PUNTA CANA, Dominican Republic — William McGirt will make his second PGA Tour start this season when he tees it up in the Corales Puntacana Championship this week in the Dominican Republic.

McGirt, who is playing the 2024 season with conditional status, has had a hard time getting into fields due to being lower in priority. The Corales Puntacana Championship is an alternate-field event, with less FedExCup points and prize money at stake than the RBC Heritage, which has the stronger field.

“My game is OK right now,” McGirt told The Robesonian. “It’s just tough when you don’t know when you’re getting an event.”

McGirt said he and his family drove to Sarasota, Florida intending to play the Korn Ferry Tour event there this week before he got into the field for the Corales Puntacana Championship; he was fifth alternate Sunday evening before waking up Monday to find himself in the field, he said.

McGirt missed the cut in the Puerto Rico Open in early March; he also played in the Korn Ferry Tour’s Club Car Championship two weeks ago and missed the cut.

McGirt missed the cut in last year’s Corales Puntacana Championship with consecutive rounds of 1-over 73.

“This golf course is long and wide open and usually pretty windy,” McGirt said. “It’s a huge advantage to bomb it. I hit a lot of fairway woods and long irons into greens last year. The greens are usually pretty slow due to the winds, which is a disadvantage for me. I struggle when I have to smash putts.”

Nicolai Hojgaard, who contended through the first two rounds of the Masters last week, Alex Noren and Billy Horschel are among the betting favorites. Matt Wallace won the event in 2023 but is not in the field this week.

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