainly showed real humility after his hugely disappointing three-putt on the second play-off hole.
Chris Kirk’s instant reaction after Rocket Classic play-off heartache
Nothing is going right for Kirk right now.
Photo by Joseph Weiser/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images
Golf is an incredibly difficult game at the very highest level, and the 40-year-old will vouch for that after the way he exited the play-off at Detroit Golf Club on Sunday.
He was approached by an -on-course reporter immediately after he three-putted the 15th hole.
And Kirk oozed class with his response, when asked by on-course reporter Mark Immelman for his thoughts.
He said: “Yeh obviously just really disappointed right now but I felt like I played great today. I’m happy with the way I played but it’s a shame that first play-off hole, I hit three perfect shots, I just misread that putt a little bit. That’s just the way it goes sometimes.“
That is what you call real class from Kirk. Grace in defeat is hugely important, and a lot of his fellow PGA Tour pros could learn a lot from what he did after exiting the Rocket Classic play-off.
Chris Kirk’s PGA Tour stats in 2025
Kirk has been well off the boil this season, and something has clearly not been right with his game in general.
That all changed this week at Detroit Golf Club, when the 40-year-old showed form similar to what he displayed in 2024.
That said, his stats this season are still in desperate need of a lot of improvement.
StatRankStrokes gained off the tee75thStrokes gained approach66thStrokes gained scrambling107thStrokes gained putting161stStrokes gained total119th
As long as Kirk uses the heartbreak he suffered at the Rocket Classic as inspiration to work even harder, then he’ll be just fine.
He deserves to get back into the winners’ circle.
