The Loop

Who is Peter Malnati and why is he leading the PGA Tour in final-round scoring average?

April 29, 2014

Peter Malnati missed the cut at last week's Zurich Classic of New Orleans, which means golf fans didn't get to see what Peter Malnati does best: go low on Sundays.

The PGA Tour rookie hasn't had much success in 2013-14, but he leads the tour with a final-round scoring average of 65.67. Wait, how is that possible?

/content/dam/images/golfdigest/fullset/2015/07/20/55ad788eadd713143b428ec6_blogs-the-loop-assets_c-2014-04-blog-peter-malnati-0428-thumb-518x326-133339.jpg

This picture of Malnati must not have been taken on a Sunday.

It helps that Malnati's Sunday sample size is small. He's only made it to final round three times, but firing a 65 and a pair of 66s in those instances is still pretty impressive (He ranks No. 141 in pre-cut scoring average). Malnati's most recent low Sunday score came at the Puerto Rico Open, where he finished a season-best T-14.

Malnati, 26, graduated from the University of Missouri in 2009 and he finished 22nd on the Web.com money list in 2013 to earn his PGA Tour card. He is a huge Kansas City Royals fan who happens to be sponsored by MLB.com. Malnati also keeps a pretty good blog detailing his experiences on tour.

How does any of that translate into low final-round scores? We have no clue. Does he need four rounds of competition to really get used to a course? Does he eat a special breakfast on Sunday?

We're sure it's just a statistical oddity, but so far, Malnati has proved he can play on Sundays -- when he gets there. Now, if only his game during the rest of the week could catch up.