Kisner wins by 1 in Chile

Santiago, Chile – Kevin Kisner shot 4-under 68 on Sunday to secure a 1-stroke victory at the Chile Classic.

Riding the momentum of his third-round, course-record 61, Kisner pulled away from fellow overnight leaders Edward Loar and Benjamin Alvarado with five birdies against a single bogey at Prince of Wales Country Club. The 29-year old, who missed the cut in his previous two starts this year, finished at 21- under 267 and secured his second Web.com Tour victory.

"I don't know why I won because I played so bad the last two weeks and missed the cut," Kisner said. "It wasn't terrible, but my game wasn't there and I wasn't confident. This course just fit my eye really well. I knew when I played my first nine holes in the practice round that I'd have a chance here."

Loar had four bogeys on Sunday en route to a final-round 69 and a tie for second place with Brice Garnett, who shot 68. Alvarado (71) and Guy Boros (65) ended in a tie for fourth place at 18-under.

I.J. Jang (66), Scott Harrington (68), Felipe Aguilar (68), Danny Lee (69) and Troy Merritt (69) shared sixth at 17-under, while Ryan Spears (67) placed 11th at minus-16.

Loar, who held the lead after 36 holes, was the first to go in front on Sunday courtesy of a birdie on the first. But he immediately dropped back to the pack with a bogey on the next hole, which set the tone for his inconsistent round.

Kisner grabbed his first outright lead of the day when he birdied the sixth to reach 18-under, and he maintained the advantage courtesy of birdies on Nos. 8 and 9.

Although Garnett lurked one shot back courtesy of three straight birdies before the turn, Kisner never relinquished the lead down the stretch. The former Georgia Bulldog pushed the margin to three shots with birdies on the 10th and 13th before hooking his tee shot into the trees and settling for a bogey at No. 14. That stumble, coupled with Garnett's birdie on the same hole, reduced Kisner's lead to a single shot.

Alvarado, a Santiago native, was also one stroke back at that point, but he was undone by a double-bogey on the par-3 15th.

Garnett, meanwhile, was hurt by a bogey on the 16th. He rebounded with a birdie on the 17th and a par on the last, but Kisner was able to hold on for the victory with four straight pars.

"I had a chance to make birdie, but couldn't get that last one up and down," Garnett said of the par-5 last, where he went for the green in two, but sailed the back of the green with a 4-iron.

Loar closed with consecutive birdies to finish one shot off Kisner's pace.

"I was trying to get to 22-under all day. That was the number I had in my head," Kisner continued. "When I got there with the birdie at 13 and still had two par-5s, I thought I was going to be good. It was a little shaky there coming in."

NOTES: Kisner's previous Web.com Tour win came at the 2010 Mylan Classic. He has played on the PGA Tour the previous two seasons, making 10 cuts in 24 starts in both 2011 and 2012. He has four top-25 finishes, including a tie for 10th at the 2012 RBC Canadian Open ... Alvarado is a two-time winner of the Chile Open (2003, 2010).